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News > New Limits on Game Drives in Ngorongoro National Park
Monday, February 27, 2006
New Limits on Game Drives in Ngorongoro National Park
By Rachael Garrett
Effective April 1, 2006, the Ngorongoro Conservation Authority is limiting game drives inside the crater to 6 hours per day. The Conservation Authority has been concerned about the concentration of vehicles in the park and they're looking to this new measure as a way to reduce those numbers. Currently the park is open from 6:00am to 6:00pm, and we expect these new regulations to decrease by half the number of vehicles in the crater at any one time. We support this initiative by the Conservation Authority as its an indication of good stewardship of the land and wildlife.
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| Hiking with Maasai in the Ngorogoro Highlands | |
For any itinerary where there is a full day game drive scheduled in the Ngorongoro Crater, we will now be entering the crater either at 6:00am when the park gates open and staying until 12:00 noon, or entering at 12:00 noon and exiting the crater when the gates close at 6:00pm. Your driver-guide will coordinate with you what time of the day you will enter the crater. Wildlife is most active in the early morning as well as the late afternoon and evening. Since Ngorongoro is close to the equator they have roughly 12 hours of daylight each day so that both the morning and afternoon game drives have opportunities for great game viewing and photography in indirect light.
For the time outside game drives you can either rest at your lodge or we can add walking in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. For guests staying at the Ngorongoro Farmhouse you can choose to join a walk arranged on site on the extensive grounds of the working farm at no additional charge. For those staying on the rim at either Ngorongoro Serena or Ngorongoro Sopa we can arrange a walk in the Ngorongoro highlands escorted by a Park Ranger at an additional cost.
Although we regret losing the option to stay in the crater for full day game drives, we appreciate that the Conservation Authority recognizes the impact that tourism is having on the Ngorongoro National Park and is taking measures to protect the wildlife and the ecosystem.
