Serengeti Wildlife Safari

In the fabled Serengeti—“the place where the land moves on forever”—wildlife roams freely across a landscape unchanged since the beginning of time. And on our quintessential safari, you’ll feel as if you have this special world all to yourself! We begin our dream journey with amazing gameviewing in Ngorongoro Crater, one of Africa’s legendary settings, then move to our own special safari camps on private gamelands bordering the Serengeti. Here we experience the untouched beauty and wildlife of Africa with off-road travel by open 4WD vehicle and game walks with a skilled tracker and Masai guides—an exclusive activity not possible inside the park and a true experience of “old Africa.” We know the seasonal patterns of the Serengeti well, and set our itinerary—and our camps—to ensure the best wildlife viewing possible.

Itinerary at a Glance

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Days 1-3
Arusha, Tanzania / Lake Manyara / Ngorongoro Crater (December to May)

After an overnight at Arusha’s lovely Serena Mountain Village, we enjoy a game drive in Lake Manyara National Park, set below the dramatic Great Rift Valley escarpment, then continue to Ngorongoro Crater, whose beauty and vastness is simply incredible. On the crater’s 105-square-mile grassy floor lives Africa’s largest permanent concentration of wildlife in a phenomenally scenic setting. During our safari in the crater, we’re likely to see elephant, zebra, wildebeest, and buffalo, and there’s hardly a better place on earth for observing prides of lions. Our overnights are at the luxurious Ngorongoro Serena Lodge, perched on the crater rim.

Days 4-7
Exclusive Camp in Private Gamelands

We visit Olduvai, where Mary Leakey discovered the Zinjanthropus skull, then head for the Alamana, a vast wilderness adjoining both Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Here the Masai live a traditional existence, moving freely in harmony with their livestock and side by side with the wildlife. Thanks to our long partnership with the tribe, we have permission to camp on their private gamelands, and since we are not in a national park, we enjoy very special wildlife viewing activities: off-road travel, exploration by open vehicle with 360-degree panoramas, nighttime game drives, and exciting bush walks with Masai moran (warriors) and our specialist walking guides. Cultural interactions with the Masai are always a highlight here.

Days 8-11
Serengeti Plains / Exclusive Private Camp

Our grand finale is on the Serengeti Plains, where we explore the Serengeti by 4WD vehicle from our own private camp on the edge of the short-grass plains. Large prides of lions reside here, as well as clans of spotted hyenas, and we may be lucky enough to spot a leopard, usually in the branches of acacia or sausage trees. As the predators stalk the bountiful herds, we should see vast numbers of wildebeest and zebra, along with the Serengeti’s resident wildlife, including giraffe, buffalo, topi, hartebeest, waterbuck, impala, reedbuck, bushbuck, dikdik, hippopotamus, crocodile, warthog, and diverse birdlife.

Days 12-13
Plantation Lodge / Arusha

Overnight at Plantation Lodge amid Tanzania’s famous coffee plantations, and depart on Day 13, or join our Zanzibar Extension.

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What the Trip is Like

This trip is rated Level 2+, easy to moderate. This is a camping and lodge safari with gameviewing by 4WD vehicle and bush walks that can be enjoyed by anyone in reasonably good health. There are a few long driving days over rough roads and rugged dirt tracks. At our private camps, we have opportunities for optional bush walks with a professional tracker as well as the flexibility to go out on game drives. The game-tracking walks are not difficult and are conducted at a pace that allows an intimate exploration of the African bush. Any African safari is an adventure, however, and the traveler to Africa should bring along flexibility, a sense of humor, curiosity about new peoples and places, and an openness to the unexpected.

Explanation of Trip Levels