Aspects of Tanzania Safari

After breakfast, we head across the hilly plateaus of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where the red-robed Maasai live in traditional villages of thatched huts and their cattle graze amongst the savannah game like zebra, wildebeest and gazelle. Along the way, there is time to enjoy a packed lunch, and the route heads northwest via the Naabi Hill Gate and into the Serengeti National Park. Meaning ‘endless plains’ in the Maasai language, the Serengeti is one of Africa’s largest and most celebrated wilderness areas and home to all the animals people expect to see on safari.

You will spend the next two nights at a comfortable safari lodge or tented camp, which is located in the south-central region of the park known as the Seronera Valley. It’s a very scenic area with acacia-studded open plains lined with low hills and abundant wildlife including large numbers of big cats.

• Overnight in Serengeti National Park
• Accommodation at your camp or lodge
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

Today is a full-day safari in the Serengeti to look for the numerous animals and birds, all expertly identified by your Tanzanian safari guide.

Grazing herbivores include giraffe, Thompson’s and Grant’s gazelle, waterbuck, hartebeest, eland and topi, and you’ll see hippos wallowing in the pools and large crocodiles sunning themselves on the riverbanks.

The Serengeti is famous for its large prides of lion, cheetah that are seen hunting in family groups, and other predators like jackal, hyena and bat-eared fox are often seen on the prowl in the early morning. Depending on the season, you may witness the annual wildebeest migration, when an estimated two million hooved animals move between the Serengeti and the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya following the rains and fresh pastures.

A memorable, out-of-the-ordinary experience is to start the day with an optional hot air balloon safari, US$599 per person, and it’s wonderful to float over the plains and rivers in the first light of dawn and watch the wildlife below.

• Overnight in Serengeti National Park
• Accommodation at your camp or lodge
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

Departing the Serengeti, we drive back into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. This highland region of plains, woodlands and forests protects the 600-metre-deep Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest caldera and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It was formed when a volcano erupted and collapsed on itself approximately two and a half million years ago, and the well-fertilised volcanic soils create rich grazing for the animals and it is often referred to as ‘the Garden of Eden’. On the way, and for an extra fee, you can stop at the museum at Olduvai Gorge to learn about the archaeological excavations that escalated the studies of early man. We drive down to the crater floor with a picnic lunch, and your expert guide will show you every corner of the dramatic landscape to see some of the 20,000 or so large mammals that live there. These include a number of black rhino, making the crater the best place in Tanzania to see these amazing creatures, and it’s also well-known for high densities of carnivores including leopard, lion, hyena and jackal. When we ascend back to the crater rim, you may catch a glimpse of a magnificent sunset before heading to our camp/lodge.

• Overnight in Ngorongoro Conservation Area
• Accommodation at your camp or lodge
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

After breakfast we drive to Lake Manyara National Park, which at 330-sq-km is one of Tanzania’s smallest parks and about 200-sq-km is covered by its Rift Valley soda lake. The dense woodlands and steep mountainsides make it very scenic, especially from the viewpoints on top of the escarpment looking down on the lake. Manyara is a paradise for large herds of elephant and buffalo, giraffe and impala roam the lakeshores that also attract more than 400 species of birds, troops of olive baboon and Sykes monkey frolic in the forests, and you might be lucky and spot the famous tree-climbing lions that the park is famous for. After this final Tanzania safari experience, you will be driven to Arusha Airport where you will catch a flight to the exotic island of Zanzibar off Tanzania’s Indian Ocean coast. Upon arrival, you will be met by our local representative and transferred to your resort.

• Overnight in Zanzibar Beach
• Accommodation at your resort
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

The next few days are yours to do as you please as you enjoy a beach holiday. With an all-year-round hot, sunny climate, Zanzibar is the perfect way to relax at the end of a wildlife safari, and is truly spoilt with white sandy beaches, crystal-clear turquoise warm sea, and coral reefs teeming with colourful marine life.

The island’s dramatic history includes Arab sultans, Portuguese seafarers, European explorers and the slave trade; all of which have left their mark in the capital Stone Town, one of Africa’s best-preserved historical cities and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And not forgetting the exceptionally friendly Swahili people and the delicious coastal cuisine, and your first night’s dinner might be seafood combined with Zanzibar’s famous aromatic spices.

• Overnight in Zanzibar Beach
• Accommodation at your resort
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

After a leisurely breakfast you will take a tour of Stone Town, where you can admire the beautiful Arabic architecture and sultans’ palaces, stroll along the seafront wharfs and gardens, and discover eclectic shops and markets in the labyrinth of intriguing and atmospheric narrow alleyways. You will visit the House of Wonders, the Palace Museum, the Arab Old Fort, the two imposing cathedrals, and Islamic mosques echoing with the call to prayer. Return to the resort to try some of the activities on offer such as snorkelling and scuba-diving, or simply take a peaceful walk along the sand or doze in the warm breeze in a Zanzibar hammock before dinner.

• Overnight in Zanzibar Beach
• Accommodation at your resort
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra

After breakfast you will go on a Spice Tour in the working plantations around Stone Town. During the 19th century, Zanzibar was one of the world’s leading producers of spices such as cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon, which is how it earned the nickname of the ‘Spice Island’. The guide will explain the history, show you how they grow and you will have the opportunity to smell and taste the spices and see how they are used in cooking and as natural remedies. You will also have a lunch that includes the many delicious exotic fruits grown on the island. In the afternoon, visit the delightful Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park—at 50-sq-km, this is Zanzibar’s only national park and its last remaining tract of indigenous tropical rainforest and a biodiversity hotspot. On a nature trail and mangrove swamp boardwalk lined with impressive eucalyptus and mahogany trees, a guide will explain the medicinal properties of various plants, and you’ll see numerous butterflies, birds and small mammals, and hopefully the Zanzibar red colobus monkey which is endemic to the island.  You will return to the resort for another relaxing dinner.

• Overnight in Zanzibar Beach
• Accommodation at your resort
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included
• Drinking water, all other drinks are extra.

On your last day, enjoy the last breakfast and lunch in the sunshine and the rest of your time on Zanzibar by relaxing by the pool or on the beach. In the afternoon, we will take you to the airport for your onward destination or international flight back home.

• No accommodation, this is the final day
• Breakfast and lunch, no dinner
• Drinking water. other drinks are extra