Tanzania Northern Circuit Safari

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Private guided safari    Classic guided safari using 4x4s, including a day's trekking,  visiting the premier game viewing areas of northern Tanzania and staying in small lodges and tented camps. Country Tanzania Duration 11 nights Best Time to Visit Any time, but best to avoid rainy months of April, May & November Accommodation Small lodges and tented camps Activities Game viewing, bird watching, bush walks, night drives, upland trek Places Visited National Parks of: Lake Manyara, Tarangire & Serengeti.  Ngorongoro Conservation Area Guide Price From £2,700 per person sharing, including flights

Day 1
Fly with Kenya Airways in economy class from London Heathrow, overnight to Nairobi.

Day 2
On arrival in Nairobi, connect with a Kenya Airways flight at 0800 to Kilimanjaro Airport in Tanzania. On arrival at 0850, you will be transferred to Arusha to meet your 4x4 and English speaking driver guide.  Drive westwards to the Great Rift Valley.  Visit to Lake Manyara National Park en route, then drive up the Rift Valley Escarpment to Kirurumu Tented Lodge to stay for 2 nights.
Terms: Full Board including game activities.

Day 3 

Lake Manyara National Park Lake Manyara National Park, nestling at the foot of the Great Rift Valley escarpment, is a 125sq mile park of which two-thirds is covered with the eponymous lake. The name derives from 'emanyara' a Maasai word for the prickly euphorbia thorns, which the Maasai use to surround their kraals and which is found in plentiful supply in the Rift Valley. The lake is believed to have been formed 2-3 million years ago and has a high soda content. This attracts large stands of flamingos which cover the lake like a pink mantel when viewed from a distance. Elsewhere in the park there is a surprising diversity of habitats from open grasslands to hot water springs, riverine forests and swamps to rocky outcrops, each supporting a fantastic array of wildlife with over 380 species of birds recorded. The park is also known for its large and boisterous hippo populations, baboon and several herds of elephant. Other forms of wildlife include tree climbing lions, leopard, buffalo, giraffe and zebra.

Full day safari with picnic lunch in Lake Manyara National Park.  Return to Kirurumu for dinner and overnight.  

Day 4

Serengeti National Park Serengeti comes from the Maasai word 'siringit' meaning 'endless plains' an apt title for arguably the worlds most famous game park. The park extends over some 5,700 sq miles, roughly the size of Northern Ireland or Connecticut, supporting over 4 million animals and birds. The park has short grass plains, kopje outcrops, acacia savannah and wooded grasslands. It is in this region that the Great Migration begins to congregate in the rutting season for its push to the birthing plains in the south. This mass exodus of one and a half million wildebeest and half a million zebra and gazelle searching for water and pasture is one of the greatest natural spectacles on earth. The great migration pattern follows a 500 mile circuit from Kenya's Masai Mara to the Serengeti reaching its climax in December to February when the birthing begins in the Southern Serengeti. These shifting herds with their old, crippled and young form an easy target for the numerous predators that inhabit the plains and rivers such as lion, hyena, jackal, wilddog, leopard, cheetah and crocodile. The Serengeti rarely disappoints, and few people leave without having their expectations surpassed by the beauty, the wildlife and the sheer scale of the migration.

Full day drive with picnic lunch, game viewing on the way, through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and out across the Serengeti Plain.  Visit en route to the Olduvai Gorge where Mary and Louis Leakey discovered the 3-million-year-old remains of "Australopithecus Afarensis", an early hominid.  Continue across the Plain to Mbuzi Mawe Tented Camp to stay for 3 nights.
Terms: Full Board and game activities.

Days 5 & 6
Game drives, bush walks and night drives.  Details to be finalised with your driver at the time, depending on distribution of game.  Dinner and overnight at Mbuzi Mawe.

Day 7
Return drive with picnic lunch across the Serengeti Plain to the Ngorongoro Highlands.  Game drive en route into the Ngorongoro Crater.  Continue to Plantation Lodge to stay for 3 nights.
Terms: Full Board including game activities.


Days 8 & 9

Ngorongoro Crater This 120 square mile caldera and World Heritage Site is home to an impressive animal population including the endangered black rhino and just about every other East African mammal with the exception of giraffe (the 2000ft cliffs surrounding the crater are too steep) and impala.  There are numerous different habitats within the crater, ranging from grasslands to acacia forests to swamps and a soda lake.  The vocanic nature of the soils and plentiful water supplies have transformed the area into a fertile sanctuary for many species of wild game, including the "big five" and a notable variety of bird life, not the least of which are the flocks of flamingo on the soda lake.  The Crater provides a year-round guarantee of game viewing on a spectacular scale.

Game drives into the Ngorongoro Crater as arranged at the time, as necessary.  A trek to the Olmoti Crater is also included on one day.  Drive up to Olmoti and then walk up to the rim and into the crater.  At an altitude of 3,500 metres, one is inclined to become breathless, so walking will be at a steady pace.  The crater floor is shallow and grass covered and the Maasai come here to graze their cattle.  You may also see eland, buffalo, elephant and reedbuck but the emphasis here will be on walking in a beautiful area rather than the amount of game on hand.  On one side of the crater is the Munge River where you can walk down to the bottom of the falls in about 30 minutes to an hour.  At this height, warm clothes will be required.  Return to Plantation Lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 10

Tarangire National Park This park offers savannah lands, acacia stands, clusters of baobab trees, large herds of elephant and large tracts of rarely visited game lands, making it one of the best game reserves in Africa, in season. The park covers 1000 sq miles, although the ecosystem stretches out to the adjoining Lake Manyara, Masai Steppe and the the Rift Valley. The park is named after the river that runs through its centre providing permanent water. Tarangire is thus a dry season habitat and best between May and December, although outside these times a permanent and sizable population of game remains, including all the main predators such as lion, leopard, cheetah, hyena and hunting dog. The gnarled baobab trees, combretum woodland and open savannah also foster a diverse array of birdlife with over 300 species recorded. Particular areas of interest and good game populations are found at Silale Swamp and the Lamarkua in the south of the park.

Drive to Tarangire National Park and Tarangire Safari Lodge to stay for 1 night.  Afternoon game drive.
Terms: Full Board including game activities.


Day 11
Return transfer to Arusha for lunch.  In the afternoon you will be transferred to Kilimanjaro Airport to check in for a Kenya Airways flight to Nairobi.  On arrival, connect with a Kenya Airways flight in economy class, overnight to London.

Day 12
Morning arrival London Heathrow.

Suggested add-ons and combinations with this itinerary:

• Beach break on the Tanzania coast.
• Beach break on Zanzibar or Pemba.
• Safari in the Selous Game Reserve or the Ruaha, Katavi or Mahale National Parks.
• Mauritius.

This is a suggested itinerary only and is entirely flexible. Arrangements can be tailored to your exact requirements.

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