Northern Tanzania Safari & Zanzibar

Upon arrival into Kilimanjaro International Airport you will be met by our friendly local transfer driver and transferred to Rivertrees Country Inn in Arusha in a air-conditioned vehicle.

Depending on your time of arrival you may have time to enjoy the ample grounds of Rivertrees, relax at the swimming pool or start ticking off wildlife species straight away. Numerous bird species can be spotted in the mature trees as well as vervet and blue monkeys.

Your guide will meet you after breakfast and it is the start of your privately guided safari. Your destination today is near to the town of Karatu and on the way you will visit Lake Manyara National Park, for your first safari experience. 

The western wall of the Great Rift Valley provides the backdrop as you drive through the dense forest with its teeming primate population including baboon, common monkey, vervet monkey and the nocturnal bush babies. The lake itself is a shallow, alkaline lake covering around 230 sqaure kilometres, which Ernest Hemingway once described as “the loveliest I had seen in Africa”. The lake is home to resident hippo pods as well as wonderful birdlife.

You leave the park in the afternoon and head to Rhotia Valley Tented Lodge where you stay for the night ahead of tomorrows early morning descend to the caldera floor of the Ngorongoro Crater.

After an early start you will depart the lodge and pass through the entrance gates to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority before steadily climb the windy road up the crater’s side. Take it all in from the viewpoint on the rim, before descending to the wildlife eden that is caldera floor.

The Ngorongoro Crater is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is a unique natural phenomenon. You have a full day of which to explore the different environments of the crater and enjoy the abundant wildlife, including large numbers of plains game as well as hyena, lion and an elusive black rhino population.

Enjoy a chance to stretch your legs and a lakeside picnic lunch before you continue exploring the Crater in the afternoon. As the light begins to fade, return to Rhotia Valley Lodge for dinner and a nightcap.

Depart from Ngorongoro this morning and game drive through the southern reaches of the Serengeti: the area known as Ndutu. It is quite a long drive of around 5 hours, however it may be longer depending on what you see along the way.

Your camp for the next three nights is the fantastic Kiota Camp in the Seronera region of the Serengeti. ‘Kiota’ means nest in Swahili and this homely, permanent camp set atop Banagi Hill gives you a wonderful view across productive Serengeti Plains. It is the perfect base to explore the area with your expert private guide.

You have the flexibility to choose what you would like to do each day, whether this is an morning and afternoon game drive or perhaps explore further afield and head out for the whole day with a picnic lunch.

You have the next two full days as you explore deep into the heart of the park. If you’re on the hunt for the ‘Big 5’ then the Serengeti’s vast, fertile expanse is the perfect territory as lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino can all be found, although the latter are mostly found in the northern reaches of the park.

The central Serengeti offers great wildlife viewing throughout the year however in the months of April-June and November you may have a chance of seeing thousands of zebra and wildebeest attributed to the great migration, as they pass through this area. However, the herds tend to be more spread out as there are moving between areas.

The great benefit of having your own private guide and vehicle means that you can set the schedule and focus on the animals that you are most interested in. The key is to keep good communication with your guide at all times so they see what you would like to.

Depending on the time of your flight you may well have an opportunity for a final game drive with your guide before they bid you farewell and you depart on an internal flight to Zanzibar.  You fly on a scenic light aircraft flight from the Serengeti to Zanzibar and this is an incredible adventure in its own right! 

You are met on arrival at Zanzibar Airport and are driven approximately one hour to Pongwe Beach Hotel, where you stay for the following four nights on a half board basis in a beachfront room.

This popular beach lodge is situated on Zanzibar’s east coast which has some of its best beaches. It was refurbished in 2017 and it is a relatively simple, quiet and laid-back lodge perfect for some time relaxing and soaking up some sunshine. It has a stylish swimming pool in the main area as well as an upgrade option to a Sea View Suite which has its own private plunge pool.

You have the following three full days free to explore Zanzibar your leisure, you can do as much or as little as you please.

There are many activities on offer such as visits to Prison Island and its tortoise sanctuary or inland to Jozani Forest to search for endangered Zanzibar red colobus monkey. It is also easy to visit Stone Town for the day or to visit a local spice plantation. You get involved with a really hands-on experience, tasting and smelling the spices for which Zanzibar is infamous, as well as enjoying a fresh, locally cooked lunch as part of your tour.

All these activities and more can be prearranged with us upon booking or organised with Pongwe Beach Hotel during your stay.

Today you check-out of Pongwe Beach Hotel and are driven to Zanzibar Airport where you check-in for your return international flight. 

This bring your exploration of Tanzania and Zanzibar to an end, where to next?