Tanzania Wildlife Week
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Itinerary Overview
Explore the best game parks in Tanzania including Lake Manyara, the Ngorongoro Crater, and the vast plains of the Serengeti. You’ll watch amazing wildlife and learn about this ecosystem from Kambona Ole Tirra Mollel, your naturalist guide. Visit the Olduvai Gorge where the Leakeys found evidence of early hominids and interact with local Maasai and Irawq peoples. Overnights are in comfortable lodges, and a mobile tented camp in the Serengeti, set to maximize game viewing. Spacious 4x4 land rovers ensure that you travel in comfort and style. This is a privately guided which can leave whenever you are ready!
Day / Date / Overnight / Hotels / Meals / Highlights1 / Arusha / Dik Dik Hotel / Arrive in Arusha
2 / Lake Manyara / Lake Manyara Serena Lodge / BLD / Game drive in LakeManyaraNational park, Irawq visit
3 / Ngorongoro / Sopa Ngorongoro Lodge / BLD / Ngorongoro Crater Game Drive
4 / Serengeti / Serengeti Mobile Camp / BLD / Morning Olmoti Crater hiking or crater game drive. Depart for the Serengeti, visit Olduvai George en route
5 / Serengeti / Serengeti Mobile Camp / BLD / Game Drive in Serengeti National Park
6 / Serengeti / Serengeti Mobile Camp / BLD / Game Drive in Serengeti National Park
7 / Departure / Dik Dik Hotel (dayroom) / BL / Return to Arusha for evening departure
Trip Leader: Kambona Ole Tirra Mollel
Kambona has worked as a master safari guide throughout his native Tanzania and has summitted Kilimanjaro over 100 times as well as climbing Mt Kenya and Mt.Meru. He is a certified Wilderness First Responder and has helped instruct classes and set emergency protocols on the mountain. A native Maasai, Kambona was born and raised in the savannahs of East Africa where he developed a deep knowledge of the natural world. He is trilingual and speaks fluent Maasai, Swahili and English. Before suffering a knee injury, Kambona was a world-class marathon runner preparing for the Olympics. He has skills on backcountry medicine and First Aid, he is W. F. R. (Wilderness First Responder) certified and he has been guiding for the last 12 years.
Itinerary in Detail
Day 1: Arrival in Arusha
Arrive into the Kilimanjaro International airport where you’ll be met after passing through customs. Transfer to overnight at the Dik Dik Hotel. Overnight at Dik Dik Hotel.
Day 2: LakeManyaraNational Park
Depart Arusha this morning with your professional naturalist guide on the two and a half hour drive to the LakeManyaraNational Park. This park is situated in the Great Rift Valley and encompasses many habitats including ground water forest, acacia woodlands, bushy areas and a soda lake. Look for pink flamingoes on the lake, see one of the many elephant families, and watch the antics of the resident baboons. Continue on to the Ngorongoro Highlands where we visit Daniel, a member of the Irawq tribe. The Irawq are an agricultural people who settled the land around Ngorongoro hundreds of years ago. The roots of their language are tied to tribes in Northern Kenya and Ethiopia, and with Daniel we’ll learn about how the traditional Irawq houses were built partially underground so that people and cattle could sleep in the same place, allowing the men to protect the cattle from raiding Maasai. Overnight at the picturesque Lake Manyara Serena with stunning views out over the rift valley.[BLD]
Day 3: Ngorongoro Crater
Depart this morning to enter climb the Ngorongoro crater rim and descend into one of the most spectacular game haunts in Africa. Wildlife is abundant and can be found throughout the year due to the permanent availability of grass and water. Nearly 100 square miles, it contains an impressive variety of wildlife including black-maned lions, the highly endangered black rhino, herds of wildebeest, zebra, elephants, hippo and hyenas. Bird life is also prolific, with flocks of flamingoes on the soda lake, plus other species of water and plains birds. Overnight with views into the crater rim from the Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge.[BLD]
Day 4: Crater hiking and Serengeti
Choose this morning to go on trek with your guide in the impressive and remote Olmoti Crater, visiting with local Maasai people who graze their cattle in these expansive highlands, or opt for another game drive in the Ngorongoro Crater. Continue onthrough the Ngorongoro Highlands and into to the great plains of the Serengeti*. En route enjoy a picnic lunch and a visit the OldupaiGorgeMuseum, near where Mary and Louis Leakey found footprints of Australopithecus afarensis, an “early Hominid” which dated back to 3.6 million years ago. Time permitting, stop to visit Oledrop and his family.Oledrop is a local Maasai who will share with us stories of the Maasai while introducing us to his family in their communal home. Overnights at our Serengeti Mobile Camp, set up exclusively for our group in a location that maximizes wildlife movements. [BLD]
*Approximately 6 hours driving with stops and game driving along the way, depending on the location of the mobile camp.
Days 5& 6: Serengeti National Park
Enjoy two full days exploring the wilds of the Serengeti with you highly skilled wildlife guide. The Serengeti National Park is perhaps the most impressive wildlife sanctuary in the world. These vast, seemingly unending plains, are inhabited during the migration by enormous herds of wildebeest and zebra. The herds attract the attention of predators like lion, cheetah and hyena year round. Another interesting feature of the Serengeti is the massive granite kopjes, islands of rock standing in a sea of grass. The kopjes provide shelter to a great variety of plants and animals, from the elusive leopard to the tiny dikdik. These days’ activities are left up to the guide’s suggestion in order to take full advantage of the movements of the wildlife. Overnights at our Serengeti Mobile Camp. [BLD]
Day 7: Arusha
Depart this morning for Arusha (approximate driving time 6-8 hours) and a day use room at Dik Dik Hotel. Transfer to the airport this evening in time for your international departure. [BL]
End of services
Actual routes and activities may vary. Local trip coordinators reserve the right to change accommodations to similar quality alternatives.
Pricing and Dates:
For current pricing please click here: Pricing
For scheduled departure dates please click here: Dates
Included Services
- All guided tours and excursions
- English-speaking naturalist guides
- Airport-hotel transfers
- 6 nights lodge and campaccommodation as indicated
- Safari transport on specially outfitted 4 WD safari vehicle
- Meals as indicated [B-Breakfast, L-Lunch, D-Dinner]
- Bottled water in the safari vehicle
- Drinks with meals including beer and wine when camping in the Serengeti
- Park entrance fees
- Wildland Adventures travel consultation and pre-departure services
Not Included Services
- International airfare (USA-Kilimanjaro-USA)
- Tips and gratuities
- Airport departure taxes
- Drinks, alcoholic beverages, and meals other than listed above
- Personal expenses for extra services, optional activities, or changes in your itinerary for reasons beyond our control
- Travel insurance for trip cancellation, medical services, or evacuation
- Any other items not mentioned above
Accommodations
Dik Dik Hotel, Arusha
Located on a 20 acre site outside of Arusha, the Dik Dik Hotel has forested grounds interspersed with orchards, which attract a variety of birds. Each of their 9 rooms has an ensuite bathroom and a verandah with a hammock. Relax at the swimming pool and enjoy fresh produce from the gardens at mealtime.
Lake Manyara Serena Lodge
Poised with an impressive view out over the Rift Valley escarpment, Lake Manyara Serena Lodge offers a perfect resting point before reaching the upper highlands of the Ngorongoro Crater. The rooms are housed in circular, double-story, white-washed rondavels (traditional circular buildings with conical thatched roofs), which are strung out along the edge of the cliff so as to allow for maximum views.Each spacious circular room has its own small veranda while the interior décor reflects the blue of the lake and the pink of its flamingos. Behind each bed hangs a spectacular hand-woven rug, while the furnishings and fittings reflect traditional Maasai beadwork. Each room has their own full bathroom and shower, safe’s to lock up your valuables, 24 hrs medical service, telephone and wi-fi connectivity and hair dryers for your convenience.
Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge
Strung along the eastern rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, rooms at the Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge have views out to the crater floor below. Floor to ceiling windows are set next to an inviting rocking chair, a perfect place to sit and gaze to the west. Watch sunset from the pool or the bar, and enjoy the large central fireplace in the restaurant.
Serengeti Mobile Camp, Serengeti
This intimate mobile camp provides the maximum comforts while still allowing the flexibility to move campsites depending on the seasons and the location of wildlife. Enjoy large canvas tents lit by hurricane lamp, each complete with an en suite bathroom and a flush toilet. Campstaff will heat water for you and suspend it in an overhead bucket, which is then gravity-fed down into your showerhead. Enjoy family-style meals in the dining tent including wine or beer with dinner, or relax on your verandah.
Booking your Wildland Adventure
How to Reserve a trip
You can book online using our Reserve a Trip formor by calling 1-800-345-4453. Your space on a trip is confirmed once we receive your reservation form and initial trip deposit.All travelers must sign and submit a Release of Liability.
Deposit requirements are as follows:
- 20% of land cost. This deposit is generally non-refundable.
Custom Travel
This trip isn’t exactly what you’re looking for? We are happy to design a private custom itinerary to accommodate your travel dates, interests and style of accommodations. Call us at 1-800-345-4453, send an email to , or use the Ask The Program Director button on the trip itinerary page on our website.
Payments, Cancellations and Refunds
Full payment of the trip balance is due 90 days prior to departure.If you must cancel before departure, money will be returned less the cancellation fees charged by WA Inc. plus any additional non-refundable cancellation fees and payments already advanced to airlines, hotels and local operators:
Days Prior to Departure: Fee per person
61 or more: Initial deposit amount
31-60 days: 50% of land cost
30 or less: 100% of land cost
Pre-departure services
Upon receipt of your deposit and completed reservation form, we will send you a comprehensive Pre-departure Dossier. This contains important information to help you prepare including immunizations, visas, trip insurance, packingchecklist, reading list, maps, cross-cultural information, optional trip extensions and more. You will receive a final trip packet including Final Reminders and local contact information in your destination 2-3 weeks prior to departure.
References and Questions
Have any questions or concerns? Call us a 1-800-345-4453 or email . We’re here to help and are happy to provide you with references from previous Wildland travelers.
Terms and Conditions: Wildland Adventures, Inc. has arranged your trip utilizing the travel services of local in-country ground operators who are independent contractors. These local outfitters, lodges, hotels and other suppliers of your travel services will make every effort to conduct this trip as described in the itinerary. It is however possible that due to transportation schedule changes, weather, delays and unforeseeable acts of God, humans or nature, this itinerary may vary from what is described. Participants must assume all risks whether identified in advance or unforeseen. All optional activities are at your own risk. Extra costs due to unexpected changes in your itinerary for reasons beyond our control are not included. We highly recommend purchasing traveler’s insurance for trip delay, trip cancellation, baggage, accident or sickness. Representatives are available for assistance at any time during your trip. If preferred hotels are not available, every attempt will be made to reserve alternative accommodations of similar quality. (If upgrade is necessary, higher rates may apply.) All information and services provided are subject to our Terms and Conditions
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