Tanzania Safari

Depart for Tanzania

Depart for Arusha, Tanzania. Please check your bags from your gateway city to your arrival city. Be sure to attach the provided luggage tags for each piece of luggage, including carry-ons. Your claim checks should have the following airport code: JRO.

Arusha

Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport in Arusha, Tanzania. After proceeding through immigration, completing a customs screening and obtaining your visa, you will retrieve your luggage and meet a Gohagan & Company representative for your group transfer to the first-class Arusha Serena Hotel & Spa.

Check in to the hotel, located on the shore of Lake Duluti in the safari town of Arusha—the gateway to Tanzania’s Northern Safari Circuit. Depending on your arrival, you may order a light dinner at the hotel bar.

Arusha/Serengeti National Park

Wake up this morning and enjoy breakfast at the hotel, followed by a briefing from your Safari Travel Director. Next, a scenic drive will take you to a former coffee plantation. Enjoy a garden lunch in the historic lodge here before traveling to the Maramboi Tented Lodge, where safari tents and bungalows provide comfort beneath the palm trees. Check in to your one-bedroom, one-bathroom accommodation, which has a private terrace and views of Lake Manyara and the Rift Valley. Attend a Swahili lesson and admire the wildlife that surrounds you.

Welcome Reception: Join your fellow travelers for a Welcome Reception followed by a buffet dinner at the lodge this evening.

Serengeti National Park

Early risers may choose to take a balloon safari flight over the Serengeti this morning. This optional excursion, which includes a breakfast in the bush with sparkling white wine, departs at 5 a.m. and is available for an additional cost. Afterward, you will meet up with the rest of the group for the morning game drive. (Active)

If you choose to stay back at the lodge, savor a delicious breakfast. Everyone will meet up for a morning game drive through the legendary Serengeti National Park, the greatest wildlife destination on earth.

Game Drive. A UNESCO World Heritage site, the Serengeti National Park spans the sprawling Serengeti plains. Inhabited by more than two million ungulates, 4,000 lions, 1,000 leopards, 550 cheetahs and around 500 bird species, the site is utterly awe-inspiring. Every year, vast herds of wildebeests, followed by zebras, gazelles and Cape buffalos, make their Great Migration across this majestic landscape in search of water and fresh grass. Often called “the cradle of human life,” the Serengeti’s untouched wilderness is truly a sight to behold. (Moderate)

Return to the lodge for lunch, then spend the early afternoon at leisure. Relax in your room, take a cooling dip in the pool, or sit with a book on the porch.

Game Drive. During the Great Migration, you may see vast numbers of wildebeest, zebras, gazelles and elands on a mass trek. But you may see other animals too, such as: aardvarks, aardwolves, baboons, bat-eared foxes, cheetahs, elephants, giraffes, hippopotamuses and hyenas. Have your binoculars and cameras ready! (Moderate)

Tonight, enjoy a delectable dinner at the lodge.

Serengeti National Park/Olduvai Gorge/ Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Check out of the lodge after breakfast this morning and embark on a day with some bumpy driving as we head to Ngorongoro Crater. Begin with your final morning safari in the Serengeti. Stop for a picnic lunch.

On the way to Ngorongoro Crater, we will stop at Oldupai Gorge, the most famous archaeological site in Africa, if not the world.

Oldupai Gorge. This UNESCO World Heritage site is noted for having revealed the oldest evidence of human evolution. Located in the Great Rift Valley between Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater, it is here that British archaeologist Mary Leakey discovered the remains of a prehistoric hominid skull in 1959. She and her husband, Louis, a Kenyan-British paleoanthropologist and archaeologist, established and developed an excavation and research program at Oldupai Gorge that has since revealed fossils and stone tools dating back millions of years. Learn more about the Leakeys and their findings on a visit to the Oldupai Gorge Site Museum, which offers exhibits related to the Gorge’s history and recent discoveries. (Mild)

Continue driving to the very edge of Ngorongoro Crater, where you will check in to the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge. Rooms in this spectacular property are looped around the crater rim, each with a rock-enclosed balcony and uninterrupted views of the natural amphitheater below.

Enjoy dinner at the lodge this evening.

Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Wake early today for breakfast at the lodge before boarding a four-wheel drive vehicle for a 5,000-foot descent into the prehistoric Ngorongoro Crater.

Ngorongoro Crater. Known as the Eighth Wonder of the World, Ngorongoro Crater contains the largest concentration of animals in Africa. The world’s largest caldera, this UNESCO World Heritage site is where lions, black rhinos and elephants co-exist amid savanna woodlands and forests. According to UNESCO, the site has “global significance for biodiversity conservation due to the presence of globally threatened species, the density of wildlife inhabiting the area and the annual migration of wildebeests, zebra, gazelles and other animals into the northern plains.”

You will have a day to remember traversing the floor of the crater, tracking animals and exploring one of nature’s most dramatic spectacles. A picnic lunch will be served in the crater during this thrilling excursion. (Moderate)

Free Time: Return to the lodge this afternoon with time on your own to relax before joining the group for dinner this evening. Finish the night watching wildlife from the lodge’s viewing terrace, right on the crater’s rim.

Ngorongoro Conservation Area/ Lake Manyara National Park

After an early breakfast, check out of the lodge and head for Lake Manyara.

Kibaoni Primary School. When we stop at this primary school on the edge of the Rift Valley, you will get a firsthand view of Tanzania’s educational system. Meet the principal and see the schoolchildren at work in the classrooms. (Mild)

Gibb’s Farm. From there, travel to historic Gibb’s Farm — an organic farm and coffee plantation spanning over 80 acres on the outer slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater. Enjoy lunch at this impressive property and learn more about the generations of families who built what is today the oldest guesthouse in northern Tanzania. (Mild)

Continue on to Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge, located in a tranquil, lush natural setting.

Settle in to your room and explore the property. Spend an afternoon at leisure relaxing by the pool or walking the grounds.

Tonight, enjoy a delicious dinner at the lodge.

Lake Manyara National Park/Maramboi for Tarangire

After breakfast, spend the morning at leisure.

Free Time: Enjoy relaxing by the pool or sign up for a lodge activity such as a bicycle safari, treetop walk, stretching class, watercolor painting class or canoeing on Lake Manyara (extra fees may apply).

Later this morning, check out of the lodge and take a scenic drive to Mto Wa Mbu.

Local Market. Mto Wa Mbu is a vibrant, bustling town, home to some 18,000 people. This hidden gem, located near the shores of Great Rift Lake, boasts a unique blend of natural beauty and cultural diversity. Here, representatives from Tanzania’s 120 tribes peacefully coexist in an area rich with cultural heritage. Stroll the colorful market, where you will find an array of goods — from handcrafted jewelry and traditional clothing to spices and fresh produce from nearby farms and banana plantations. Chat with the local Chagga, Sukuma and Maasai vendors. Next, travel to a banana plantation, where a local women’s cooperative will prepare and serve a special traditional lunch to cap off this unforgettable experience! (Moderate)

Transfer to the Maramboi Tented Lodge. This classic safari camp is situated close to the shores of Lake Manyara and located on the migratory corridor of Manyara and Tarangire. The camp offers you the unique opportunity to experience and explore the area’s interesting ecosystem. It is located in a wildlife-rich area and offers impressive views of the Rift Valley and Ngorongoro Highlands.

Nature Walk. This afternoon, take a guided nature walk to the banks of Lake Manyara. (Moderate)

Campfire Chat. After a buffet dinner, meet with a Maasai Chief or tribal member around an evening campfire to hear stories and learn about the Maasai way of life.

Tarangire National Park

Rise with the African sun and enjoy a hearty breakfast. Depart for a safari excursion in Tarangire National Park.

Game Drive. The sixth-largest national park in Tanzania’s Manyara region, Tarangire National Park gets its name from the river that runs through it. As most of this area is usually dry, the river becomes the only source of water and consequently attracts large numbers of animals. This national park is home to one of the largest populations of elephants in Africa, with several herds composed of up to 300 members per herd. Zebras and large herds of wildebeests are also common, moving north toward the Rift Valley floor. These three animals are the most prominent here, but you may also see impalas, elands, buffaloes, giraffes, Bohor reedbuck, Coke’s hartebeest, Thompson’s gazelle and the greater and lesser kudu. (Activity Level: Moderate)

Lunch will be served in the open-air dining room of the Tarangire Safari Lodge. There will be some time to relax before the afternoon excursion.

Game Drive. Of course, you are focused during your time in the bush on spotting Africa’s Big Five: Cape buffalo, African savanna elephant, leopard, lion and black rhinoceros. But don’t forget Africa’s Little Five list — elephant shrews, ant lions, rhinoceros beetles, buffalo weavers and leopard tortoises. You may also encounter these fascinating wee beasts— don’t forget to look down! In addition, over 540 species of birds have been identified here. There is a lot to take in! (Moderate)

Farewell Reception: Join your fellow travelers for a Farewell Reception and buffet dinner this evening. Enjoy your last night in this awe-inspiring setting.

Maramboi/Arusha/ Return to home city

After breakfast at the lodge, check out and take a scenic drive to a former coffee plantation.

Enjoy a garden lunch in the historic lodge here, then head to the Arusha Serena Hotel & Spa. Relax in a day room at the property until it’s time to transfer to the airport for your return flight home. You can enjoy dinner on your own here, if you like.

Home City

Arrive in your home city and go through immigration and customs. Welcome home!