8-Day Wildebeest Calving Season Safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro

Arrive at Kilimanjaro Airport, Tanzania. After clearing customs, look for your adventure driver, who will be waiting for you holding a sign with your name. Your driver will transport you to Springlands Hotel on the outskirts of Moshi.

Overnight at Springlands Hotel (with breakfast) or similar.

Drive to Lake Manyara National Park in the morning. Set against the steep escarpment of the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park features an evergreen groundwater forest and various ecosystems, including acacia woodland, grassy plains, a swampy fan delta, and, of course, the expansive lake. This diversity attracts a wide variety of mammal, bird, and wildlife species.

Manyara is also home to rare tree-climbing lions. The park offers excellent game viewing, with buffalo, impala, giraffe, bushbuck, waterbuck, hippos, and lots of elephants roaming near the lake. You can also be on the lookout for blue monkeys, vervet monkeys, and the very active olive baboon.

Overnight at Highview Hotel (with lunch, dinner & breakfast) or similar.

Head out after breakfast for the drive to Serengeti National Park. "Serengeti" is derived from the Maasai language, meaning "endless plain." En route to the Serengeti, you can visit a Masaai Village, a perfect place to explore Maasai culture and even participate in some tribal activities.

You may also choose to visit Olduvai Gorge, known as the Cradle of Humanity. The museum is a testament to the long journey humanity has made from its humble roots in East Africa to its current state as the dominant species on earth.

Overnight at one of our Wild Camps* (with lunch, dinner & breakfast).

Ikoma Wild Camp, Serengeti Wild Camp, or Serengeti Wildebeest Camp.

Relax for a full day in the Serengeti, unequalled for its beauty and home to the Great Wildebeest Migration. Huge herds of plains game, such as wildebeest, zebra, and antelope, dominate the park, while attendant predators such as lion and cheetah can be found among the many kopjes scattered across the plain.

The landscape varies from open grass plains in the south, to savanna with scattered acacia trees in the center, hilly wooded grassland in the north, and extensive woodland and black clay plains to the west.

Overnight at one of our Wild Camps* (with lunch, dinner & breakfast).

Ikoma Wild Camp, Serengeti Wild Camp, or Serengeti Wildebeest Camp.

Enjoy a morning game drive in the Serengeti before your transfer to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, part of the southern Serengeti ecosystem. Most of the wildebeest migration can normally be found on the short-grass plains from December to April. The area is usually heavily populated with elephants, birds, and resident game.

Check in at the lodge, followed by an afternoon game drive.

Overnight at Ngorongoro Wild Camp (with lunch, dinner & breakfast).

Enjoy a full-day game drive in the Ndutu area. Explore a range of different habitats, including swamps, woodland, soda lakes, and the world-famous Serengeti short grass plains. See great herds of wildebeest and zebra roaming across the landscape.

This time of year allows you to witness calves running just minutes after birth. It is also the time of year with the best predator action. The marshes and lakes support a variety of bird life and resident lion pride. Cheetahs are abundant on the plains, and the wooded ridges are always worth a look.

Overnight at Ngorongoro Wild Camp (with lunch, dinner & breakfast) or similar.

This morning, descend into the Ngorongoro Crater for game driving and exploration. The crater is 600 m deep, 16 km across, and 265 sq km in area. Enjoy the spectacular scenery and game viewing in what has been described as the eighth wonder of the world.

Many of Tanzania's last remaining black rhinos can be seen grazing on the open grassland of the crater floor, surrounded by some of the 20,000 large animals that occupy the crater, including lion, cheetah, eland, zebra, and gazelle. Flamingos, among other bird species, can often be seen feeding at Makat Soda Lake.

In the afternoon, drive to Moshi for your overnight stay at Springlands Hotel.

Overnight at Springlands Hotel (with lunch, dinner & breakfast) or similar.

Enjoy a morning at leisure before your transfer to Kilimanjaro Airport for your flight home. If your flight departs in the evening, why not check out our "Add on" day trip activities - speak to us to arrange this.