Areas of interest: Lake Manyara, Lake Manyara National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Ngorongoro Crater, Crater Highlands, Great Rift Valley

Activity: Game Drive, Game and Bird Watching, Lodge Safari, Scenery, Culture, Ethnic, Photography

Country: Tanzania

Tanzania is Africa’s prime game viewing country.  Its national parks and game reserves cover almost 25% of the country and protect an estimated 20% of Africa’s large mammals.  Ngorongoro Crater is said to have the world’s densest population of lion whilst Lake Manyara lions have developed a liking for residing in the branches of trees, where they can both sleep and watch for prey.

Day 1 – Lake Manyara to Ngorongoro
Depart from Arusha at in the early morning hours for Lake Manyara National Park about three hours away.  After a morning game viewing we stop for lunch at a lodge in Manyara before driving up the Great Rift Valley escarpment and into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Arriving in the late afternoon we have dinner and spend the night at a spectacular Lodge.    

The Lake Manyara National park is serene and beautiful with main attractions of a rich bird life, tree-climbing lions, its elephants, and hippos that you can see at closer range than most other places.  Lake Manyara is an alkaline lake and at certain times of the year hosts thousands of flamingos and a diversity of other bird life.  Although it is one of the smallest parks, its vegetation is so diverse enabling it to host a variety of wildlife habitats.

The Ngorongoro crater is the world’s biggest whole volcanic caldera at 8300 sq km and is arguably the most stunning arena.  It is frequently described as one of the wonders of the world, not only because of its geological magnificence, but also because it serves as an extraordinary natural sanctuary for some of Africa’s largest populations of large mammals. 

Day 2 – Ngorongoro to Arusha
After an early breakfast watching the stunning African sun rise over the rim of the crater we depart to descend into the crater for a morning crater tour with picnic lunches. We depart the conservation area as we proceed back to Arusha by early evening to drop you off at a hotel of your choice.

Ngorongoro Crater is one of Africa’s best known wildlife viewing areas and one of Tanzania’s most visited.  Within its walls are a variety of animals and vegetation, including grasslands, swamps, forests, salt pans and a fresh water lake.  You are likely to see lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo, and many of the plains herbivores such as wildebeest, Thomson’s gazelle, zebra, reedbuck, as well as thousands of flamingos wading in the shallows of Lake Magadi – the soda lake at the craters base.