Itinerary · 9 days · 38 places
9 Days in Tanzania
Nine days on Tanzania's classic northern circuit: from Arusha via the baobab plains of Tarangire and the groundwater forest at Lake Manyara down into the Ngorongoro Crater and on to the Seronera plains of the Serengeti.
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Photo: Jairos Adventure · Pexels
The route on the map
The plan, day by day
Day 1Arrival at the foot of Mount Meru
Arrival in Arusha
Hotel check-in
The lodge sits on the Burka coffee plantation on the western edge of Arusha, peaceful among the coffee bushes yet only ten minutes from the town centre.
Walk through the Burka coffee plantation
A short stroll between the plantation's rows of coffee, where Mount Meru rises above the trees on clear evenings.
Day 2Baobabs and elephants in Tarangire
Onward to Tarangire
Hotel check-in
Tarangire main gate and baobab viewpoint
The paperwork is done at the gate, and from the hill behind it you see the first ancient baobabs standing above the river plain.
Game drive along the Tarangire River
In the dry season elephant families dig holes in the riverbed with their tusks, where zebras and warthogs gather.
Lemiyon plain and baobab forest
The open grassland north of the river has the park's densest stands of baobabs, with giraffes and impalas moving between them.
Evening: starry sky over Maramboi Camp
From the tented camp's deck you look out over the salt flats by Lake Manyara, and with no street lights the Milky Way stretches right across the sky.
Day 3Groundwater forest and flamingos at Lake Manyara
Village walk in Mto wa Mbu
The market village at the foot of the Rift escarpment lives off bananas: a walk leads through the banana groves to the banana beer brewery and the Makonde woodcarvers.
Groundwater forest at the Manyara gate
Right behind the gate is a damp forest of figs and mahogany trees where blue monkeys and troops of baboons cross the track.
Hippo Pool on the Simba River
Where the river flows into the lake, hippos lie packed together in the shallows, surrounded by marabou storks and pelicans.
Acacia plain of the tree-climbing lions near Msasa
In the umbrella acacias between the forest and the lakeshore, Manyara's lions really do lie out on the horizontal branches.
Evening: viewpoint on the edge of the Rift Valley
From the edge of the escarpment 400 metres above the lake, you see the lights of Mto wa Mbu and the silhouette of the lake in the evening.
Day 4Crater rim, coffee and elephant caves
Onward to Karatu
Hotel check-in
Lodoare Gate to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Permits are issued at the main gate; the information boards behind it explain how Maasai herding and wildlife protection coexist in the conservation area.
Crater rim viewpoint at Michael Grzimek's grave
From the grave on the crater rim the view drops 600 metres straight down to the crater floor, with Lake Magadi, a soda lake, in the middle.
Coffee tour at Gibb's Farm
On this old colonial farm from 1929 you're shown how the Arabica cherries are picked, dried and roasted, with a walk through the vegetable garden.
Hike to the elephant caves
A guided path through the montane forest to the rock faces from which elephants have been breaking off salty earth for generations.
Evening: fireside at Ngorongoro Farm House
An open fire burns in the evening in the former farm hall, as it quickly turns cool at 1500 metres after sunset.
Day 5A day in the Ngorongoro Crater
Descent via the Seneto road
The one-way track winds in tight bends 600 metres down to the crater floor, often between Maasai cattle heading to water.
Lake Magadi on the crater floor
The shallow soda lake shimmers pink with thousands of lesser and greater flamingos, while wildebeest and zebras stand in the mud along its edges.
Lerai fever tree forest
The yellow-barked fever tree forest in the south-west is where the crater's last black rhinos seek shade during the day.
Ngoitokitok Spring
A large pod of hippos lies in the clear spring-fed pool on the eastern edge of the crater, and black kites circle above the only permitted picnic spot.
Mandusi Swamp
In the reed swamp west of the crater's centre, bull elephants stand belly-deep in the water — in the crater you see almost only old bulls with heavy tusks.
Ascent via the Lemala road
The exit track in the north-east climbs through dense montane forest back to the rim, with a last view over the whole caldera.
Evening: garden of the Plantation Lodge
In the lodge's sprawling garden among the coffee fields, you sit under old trees in the evening with a glass of South African wine.
Day 6Over Naabi Hill into the Serengeti
Onward to the Serengeti
Hotel check-in
Game drive in the Seronera valley
The valley around the only year-round river in the central Serengeti is the most reliable area for lion prides.
Fig trees on the Seronera River
With a bit of luck, leopards drape themselves over the branches of the spreading river figs on the bank, often with a kill in the tree.
Maasai Kopjes
The granite outcrops rise from the plain like rock castles; in the afternoon lions and rock hyraxes doze on the warm slabs.
Evening: star terrace at Seronera Wildlife Lodge
The lodge is built into a kopje; from the rock terrace you hear hyenas in the evening and see hundreds of stars over the plain.
Day 7Cats and kopjes around Seronera
Morning game drive to the Simba Kopjes
The rock outcrops south of Seronera live up to their name — in the cool morning air lions sit up on the boulders, surveying the plain.
Seronera Visitor Centre
A short trail on a kopje with information boards on the wildebeest migration and the Serengeti's fire regime, with rock hyraxes scurrying over the rocks.
Retina Hippo Pool
In the bend of the river up to two hundred hippos pile into a single pool — you're allowed to get out here and watch from the bank.
Afternoon game drive on the Nyaruswiga plains
The wide grassland north of Seronera is cheetah country: they scan for Thomson's gazelles from the flat termite mounds.
Evening: campfire at Seronera Camp
A fire is lit in front of the tents after sunset; from then on an askari escorts guests on foot through the camp.
Day 8Rock paintings and rhinos at the Moru Kopjes
Moru Kopjes
The Serengeti's largest group of kopjes lies in the south amid open plains; rainwater pools collect between the granite boulders, where elephants come to drink.
Gong Rock with Maasai rock paintings
Under a rock overhang are the white-and-red shield paintings of the Maasai, and next to them the ringing boulder that herders used to strike with stones.
Rhino viewing area at Moru swamp
The Serengeti's last free-roaming black rhino population lives here under guard; from the track you can spot them through binoculars at the edge of the swamp.
Plain along the Mbalageti River
Giraffes and elands move along the river with its sausage trees, and jackals hunt in the bushes on the banks.
Evening: campfire at Dunia Camp
The mobile tented camp at the foot of the Moru Kopjes is run entirely by women; in the evening you sit by the fire with the team.
Day 9Last game drive and return flight
Morning game drive on the Seronera plains
The coolest hour of the day is the best: lions return from the hunt, and the dust of the wildebeest herds hangs over the plain.
Serengeti Research Centre in Seronera
The station where the wildebeest migration has been measured since the 1960s shows collections and maps of the herds' movements.
Departure from the Serengeti
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