Serengeti Days,
Crater Wonders
Five days on Tanzania’s northern circuit, with a full day in the Serengeti — migration country, big-cat country and some of the finest game viewing in Africa.
- Duration
- 5 Days · 4 Nights
- Destinations
- Tarangire · Serengeti · Ngorongoro
- Tour Type
- Private Guided Safari
- Best Time
- June – October · Dec – Mar
The Experience
Time to Go
Deeper
Five days on the northern circuit, with one precious extra day in the Serengeti — the difference between seeing the plains and beginning to understand them. This safari moves from the elephant herds and baobabs of Tarangire National Park to the vast grasslands of the Serengeti, where a full day of game viewing allows you to explore multiple regions, follow predator activity and, in season, witness the Great Migration on the move. The journey closes with a descent to the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater, one of the finest Big Five arenas in Africa.
The relaxed pace makes this itinerary especially rewarding for photographers, first-time visitors and anyone who would rather watch wildlife than watch the clock. Expect unhurried game drives, picnic lunches inside the parks and nights spent in comfortable camps and lodges at the heart of the wilderness. Lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants, giraffes and enormous herds of wildebeest and zebra all feature in a week like this, guided throughout by a private professional safari guide who knows where to look and when. For many travellers, five days is the perfect length for a first Tanzania safari.
- Duration
- 5 Days · 4 Nights
- Destinations
- Tarangire · Serengeti · Ngorongoro
- Tour Type
- Private Guided Safari
- Accommodation
- Lodges & Tented Camps
- Starting Point
- Arusha
- Best Time
- June – October · Dec – Mar
The extra day in the Serengeti makes all the difference — more habitats explored, more time with the predators, and no need to rush.
Your Journey, Day by Day
Five Days,
One Wild Rhythm
A slower, richer safari: two nights on the Serengeti plains, a full day of game viewing and a grand finale on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater.
Leaving Arusha in the morning, you journey into the heart of northern Tanzania’s safari country, bound for Tarangire National Park. The park’s skyline is unmistakable — ancient baobabs rising above golden grassland, their vast trunks storing water through the dry season. Tarangire is elephant country, and few places in East Africa offer such reliable opportunities to watch large herds at close range as they browse, dust-bathe and guide their calves along the river. Your game drive follows the Tarangire River and its surrounding woodland, where giraffes move like sentinels through the acacias and zebras, wildebeest and buffaloes graze the open plains. Predators are part of the fabric here too, from prides of lions to cheetahs and leopards in the riverine forest. A picnic lunch is served in the park before an afternoon of unhurried game viewing, allowing you to absorb the rhythms of the wild at their own pace. Keep an eye out for the smaller details too — colourful weavers nesting in the acacias, dung beetles at work in the dust and birds of prey circling overhead. As the day cools you leave Tarangire behind and drive to the Karatu highlands, where the green hills and cooler air offer a peaceful end to the day.
- Meals
- Lunch, Dinner
- Driving
- Scenic drive & full-day game viewing
- Distance
- Activities
- Game drive · Picnic lunch
The road to the Serengeti is one of the most scenic drives in East Africa. From Karatu you ascend into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, passing through highland forest, open moorland and small Maasai settlements, with glimpses of volcanic peaks along the way. There is time to pause at viewpoints over the crater before the route continues north-west, descending gradually towards the plains. The change of scenery is dramatic: the highlands thin out into flat-topped acacia woodland, and then the grasslands open up — the Serengeti, stretching to the horizon in every direction. Afternoon game viewing begins as soon as you enter the park, with possible sightings of lions basking on the warm kopjes, elephants threading between the acacias and giraffes silhouetted against the sky. The Serengeti’s plains are famous for their numbers, and it is common to see wildebeest, zebras, Thomson’s gazelles and eland moving in mixed herds across the short grass. A picnic lunch is taken en route. By late afternoon you arrive at your camp or lodge inside the park, perfectly placed for the full day of exploration that awaits tomorrow.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
- Driving
- Highland crossing & afternoon game drive
- Distance
- Activities
- Game drive · Scenic transfer · Picnic lunch
This is the day the Serengeti truly comes into its own. A full day of game viewing begins at first light, when the plains are cool and gold and the predators are still on the move. Your guide will set the pace, following fresh tracks and local reports to the areas of greatest activity — perhaps a pride of lions finishing an early hunt, a cheetah teaching its cubs to stalk, or a leopard draped across the bough of a sausage tree. As the morning warms, the herds gather: wildebeest and zebras in their thousands, giraffes browsing the treetops, elephants crossing the grassland in quiet family lines. Each region of the park has its own character, from the rocky kopjes of the centre to the riverine forests and open short-grass plains, and the day allows you to explore several of them. A picnic lunch is served in the shade inside the park, with the afternoon bringing further wildlife viewing and ever-changing light. Depending on the season, the Great Migration may be passing through — columns of wildebeest and zebra stretching to the horizon, and the drama that follows them. You return to camp by early evening, tired and exhilarated after one of the great days of safari.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
- Driving
- Full day of game viewing
- Distance
- Activities
- Full-day game drive · Picnic lunch
Enjoy a final morning game drive in the Serengeti, when the plains are often at their most atmospheric — long shadows, cool air and wildlife on the move. This last look at the grasslands may bring fresh surprises: hyena clans returning to their dens, secretary birds striding through the stubble, or elephants arriving at a waterhole to drink and spray. Once the morning’s viewing is complete, you begin the journey south-east across the ecosystem, leaving the open plains behind as the terrain rises towards the Ngorongoro highlands. Game viewing continues along the way, with the changing landscape bringing its own wildlife encounters — antelope on the ridgelines, buffalo in the valleys and birds of prey riding the thermals. A picnic lunch keeps the day flexible. As the altitude increases, the air cools and the vegetation shifts to highland forest and grassland, until the great rim of the crater comes into view. Your accommodation for the night sits on these green highlands, a quiet base above one of Africa’s most famous natural wonders, leaving you rested and ready for tomorrow’s descent to the crater floor.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
- Driving
- Morning game drive & highland transfer
- Distance
- Activities
- Game drive · Picnic lunch
Rise early for the highlight of the northern circuit: a game drive on the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater. Descending the steep, winding road through the crater wall, you enter a natural amphitheatre of grassland, forest and soda lake that shelters an exceptional concentration of wildlife. Lions patrol the plains in healthy numbers, elephants move between the marshes, and large herds of buffalo, zebra and wildebeest graze within sight of one another. The crater is one of the few places in Tanzania where the endangered black rhino is regularly seen, and the shallows of Lake Magadi often draw flocks of flamingo. Hippo crowd their pools, and hyenas work the edges of the herds. Every hour on the crater floor brings something new, from the smallest birdlife to the largest herds. A picnic lunch at a designated crater site gives you time to soak up the atmosphere before a final drive across the floor. In the early afternoon you ascend back to the rim and begin the scenic return to Arusha, carrying with you the memories of five extraordinary days in Tarangire, the Serengeti and Ngorongoro — the very best of a Tanzania safari.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch
- Driving
- Crater game drive & return transfer
- Distance
- Activities
- Crater game drive · Picnic lunch
The Details
What’s Included
& What’s Not
All park and crater fees, private guiding, full-board accommodation and picnic lunches on game drive days are included.
What’s Included
- Private 4x4 safari vehicle with pop-up roof and professional English-speaking safari guide
- All national park entry, conservation and crater service fees
- Full-board accommodation as per the day-by-day itinerary
- Picnic lunches on full game drive days
- Bottled drinking water throughout the safari
- Pick-up and drop-off at your Arusha accommodation
What’s Not Included
- International flights, visas and travel insurance
- Tips for your guide and camp staff
- Personal expenses, drinks, laundry and items of a personal nature
- Optional activities not listed in the itinerary
When to Travel
The Best Time to Travel
Each season reshapes the Serengeti — here is what the year looks like on this route.
-
June – October · December – March
Great Migration Season
The herds move through the Serengeti ecosystem in a seasonal loop — river crossings in the north from June to October and calving on the southern short-grass plains from December to March.
-
November – May
Green Season
Rain-washed plains, dramatic skies, migrant birds and young animals everywhere — a beautiful and quieter time for a Serengeti and Ngorongoro safari.
The Great Migration is a year-round movement, not a single event — your guide will plan the days around where the herds are.
Good to Know
Planning Your
Migration Safari
The questions travellers ask us most often about this journey.
— Tanzania Safari
Why choose five days over four?
The extra day is spent entirely inside the Serengeti, allowing a full day of game viewing across several wildlife areas instead of a single afternoon. More time means slower mornings, better predator sightings and the freedom to follow the wildlife rather than the clock.
Will we see the Great Migration?
The migration is a year-round circular movement of wildebeest and zebra through the Serengeti ecosystem, and herds are often seen on this route. Exact locations shift with the rains, so sightings are never guaranteed — but your guide will position each day around the season’s wildlife movements.
What happens on the full day in the Serengeti?
You set out early and stay out for the day, exploring different habitats — kopjes, riverine forest and open plains — with a picnic lunch served in the park. The day is flexible and shaped around what the wildlife is doing, with a return to camp in the early evening.
Start Planning
Start Planning
Your Safari
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Inquiring about
5 Days Tarangire, Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti Safari · 5 Days · 4 Nights
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