Explore Tanzania and experience the exhilarating sight of the seasonal Great Migration. Drive through the Ngorongoro Crater and see a variety of wild animas inhabiting this park, including the great herds of elephants along river banks in Tarangire National Park. This game - viewing safari combines exceptional lodges and a luxury tented camp, with the unique experience of sleeping in the trees in a treetop camp.
Day 1: Arusha
On arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport in Tanzania you will be met and transferred to Arusha Coffee Lodge, luxury boutique hotel situated in a working coffee plantation. The balance of the day is at leisure. Relax, take a swim in the pool or just admire the wonderful views of Mt. Meru, the fifth highest mountain in Africa, from the hotel's balconies. This evening you are free to dine on your own enjoying the hotel's exceptional cuisine.
Day 2: Arusha - Serengeti
After breakfast depart for the airport and fly to Serengeti where you will be met on arrival and taken to the Serengeti Migration Camp for a 3-night stay. This stunning permanent tented camp is set beneath the spreading acacia trees with west-facing views over the Serengeti. Following a tasty lunch take your first game drive through this park famous for its large concentration of plains game such as zebra, wildebeest and gazelle. Return to camp in the early evening and watch a spectacular sunset.
Days 3 & 4: Serengeti
Over the next 2 days, enjoy unmatched game viewing in what is arguably the best- known wildlife sanctuary in the world. 'Serengeti' means 'endless plains' in Maasai and within its boundaries are more than three million large mammals. About 35 species of plains animals can be seen here including the 'big five' of which there are upwards of 1,500 lions alone. The Serengeti is also famed for its annual migration. Triggered by the seasonal rains, up to a million wildebeest, 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thompson's gazelle gather to undertake their long trek to new grazing lands. Starting with the wildebeest rutting season, a frenzied 3-week long bout of territorial conquest and mating, the trek begins. It is truly the survival of the fittest as to who gets through this great migration where crocodile-infested rivers must be crossed and where hungry predators who look on this long column of herbivores as a moveable feast, must be avoided.
Day 5: Serengeti - Ngorongoro
Today, journey far back into human history when you visit the Olduvai Gorge en route to Ngorongoro Crater. This archaeological site, often referred to as the 'cradle of mankind', is where Dr. Louis Leakey found traces of pre-historic man dating back 3.5 million years. Then continue on and check-in at the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge for 2 nights. Perched on the Ngorongoro Crater rim, every one of the Lodge's circular suites has phenomenal views, even when relaxing in the bath through floor-to-ceiling windows. Designed with the emphasis on local artistry this opulent yet intimate hotel is beyond one's imagination. The balance of the day is at leisure to enjoy not only the scenery but take part in the many activities the Lodge has on offer.
Day 6: Ngorongoro
Created 3 million years, this huge caldera of the once-active volcano, Ngorongoro became a sanctuary filled with a vast array of Africa's wildlife. Within the towering walls that ring the crater lie forests, grasslands, fresh springs and a large soda lake.
This morning descend to the crater floor where you will mingle with some of its 20,000 resident animals. Watch as the Black Rhino, in its last remaining refuge in Tanzania, emerges from the forests, a prehistoric figure making a surreal impression in the early morning mists. At the Makat Soda Lake watch huge flocks of flamingos and other water birds. Then thrill to the scenes of the hunt as the predators hide in the marsh ready to ambush animals coming to drink where the river feeds into the lake. In the crater's marshy areas look for elephant and hippos keeping cool in the African heat. And, in the wide-open grasslands, the herds of zebra, wildebeest and gazelles stretch as far as the eye can see. Return to the lodge in time for lunch. The afternoon and evening is at leisure to savour this wonderful atmosphere.
Day 7: Ngorongoro - Tarangire
Spend a pleasant morning being driven to Tarangire National Park where you will check in at Tarangire Tree Tops Camp. For the next 2 nights, you will literally sleep on tree platforms, high up in the branches of Baobab, Mopani and Wild Fig trees. These cleverly designed and extremely comfortable en suite tree rooms will give you a bird's-eye-view of the surrounding bush that is home to over 550 species of birds, the greatest concentration of avian life found in Africa. Meals are taken overlooking an elephant waterhole, and in the heat of the day, you can cool off with a swim in the camp's pool. After lunch, take an afternoon game drive through Tarangire Park that well known for it's dense wildlife population. Between June and December, the driest time of the year the park is at its most spectacular when thousands of animals slack their thirst in the Sand River, not far from the camp.
Day 8: Tarangire
The day is devoted to exploring Tarangire National Park in search of its wildlife inhabitants. During the dry season it is not unusual to find up to 300 elephants at a time scooping the sand out of a dry riverbed, looking for underground streams. And where there is water, great herds of migratory wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and eland crowd around the shrinking puddles. With such a concentration of wildlife it is a predator's dream - a buffet for the taking! Tarangire is also home to some lesser-known antelope such as the stately fringe-eared Oryx and peculiar long-necked Gerenuk.
Day 9: Depart Tanzania
After breakfast drive back to Arusha arriving in time for lunch. Afterwards you will be transferred to Kilimanjaro Airport for your flight home