9-Day Incredible Safari and Cultural Tour in Tanzania

On arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) or Arusha Airport (ARK) which caters to domestic flights, you will be met by an African Big Cats Safaris representative who will drive you to your accommodation in Arusha. Your overnight stay will be at the Mtoni River Lodge Situated at the foothills of Mount Meru in the city of Arusha, awaiting for the start of your adventure the following day.

Early morning after breakfast, you will be picked up by your private safari guide and head to Western Kilimanjaro. A private concession of about 600 square km, bordering Kenya at Amboseli National Park, offers spectacular landscapes with magnificent views of Kilimanjaro, Mount Meru, Ol Doinyo Longido, and Ol Doinyo Orok. It is a unique natural and cultural experience. These Maasai are still living the traditional way and are not used to the commercial relationship with tourists that is common in more visited areas. They are spectacularly dressed and follow all the traditional ceremonies. This is a Community Conservation Project benefiting the Maasai of western Kilimanjaro. Activities include game drives, walking safaris escorted by Maasai warriors, and interaction with the local Maasai including participation in ceremonies when available. You will spend 2 days in this incredible place. Your meals and overnight stay will be at Kambi ya Tembo Tented Camp.

You will be picked up by your private safari guide from western Kilimanjaro to Tarangire which is almost 2.5 hours drive from Arusha. Tarangire National Park has some of the highest population density of elephants as compared to anywhere in Tanzania, and its sparse vegetation, strewn with baobab and acacia trees, makes it a beautiful and distinctive location to visit. Animals gather at the river and giraffes, bushbucks, and hartebeests are often seen. The park is also home to buffalos, zebras, and wildebeest. These animals are closely followed by a range of predators such as lions and leopards. From the open roof of the vehicle, you will be able to absorb the landscape and watch the wildlife. You will enjoy a picnic lunch at a picnic site in the park, which includes a delicious lunch, coffee, and soft drinks. After a full day in the park, you will drive to your accommodation, where you will be able to relax, enjoy dinner, and spend the night at Lake Burunge Tented Lodge.

After breakfast, you will drive to Lake Manyara National Park. This is a relatively small but diverse park, 120km west of Arusha. The park’s namesake is a shallow, alkaline lake. It covers a large area of the park, flooding and drying with the seasons, and is home to thousands of flamingos and over 500 other bird species. On your exploration of the park, you will see monkeys, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, buffalos, elephants, and with some luck, lions lounging on the trees. The park is known for its diverse landscapes; not only open grassy plains but also primate-filled woodlands and baobab-dotted cliffs. The alkaline soda of Lake Manyara is home to an incredible array of bird life that thrives on its brackish waters. Pink flamingos stoop and graze by the thousands of colorful specks against the grey minerals of the lake shore. After lunch and an extensive game drive, you will drive to your accommodation for dinner and an overnight stay at Karatu Simba Lodge.

After an early breakfast, you will continue towards the fertile highlands where wheat and corn are grown by the Iraqw people. Along the way, you'll pass through the mist-shrouded rainforests of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area where you might be lucky enough to see baboons or even leopards and elephants in the dense undergrowth. Passing through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, you will be able to see the breathtaking Ngorongoro Crater before traveling onwards to the Serengeti National Park, which you will reach by midday. The Serengeti National Park is the largest in Tanzania with diverse landscapes and habitats, such as grassy plains, swamps, lakes, savannahs, and mountains. After an extensive game drive, you will drive to your accommodation where you will enjoy dinner and an overnight stay at Embalakai Camp.

Serengeti National Park is undoubtedly the best-known wildlife sanctuary in the world, unequalled for its natural beauty and scientific value, it has the greatest concentration of plains game in Africa. You will spend the whole day exploring the vast Serengeti with its endless plains. The Serengeti is the habitat for an abundance of wildlife, such as impalas, buffalos, crocodiles, and hippos. It is the migration for which Serengeti is perhaps most famous. Over a million wildebeest and about 200,000 zebras flow south from the northern hills to the southern plains for the short rains every October and November and then swirl west and north after the long rains in April, May, and June. So strong is the ancient instinct to move that no drought, gorge, or crocodile-infested river can hold them back. The wildebeest travels through a variety of parks, reserves, protected areas, and a variety of habitats. Your meals and overnight stay will be at Embalakai Camp.

After breakfast, you will head out for an en-route game drive through the Serengeti. You might be able to spot the Big Five —lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino, and leopard—before embarking on your journey to Ngorongoro Crater. This UNESCO World Heritage Site formed millions of years ago, is 600 m deep and covers roughly around 260 square kilometers. Due to its dense animal population of approximately 25,000, the Crater offers the best game viewing of all the parks in Tanzania. You will arrive at the Crater rim before lunch. You will descend into the Crater and very quickly see wildebeest, zebras, gazelles, elephants, and some of the more than 500 bird species in the area. You might catch a glimpse of the endangered black rhino through the grass with a little bit of luck. After lunch and a full afternoon inside the Crater, you will head to your accommodation for dinner and an overnight stay at Karatu Simba Lodge.

You will have a leisurely breakfast. Thereafter, you will drive back to Arusha arriving in time for a hot lunch. You'll have an evening transfer to Kilimanjaro Airport for your flight back home or a flight to Zanzibar.