Grand Tanzania (Jul-Nov)

12 days, 11 nights
Price Range: $15,550 – $40,534
(all-inclusive price per person, depending on dates & camps selected)

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Love elephants? This is your safari. Tarangire and Lake Manyara national parks are among the best places in Africa to see large herds of elephant. Tarangire is also the ‘Baobab Capital of the World,’ boasting many gigantic, millennia-old trees, as well as 550 bird species that frequent its seasonal swamps. Lake Manyara’s most famous residents are its unique tree-climbing lions. Of course, no “Grand Tanzania” route would be complete without the fabled Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater—they’re here, too.

Photo of Court Whelan

Our Expert Says

When I think about a safari in East Africa, this is the ideal route that comes to my mind. It hits all the highlights as well as some of the less-visited safari destinations in northern Tanzania. This itinerary offers surprises and delights each day, with a plethora of wildlife, beautiful vistas and wonderful safari camps where you can relax after a long day in bush.

– Court Whelan


Photo: Arusha view image gallery

Day 1: Arusha

Arusha is the safari capital of the world, the jumping-off point for the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Kilimanjaro. In the shadow of Mount Meru, where lush forest intersects grassy savanna, Arusha sits within an agricultural region famed for coffee and tea. Originally a German settlement, Arusha today is a lively city with an international flair. Arusha is noted for handcrafts, and the Cultural Heritage Center boasts an array of carvings, paintings, batiks and baskets.


Photo: Tarangire Nat'l Park view image gallery

Days 2-4: Tarangire Nat'l Park

Tarangire, the “Baobab Capital of the World,” boasts Tanzania’s largest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti, including 550 bird species that frequent its seasonal swamps. The Tarangire River sustains wildebeest, zebra, buffalo and huge herds of elephant during the dry season. Impala, gazelle and eland crowd the lagoons, while wild dog roam the red-dust plains. Tarangire is also home to two rare antelope, the fringe-eared oryx and gerenuk.


Photo: Lake Manyara Nat'l Park view image gallery

Day 5: Lake Manyara Nat'l Park

Stretching along the base of the Great Rift Valley escarpment in northern Tanzania, Lake Manyara is famous for its alkaline lakes, habitat for thousands of pink flamingos. Ernest Hemingway called its setting “the loveliest I had seen in Africa.” Troops of baboons and blue monkeys carouse in the forest while leopard, cheetah, elephant and plenty of hoofed animals roam the plains. You may even see the park’s famous tree-climbing lions!


Photo: Ngorongoro Crater view image gallery

Days 6-7: Ngorongoro Crater

Within the walls of the world’s largest unbroken volcanic caldera is the densest concentration of wildlife in Africa. The crater floor, 12 miles across, is a wonder of the natural world. More than 30,000 animals live in this primeval Eden, including huge herds of gazelle and the lion and hyena that prey upon them. Wildebeest, zebra, eland and giraffe are abundant, with leopard and cheetah in pursuit. The very fortunate may also spot the endangered black rhino.


Photo: Serengeti Nat'l Park view image gallery

Days 8-11: Serengeti Nat'l Park

The Serengeti is legendary. Here on Africa’s Great Plains, where the blue sky arcs over shimmering gold grasslands, the number of animals is staggering. Buffalo, elephant and giraffe roam the savanna. Leopards rest in acacia trees, pursuing prey with lion, cheetah, jackal and hyena. While the Serengeti is riveting year-round, nothing matches the phenomenon of the migration, when 1.5 million wildebeest and zebra traverse the plains in endless columns of thundering hoofbeats.


Photo: Arusha/Home view image gallery

Day 12: Arusha/Home

Your safari adventure ends today in Arusha, Tanzania.


Notes

  • iSafari.com's Africa safari planner cannot precisely calculate the costs of air and land transfers to all camps and lodges as the locations and travel distances vary slightly. With this in mind, your final quote may increase or decrease by a small amount.
  • The estimated rates given for these itineraries are adult rates, but many properties offer reduced rates for children. Please contact our office for more information.
  • Holiday surcharges may apply for travel in late December and early January, and occasionally over the Easter holiday.
  • A non-refundable deposit of 25% of the trip fee per person is required upon booking to confirm your reservation.

Inclusions

  • All accommodation on a double occupancy basis
  • Meals at camps and lodges
  • Excursions and transfers unless listed as optional
  • Services of an NHA Safari Expedition Leader and lodge staff
  • Relevant park fees
  • Alcoholic and soft drink beverages are included at some camps and lodges
  • Laundry service is available at most permanent camps/lodges and hotels; in some cases this service is included in the tariff quoted
  • Air transfers within countries as specified
  • Accommodation taxes, the applicable Tourism Levies and all relevant Value Added Tax (VAT) or Government Sales Tax (GST)

Exclusions

  • Travel to the start and end point of the route
  • Generally lunch and dinner in city hotels
  • Alcoholic and soft drink beverages at some camps and lodges
  • Cancellation, baggage and medical insurance
  • Staff gratuities
  • Any newly-implemented government taxes, levies, fuel or industry increases which are beyond our control
  • Visa fees where relevant
  • International airport departure taxes applicable from manned airports only, which is to be paid in US$ cash on departure unless included in your ticket cost
  • Any items of a personal nature