Set out on a captivating journey through northern Tanzania’s national parks with this six-night itinerary, designed to immerse you in the awe-inspiring beauty of the region’s most celebrated landscapes.
Experience the vast, iconic plains of the Serengeti, home to the legendary Great Wildebeest Migration, an unparalleled spectacle of nature. Your adventure also includes visits to either Lake Manyara or Tarangire National Park, each offering unique wildlife sightings and scenic beauty.
Marvel at the natural wonder of the Ngorongoro Crater, a haven for wildlife and a testament to nature’s magnificence.
Along the way, discover the rich biodiversity and vibrant ecosystems that make each park a treasure trove for nature enthusiasts and wildlife photographers alike.
(Not yet made up your mind about your next travel adventure? Browse our Tanzania Safaris and Kilimanjaro Trekking Routes.)
Price Includes
Price Excludes
The price of our Tanzania Sights & Sounds Safari ranges with the type of accommodations chosen. We offer accommodations in four pricing tiers: Standard, Mid-Range, Luxury, and Exclusive. You can check sample accommodations at each location under ‘Accommodations’.
Welcome to Tanzania! Upon your arrival, you will be met by a Pristine Trails driver and transferred to your hotel in Arusha town. Enjoy the evening at your leisure.
Transfer Time: 1 hour
In the early morning you will meet your guide and pile into your very own 4×4 safari vehicle for the start of your adventure. This itinerary starts with a day in either Lake Manyara or Tarangire, depending on the time of year.
[January-May] Lake Manyara: Enjoy a half-day’s game drive inside this park, set beneath the cliffs of the Manyara Escarpment, a jewel known for its primates, hippos and infamous tree-climbing lions. With its varied ecosystems, you will be able to observe forest creatures, large baboon troops in addition to other animals like giraffe and elephant. Vast flamingo populations dot the lakeshore and interact with an array of bird species. As the sun sets, you will make your way to your lodge or tented camp for the evening.
[June-December] Tarangire: Enjoy a half-day’s game drive inside Tarangire, known for its bulbous baobab trees and savannah woodland habitat heavily populated with herds of elephants and a variety of migratory zebra, wildebeest, gazelle, impala, buffalo and more. The park’s annual perennial river serves as a water source for these migrating herds during the dry season, making the game viewing spectacular, the greatest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti ecosystem. In the late afternoon, you will retreat to your lodge or tented camp for the evening.
Transfer Time: 2-4 hours
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
After breakfast you will head to Serengeti National Park, the largest park in Tanzania. The Serengeti, a world heritage site, is known for its famous migration during which six million hooves pound the plains as zebra and Thomson’s gazelle travel alongside millions of wildebeest looking for fresh grazing. Even when the migration is quiet, Serengeti offers unmatched game and predator versus prey viewing of the over 4 million animals that reside there. Overnight inside the park.
Transfer Time: 4-5 hours
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Experience a full day’s game drive in the Serengeti, driving across vast plains, observing daily wildlife patterns or in search of the great migration. For all full days in the Serengeti, you have the options of taking a full-day game drive with a packed lunch, or heading back to your camp/lodge for lunch and a rest, with game drives in the early morning and late afternoon when the animals are most active.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Enjoy another full day game drive across the sun-kissed savannahs of the Serengeti.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Spend the morning game driving in the Serengeti, after which you will depart for the crisp air of the Ngorongoro Highlands. Spend the night atop the Ngorongoro Crater rim, where you will have an awarding view of the crater floor.
Transfer Time: 2-3 hours
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Wake early and descend into the crater by dawn for a half-day’s game drive. The Ngorongoro Crater, a small haven of 300 km², is bestowed with wildlife, an estimated 35,000 in number, comprising zebra, buffalo, lions, old bull elephants and so much more. It is also one of the best places to spot the rare black rhino. After a picnic lunch on the crater floor, you will drive back to Arusha or on to the airport for an early evening arrival.
Transfer Time: 3-4 hours
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Below are sample accommodations in each location of your safari. It is also recommended that you spend some or all of your Serengeti days where the Great Migration is likely to be found at the time of year you are traveling. See below for the approximate location of the migration throughout the year.
Standard: Kirurumu Manyara Lodge | Tarangire Safari Lodge
Mid-Range: Escarpment Luxury Lodge | Ndovu Tented Lodge
Luxury: Gibb’s Farm | Lemala Mpingo Ridge
Exclusive: Lake Manyara Tree Lodge | Little Chem Chem
Standard: Ngorongoro Tortilis Camp
Mid-Range: Lion’s Paw Ngorongoro Camp
Luxury: Meliá Ngorongoro Lodge
Exclusive: Ngorongoro Crater Lodge
Standard: Acacia Collection Camps
Mid-Range: Siringit Migration Camp
Luxury: Nimali Mara
Exclusive: Singita Sasakwa Lodge
Approximate migration locations:
December – March: South
April – May: Central
June – July: West
July – October: North
October – December: North to East
