Itinerary

DAY 1 :  ARRIVE ARUSHA
Upon arrival into the Kilimanjaro airport you will be met and transferred to Olasiti Lodge or similar, your African home away from home. [Meals on own]

DAYS 2-3 :  TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK
This morning you will drive to Tarangire National Park, about 3-4 hours. Tarangire is the third largest national park in Tanzania noted for its primeval landscape with majestic baobab trees that dwarf the animals feeding beneath them. The habitat supports a great diversity of wildlife including giraffe, buffalo, lesser kudu, eland, and zebra. Lion, leopard and cheetah are also present. Most notably, up to 6,000 elephants inhabit the park during the dry season from July to November and many frequently migrate through our camp. Our private tented camp is strategically located just outside the boundary of Tarangire National Park where native guides take guests on bush walks and we can visit local villages and a women's craft center. Overnight at Maramboi Tented Camp. [BLD]

DAY 4 :  KARATU AND LAKE EYASI
Early morning walk at Tarangire before departing for Karatu, on the outer slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater. Then, mingle with villagers at local markets such as Mto Wa Mbu. Shopping and bargaining for bolts of cloth, crafts, and local produce immerses you in a daily ritual of African life. Afternoon visit to a local school, followed by overnight at Kisima Ngeda Camp. Kisima Ngeda is situated amidst a palm-lined oasis 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. The seven permanent tents are constructed with local materials and feature hand-carved wooden beds, attached bathrooms with flushing toilet and hot water showers and spacious verandahs with a cozy chaise lounge. Cool off in the pool or enjoy sundowners by the lake-side fire pit. Overnight at Kisima Ngeda Camp. [BLD]

DAY 5 :  BUSHMEN AND DATOGA TRIBES
Set out early this morning to join a morning 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.  Bushmen who live in nomadic groups hunting with bow and arrow and gathering roots, tubers and wild fruits inhabit this dry and rugged landscape. Be prepared for an extraordinary cross-cultural experience as you join these nomadic Bushmen in their daily life.  In the afternoon we visit the Datoga, a tribe of semi-nomadic pastoralists who migrated into this area looking for good grazing land many decades ago. They have so far resisted neighbouring tribes' cultural influence.  The women, still wearing locally fat treated goatskin gowns, carve their faces and bodies in order to increase their attractiveness. Overnight at Kisima Ngeda. [BLD]

DAYS 6-7 :  NGORONGORO CRATER
Our next two days bring exploration of the stunning Ngorongoro Crater where resident animals are found throughout the year due to the permanent availability of grass and water. Ngorongoro is one of the most spectacular game haunts in Africa and has been designated a World Heritage site. A nearly 100 square mile caldera basin, it contains an impressive variety of wildlife including black-maned lions, the highly endangered black rhino, herds of gnu, zebra, elephants, hippo and hyena, the most important predator within the crater.  Bird life is also prolific with flocks of flamingoes on the soda lake plus other species of water and plains birds. On the afternoon of Day 7 well have the opportunity to walk in the Empakai Crater, the Olmoti Crater, or the Ngorongoro Highlands, as well as visiting with local Maasai people. Overnight at the Ngorongoro Farmhouse, located in the Ngorongoro Highlands on a 500 acre farm, only 5 kms. from the Ngorongoro National Park entrance gate.  Enjoy fresh roasted coffee from the 15 acre coffee plantation, as well as home grown pigs, free range chickens, ducks, rabbit, lamb and milk cows. These fresh foods are combined with the fish imported from the coast enabling us to serve up abundant, fresh, organic cuisine. Accommodations are in spacious luxury bungalows (80 Sq. meters each) and facilities include a swimming pool and two dining areas. Overnights at Ngorongoro Farmhouse. [BLD]

    
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. Spend the next three days exploring the vast plains of the Serengeti, one of the most productive habitats and impressive wildlife sanctuaries in the world. Upwards of 1.5 million wildebeest and zebra concentrate in vast herds and migrate through the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem. In February-March they concentrate at the Ndutu and Salei plains to the south where the calving season takes place, attracting the attention of predators like lion, cheetah and hyena. In April-July the herds move north towards the Maasai Mara in Kenya. Exploration of the national park is mostly by vehicle but walks are planned in the Ikoma region outside the park from June-November and outside the southern sector of the park from December-May. Spend four nights at the Serengeti Seasonal Camp set in a wilderness area near the migratory herds. [BLD]

DAY 12 :  SERENGETI-ARUSHA-USA OR TRIP EXTENSION
Enjoy a final morning game drive across the Serengeti plains to the Seronera Airstrip for a scheduled flight to Arusha. The flight avoids the long drive back to Arusha and gets you to town in time to share a day room before airport transfers to catch evening flight departures.  Or, consider optional extensions to Sinya Camp at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro, a safari in Kenya, or relax on a tropical island in the Indian Ocean at Zanzibar, Tanzania or Lamu, Kenya. [BL] (Overland option available upon request).

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