Travel to Tanzania: Serengeti Wilderness Safari

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Serengeti Wilderness Safari

			Read a Trip Review DAYS: 12 GRADE: II define PRICE: $4495 per person (Includes Local Air) HIGHLIGHTS: Tarangire National Park Lake Eyasi Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park ACCOMMODATIONS: Hotels/Lodges Wilderness Camp MEALS: As noted  [B-Breakfast, L-Lunch,   D-Dinner] SEASON: Year-round Prices, Departure Dates and Included Services Send to a Friend Print this Itinerary

Explore the most spectacular game parks of Tanzania on this well-equipped camping safari designed to maximize your experience in the African bush. Spectacular game viewing is combined with hikes in Lake Eyasi and the Ol Moti Crater where you experience authentic cultural encounters amongst the Maasai, Datoga tribe, and nomadic Bushmen. Retire each night in comfortable, spacious mobile tents set in exclusive campsites with mattress beds, linens, and shared hot shower and drop toilet facilities. This safari is supported by a full camp staff, professional English-speaking naturalist guides, and spacious, 4WD safari vehicles. A light aircraft flight from Serengeti-Arusha is included to minimize your driving time. Optional balloon safaris in the Serengeti and extensions to the spice island of Zanzibar are available.

DAY 1 :  ARUSHA
Upon arrival into the Kilimanjaro airport you will be met and transferred to Mama Wilson's guesthouse, your African home away from home. Ten cozy bungalows and 9 lodge rooms are surrounded by lush tropical gardens. Delicious home-cooked meals are served in the open-air dinning room. Enjoy a sunset cocktail on the terrace overlooking nearby Mt. Meru and browse the high quality crafts in their gift shop. Overnight at Mama Wilson's or similar. [Meals on own]

Bush walking with Maasai warriors is a highlight of this safari.

DAYS 2-3 :  TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK
Depart with your naturalist guide for Tarangire, Tanzania's third largest national park and sanctuary for an unusually large elephant population. Majestic baobab trees are an interesting feature of the park, dwarfing the animals that feed beneath them. Animals concentrate along the Tarangire River, which provides the only permanent water supply in the area. There is a great diversity of wildlife including lion, leopard, cheetah and up to six thousand elephant. A bush walk, or a visit to a local village and a women's craft center are included. Overnight two nights at our private mobile camp. [BLD]

DAY 4 :  LAKE EYASI AND MTO WA MBU
Early morning walk at Tarangire before departing for Karatu, on the outer slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater. Cross the floor of the Great Rift Valley near Lake Manyara, then mingle with villagers at local markets such as Mto Wa Mbu or Karatu. Shopping and bargaining for bolts of cloth, crafts, and local produce immerse you in a daily ritual of African life. Afternoon visit to a school then drive up the escarpment to Lake Eyasi toarrive at your camp and relax in the evening. Kisima Ngeda Tented Camp is situated directly on the shore of Lake Eyasi. Across this huge, seasonal soda lake that stretches away in front of camp, the Alipi escarpment wall rises two thousand feet up into the Endulen area of the Ngorongoro Conservation area providing a stunning view. Overnight Kisima Ngeda Tented Camp in Lake Eyasi. [BLD]

	Primitive bow and arrow hunting is still part of Bushmen survival.

DAY 5 :  LAKE EYASI
Early morning (5 A.M.) drive across the Rift Valley and up the escarpment to Lake Eyasi where you to join a pre-dawn walk with Bushmen hunters or spend time participating in the morning routine of the settlement. Your local guide will interpret for you and discuss hunting techniques still used by the tribes. This dry and rugged landscape is inhabited by Bushmen who live in nomadic groups hunting with bow and arrow and gathering roots, tubers and wild fruits. Be prepared for an extraordinary cross-cultural experience as you join these nomadic Bushmen in their daily life. Return drive and overnight at Kisima Ngeda Tented Camp. [BLD]

DAYS 6-7 :  NGORONGORO CRATER
Descend into the 100-square-mile Ngorongoro Crater to view game on the vast grasslands of the crater floor. Spectacular animal life can be found throughout the year due to the permanent availability of grass and water. Ngorongoro is one of the most impressive game haunts in Africa and has been designated a World Heritage Site. Local wildlife includes black maned lion, the highly endangered black rhino, wildebeest, zebra, elephant, hippo, jackal, and hyena, the most important predator within the crater. The bird life is also prolific with flocks of flamingoes on the soda lake as well as other species of water and plains birds.

Weather permitting, walk near the Ol Moti Crater, the Empakai Crater, or the surrounding highlands on Day 7. Scenery in this area is stunning, and although the hiking is not strenuous do expect sloping terrain and at times muddy paths. In the afternoon we'll visit with the local Maasai people. During the colder months (June, July, and August ) we'll overnight at the Ngorongoro Farmhouse, during the warmer months (the rest of the year) we'll overnight two nights at a private mobile camp on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater at over 7000 feet in elevation. [BLD]

Witness wildlife drama on the Serengeti plains.

DAYS 8-11 :  SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK
Morning drive to the Serengeti plains, stopping en route at the Olduvai Gorge where Mary Leakey discovered remains of Australopithecus Homo habilis and Homo erectus. Serengeti is perhaps the most impressive wildlife sanctuary in the world. These vast, seemingly unending plains, are inhabited during the migration by enormous herds of wildebeest and zebra. The herds attract the attention of predators like lion, cheetah and hyena. Another interesting feature of the Serengeti is the massive granite kopjes, islands of rock standing in a sea of grass. The kopjes provide shelter to a great variety of plants and animals, from the elusive leopard to the tiny dik dik. Exploration of the legendary park is mostly by vehicle. Walks will be offered in the Ikoma region outside the park from June - November and in the Southern sector of the park from December - May. Spend four nights at the private mobile camp set in a wilderness areas near the migratory herds. [BLD]

DAY 12 :  SERENGETI-ARUSHA-USA OR TRIP EXTENSION
Spectacular light aircraft flight over the plains of the Serengeti to Arusha. (Overland option available upon request). Dayroom at Momma Wilson's and after dinner transfer to the Kilimanjaro Airport for your return flight. [BLD]

Questions? Ask Our Program Directors.

. C o n t a c t Lyndsay Harshman 1(800)345-4453