This 11-day midrange safari on the northern circuit of Tanzania, takes you to the most famous and incredible parks whereby you will visit all major parks which are Tarangire, Serengeti, Lake Manyara, Lake Natron and Ngorongoro. In Tarangire, you will be astonished by the large African elephants as well as the huge and ancient baobab trees. Ngorongoro crater will be the icing on the cake and the best place to visit the endangered black rhinos, Lake Manyara which is known for its tree climbing Lions, Lake Natron which is a shallow acidic lake and famous for its flamingos and landscape and Serengeti which has the huge concentration of animals and famous for its great migration. You will sleep in midrange lodges with private showers.

DAY 1: ARRIVAL AT THE AIRPORT TO ARUSHA

Upon arrival at the airport in Arusha (ARK) or Kilimanjaro international airport (JRO), you will be met and welcomed by your representative from Gardenia African Safaris who will give you a short brief before you drive to your lodgings in Arusha for overnight.

Destination: Arusha city

Accommodation: Ilboru Safari Lodge / Mount Meru Hotel / Gold Crest Hotel

Meal: Bed & Breakfast

DAY 2: DAY AT LEISURE

Today, you will just relax at the hotel and have all meals included. You will get used to the atmosphere and the weather before your safari starts on the following day.

Destination: Arusha city

Accommodation: Ilboru Safari Lodge / Mount Meru Hotel / Gold Crest Hotel

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 3: ARUSHA TO TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK

Early morning after having breakfast at your hotel in Arusha at around 0730hrs to 0800hrs you will be picked up by your personal driver guide and depart straight to Tarangire National Park whereby the drive is approximately 2.5 hours to the gate. Tarangire National Park is located on the northern part of Tanzania with a wide variety of animals and landscape whereby the best part is the elephant herds. It is known to be the park which has the greatest concentration of African elephants and the ancient baobab trees. Tarangire has an area of approximately 2603 square Kilometers and within the park it is possible to see plenty of animals like the giraffes, Zebras, Buffalos, warthogs, Lions, Leopards, Impala, gazelles, dik dik and many more species. In this park, there are more than 500 birds’ species like the bee eaters, swallows, ostriches, kori bustards, hammerkops, vultures etc. The word Tarangire comes from Mbugwe tribe whereby “Tara” means river and “Ngire” means warthogs therefore it is the river of warthogs. The Tarangire river is the life giving opportunity for both herbivores and carnivores and it is the best spot for the lions to hunt their prey as they search for water especially during the dry season. Lunch will be served at a picnic site at around 1200hrs to 1300hrs and after that you will proceed with your game drive until in the late afternoon where you will exit the park and drive straight to your midrange lodge in near Tarangire for relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Destination: Tarangire National Park

Accommodation:  Tarangire Simba Lodge / Sangaiwe Tented Lodge

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 4: LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK 

Early morning after having breakfast at your lodge in Karatu at around 0730hrs to 0800hrs you will depart straight to Lake Manyara National Park whereby the drive is approximately 1 hour to the gate. Lake Manyara National Park is well known for its birds’ life and also known as the home of tree climbing lions. The park has an area of about 325 square kilometers whereby a third of the area is the land and the rest is the lake which makes Lake Manyara the best attraction. Lake Manyara is a shallow alkaline lake that attracts a number of birds to the area. The birds’ species that can be found in Lake Manyara includes both migratory birds and native birds species like the flamingos, pelicans, storks, herons, cranes, secretary birds, ground hornbills, ostriches and many more birds species. Animals that can be found in lake Manyara are like the lions, elephants, giraffes, zebras, warthogs, wildebeests, baboons, blue monkeys, waterbucks, bushbucks, rarely leopards, buffalo etc. The park is located on the south western part of Arusha at the rift valley region which makes it easier to do different activities like the forest hike on the rift valley and other activities include canoeing, tree canopy walk, walking safari around the lake etc. Lunch will be served at the picnic site, and after that you will drive straight to your accommodation for relaxation, dinner & overnight stay.

Destination: Lake Manyara National Park

Accommodation:  Manyara’s Secret

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 5: MANYARA TO LAKE NATRON

Early morning after breakfast, we drive straight to Lake Natron which Lake lies in the northeast of Tanzania in between the Ngorongoro Highlands and Serengeti plains. Here it is the landscape rather than the animals that is the attraction – the area around the lake inhabited by Maasai is dry, desolate and hauntingly beautiful. You will arrive at your accommodation in time for Lunch where you will relax and later you will drive to the lake for viewing. After that you will drive straight to your accommodation for dinner and overnight stay.

Destination: Lake Natron

Accommodation: Lake Natron Tented Camp / Africa Safari Lake Natron

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 6: FULL DAY AT LAKE NATRON

After an early Breakfast, we will start our activities at Lake Natron which includes following paths to some of the most interesting localities, such as hot springs, Ngare Sero waterfalls and much more. Situated at the base of Africa’s only active volcano Oldonyo Lengai (Mountain of God), Lake Natron is one of the most alkaline lakes in the world. The lake is home to millions of tiny crustaceans, attracting literally thousands of lesser flamingos and it is therefore one of the most important flamingo breeding grounds on earth.
After lunch and further time to enjoy the activities, you will drive straight to your accommodation for dinner and overnight stay.

Destination: Lake Natron

Accommodation: Lake Natron Tented Camp / Africa Safari Lake Natron

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 7: LAKE NATRON TO SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

Early morning after having breakfast at your accommodation at Lake Natron at around 0730hrs to 0800hrs you will depart straight to Serengeti National Park passing through the Klein’s gate. Serengeti National Park is the most famous park on the northern circuit of Tanzania with the greatest population of wildlife than anywhere else on this planet. The word Serengeti originates from Maasai tribe, the word “Seringiti” which means endless plains. The park covers a total area of approximately 14,763 square kilometers with more than 2 million mammals inhabiting the park. The great annual migration involves more than a million wildebeests accompanied by some 250,000 zebras and antelopes and it is one of the 7 wonders of the world. This is exactly what makes this park the most famous park. The park is also home to more than 500 birds’ species including the ostriches, kori bustard, starlings, weavers, marabou storks, vultures, eagles, kingfishers, rollers etc. Animals that can be found inside the park are like the impalas, gazelles, topi, hartebeest, giraffes, hippo, buffalo, dik dik, waterbuck and predators such as lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyena, jackals, caracals, serval cats etc. The scenery of Serengeti on the south east is the short grass plains. The northern part of Serengeti also known as kogatende has more hills and rocks. To the western corridor known as Grumeti there are rivers, valleys as well as forests. Some areas in the heart of Serengeti heading up north of Serengeti are dotted with ‘kopjes’. The Serengeti National Park can be visited all year round but the best time to visit is during the dry season from June to October.   

Lunch will be served inside the park and afterwards, proceed with game viewing until the evening where you will drive straight to your accommodation for dinner and overnight.

Destination: Serengeti National Park

Accommodation: Mbuzi Mawe Serena Camp / Narudi Camp Serengeti

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 8 & 9: FULL DAYS AT CENTRAL SERENGETI 

Early morning after having breakfast at your accommodation will start with an early morning game drive at the central Serengeti. Lunch will be served inside the park and continue with your game drive until the late afternoon where you will drive straight to your accommodation for relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Destination: Serengeti National Park

Accommodation: Mbuzi Mawe Serena Camp / Narudi Camp Serengeti

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 10: SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK TO NGORONGORO CRATER TO KARATU

Early morning after having breakfast at your accommodation inside Serengeti, you will drive straight to Ngorongoro Conservation Area en-route whereby the drive is approximately 4 hours to the floor of the crater. Ngorongoro crater is a world heritage site as well as a geo-park. It is 600m deep and before you descend the crater you will stop at a view point where you can see the crater below. The Ngorongoro crater has approximately 25000 mammals and has more than 500 birds’ species where there are also migratory birds like the flamingos. The interesting part with Ngorongoro crater is that it is the best place in East Africa to witness the endangered black rhinos which completes the big 5. In Ngorongoro you can find animals like the Zebras, wildebeests, hyenas, lion prides, gazelles, impalas, kudus, waterbucks, buffalos and many more. The Ngorongoro crater has a diameter of approximately 20km whereby it is easy to spot animals and one can spend 5-6 hours exploring the park if you have a limited time. The other attraction in Ngorongoro crater is the Ngoitoktok picnic site which is a permanent hippo pool where most of the clients have their fabulous lunch at this place. The beauty of Ngorongoro can never be untold to the visitors who have visited this area. After having packed lunch at a picnic site at the hippo pool, you will finalize your game drive before you ascend the crater and drive straight to your accommodation in Karatu for relaxation, dinner and overnight.

Destination: Ngorongoro crater 

Accommodation:  Marera Valley Lodge / Farm of Dreams Lodge / Bougainvillea Safari Lodge

Meal: Full Board (Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner)

DAY 11: KARATU TO ARUSHA 

Early morning after having breakfast at your hotel in Karatu, you will pack your luggage and get ready to drive straight to Arusha. Upon arrival in Arusha, you will be met by one of our representatives or office staff to know how your experience was as well as farewell. If you are either flying from Arusha airport or Kilimanjaro International Airport, we will take you to catch your flight to your next destination. 

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch