6 Day Luxury Safari
A short but intense six-day luxury safari through Tarangire, the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti, ending with a scenic flight back to Arusha.
- Duration
- 6 days
- Route
- Arusha – Tarangire – Karatu – Ngorongoro Crater – Serengeti – flight to Arusha
- Start / end
- Starts in Arusha and ends with a flight from the Serengeti to Arusha
- Best time
- The dry season from June to October concentrates wildlife around the Tarangire River, while the Seronera Valley offers good game viewing all year round.
- Trip style
- Private luxury safari in a 4x4 safari vehicle with pop-up roof and a professional guide, staying at lodges such as Tarangire Tree Tops, Karatu Acacia Lodge and Four Seasons Serengeti.
Tour overview
Our 6-day luxury safari to Tarangire National Park, the Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park is designed for visitors with limited time who want a short but very intense Northern Circuit wildlife experience. Enjoy the excitement of an African wildlife safari, or a photographic safari, in some of Tanzania's most spectacular parks.
This journey lets you explore Tanzania's most stunning wilderness areas and some of nature's greatest wildlife spectacles in style, moving from the hidden wonders of Tarangire to the unique Ngorongoro Crater and the world-renowned Serengeti.
Highlights
- Two days of game drives in Tarangire, home to the largest elephant herds in northern Tanzania
- Sunset and campfire evenings at Tarangire Tree Tops
- Scenic stop overlooking the Maasai plains and Lake Manyara
- Game drive and picnic on the Ngorongoro Crater floor with a chance of the Big Five
- Three nights at Four Seasons Serengeti with game drives in the Seronera Valley
- Small-aircraft flight from the Serengeti back to Arusha
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1Arusha – Tarangire National Park
In the morning you will be welcomed by your guide and, after a drive of about two hours, reach Tarangire National Park. As you enter, your guide opens the roof for better viewing. Tarangire is home to the largest elephant herds in northern Tanzania, and giraffes, buffaloes, lions, zebras, wildebeest and various antelopes and gazelles can also be spotted. The landscape is made up of seasonal marshes and a seemingly endless tree savannah with mighty baobab trees. After extensive game drives, enjoy a beautiful sunset and relax in the cozy lounge or around the crackling campfire.
Day 2Tarangire National Park – Karatu
After a hearty breakfast, head out on another game drive in Tarangire. During the dry season between June and October, the Tarangire River is the only permanent source of water, and wildlife tends to concentrate around it. Stop at a picnic spot for lunch, then leave the park in the afternoon. Passing through the multicultural town of Mto wa Mbu, you soon reach the higher lands, where wonderful views of the Maasai plains and Lake Manyara open up before you. After a photo stop, continue to the lush crater highlands.
Day 3Karatu – Ngorongoro Crater – Serengeti National Park
Today you drive into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and down into the Ngorongoro Crater, whose grass steppes and acacia forests are home to almost all the animal species found in the East African savannah. In only a few hours you have the chance of spotting the Big Five: lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino and leopard. After extensive game viewing and a picnic in the crater, leave the highlands in the afternoon and continue to the Serengeti, crossing the seemingly endless plains of the southern Serengeti to reach the Seronera Valley in the central Serengeti.
Day 4–5Serengeti National Park
These two days are dedicated to game viewing in Serengeti National Park, with your guide taking you to the best spots to observe wildlife. Elephants, buffaloes, lions, cheetahs, hyenas, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, topi, Grant's and Thomson's gazelles and many more can be seen in this vast park. The Seronera Valley in particular offers fantastic game viewing all year round. Together with Kenya's Maasai Mara, the Serengeti is home to the largest animal migration on the planet.
Day 6Serengeti National Park – Arusha
If time allows, head out on a final game drive in the early morning. After a hearty breakfast at the lodge, your guide takes you to the airstrip, where you say goodbye and board a small aircraft for the flight back to Arusha. Connecting flights to Tanzania's coast or islands can be arranged by us at a surcharge.
What is included
- Transport in a 4x4 safari vehicle with pop-up roof
- All park entrance fees
- Accommodation in camps or lodges
- Full board, three meals per day while on safari
- Game drives in Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater
- Bottled drinking water
- Ngorongoro Crater fees
Not included
- International flights
- Tips for the driver guide
- Personal effects
- Soft drinks, beer and sodas
Good to know
- The tour starts and ends in Arusha/Moshi; fly to and from Kilimanjaro International Airport near Arusha/Moshi.
- Serengeti Joy Tours can help you select international flights, but you will need to book them yourself.
- Airport transfers and extra nights before or after the tour can be arranged at an additional cost.
- Connecting flights from Arusha to Tanzania's coast or islands can be arranged at a surcharge.
Frequently asked questions
How do we get back from the Serengeti at the end of the safari?
On Day 6 your guide takes you to the Serengeti airstrip, where you board a small aircraft back to Arusha. This saves a long drive and lets you fit in a final early morning game drive.
Will we see the Big Five?
The Ngorongoro Crater on Day 3 gives you a good chance of spotting all five (lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino and leopard) within a few hours, although sightings can never be guaranteed.
Can we continue to Zanzibar or the coast after the safari?
Yes. Connecting flights from Arusha to Tanzania's coast or islands can be arranged by us at a surcharge.
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