5 Days: Lake Manyara / Serengeti / Ngorongoro

Day 1: Arusha-lake manyara

1. Lake Manyara National Park
   Pass by
   Non game-viewing travel time: 2½ hours
   Distance: 130 km
   
   Pick up from Arusha and transfer to Lake Manyara national park.
   We arrive in time for lunch at the lodge and after lunch do we head into the Lake Manyara National Park for an afternoon game drive. This national park is one of Tanzania’s most dramatically located wildlife areas, consisting of a massive but shallow soda lake (covering two-thirds of the park), located at the foot of the Great Rift Valley’s western escarpment. The park’s varied habitat attracts a wide variety of animals, including one of Africa’s largest concentrations of elephants, Lake Manyara’s unique tree-climbing lions, as well as large flocks of flamingos attracted by the algae in the lake.
   
   Dinner and overnight as per the standard and type of accommodation option requested.

Day 2: lake manyara-serengeti plains

1. Serengeti National Park
   Pass by
   Non game-viewing travel time: 6 hours
   Distance: 205 km
   
   After breakfast we head towards the Serengeti National Park, via the beautiful high lying farmland of Karatu and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Leaving the highlands behind, we descend into the heart of wild Africa – the Serengeti National Park – with its endless plains, rolling into the distance as far as the eye can see. We head to the central park area, known as the Seronera area, one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park, featuring the Seronera River, which provides a valuable water source to this area and therefore attracts wildlife well representative of most of the Serengeti’s species.
   We arrive in time for lunch and enjoy an afternoon game drive in the Serengeti national park.
   
   Dinner and overnight in the Seronera area, as per the standard and type of accommodation option requested.

Day 3: serengeti plains

1. Serengeti National Park
   Pass by
   Be one of only a few fortunate people to glide in a Hot Air Balloon over the Serengeti Plains (available at supplementary cost by pre-arrangement). Floating silently above the awakening bush, while spotting wildlife and enjoying the amazing scenery of Africa
   We do an after breakfast game viewing drive along the Sogore River Circuit, which loops into the plains south of the Seronera River, and which is good for possible Lion, Thomson gazelle, topi, ostrich and cheetah sightings. The Visitor Centre close to the Serengeti Seronera Lodge and public campsites, is well worth a visit after the morning’s game drive. This nicely designed centre offers some interesting wildlife displays as well as a gift shop selling information leaflets and maps of the area. The centre also has a shop where cold drinks and snacks can be purchased, as well as a picnic area and information trail up and around a nearby kopje. We will enjoy a relaxed picnic lunch at the centre in the shade of the giant acacia trees

Day 4: serengeti plains-ngorongoro crater

1. Ngorongoro Crater
   Pass by
   After breakfast at the lodge do we depart to Ngorongoro Conservation area. We will stopover at Olduvai Gorge, boasting with a history dating back to the dawn of time. It was here, that the anthropologists Drs. Lois
   and Mary Leakey discovered the skulls of ‘Nutcracker Man’ and ‘Handy Man’, both very significant links in the chain of human evolution.
   We arrive in time for lunch at the lodge and after lunch we will descend over 600 meters into the crater to view wildlife for a half day’s safari tour. Supported by a year round water supply and fodder, the Ngorongoro National Park supports a vast variety of animals, which include herds of wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, eland, warthog, hippo, and giant African elephants. Another big draw card to this picturesque national park, is it’s dense population of predators, which include lions, hyenas, jackals, cheetahs and the ever-elusive leopard. We will visit Lake Magadi, a large but shallow alkaline lake in the southwestern corner.

Day 5: Ngorongoro crater-Arusha

1. Ngorongoro Conservation Area
   Pass by
   Non game-viewing travel time: 4 hours
   Distance: 190 km
   
   Enjoy breakfast, after which we will transfer back to Arusha. Upon arrival in Arusha will we have lunch and then we will end our African safari adventure. The group should tip the guide around $20 a day. You will be taken to your hotel, which ends our safari services.
   *It is possible to have an additional half day game drive at Ngorongoro conservation area if you are not restricted to an early departure time from Arusha, please note additional cost will apply.
   
   Please note this itinerary is subject to change with or without prior notice according to local conditions / park rules. The order of places visited could also be changed according to the guide’s decision.

• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Specialized infant seats are available
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels