Today, you will depart for Lake Manyara National Park. Spend the afternoon on a game drive in this park, often described as one of Tanzania’s hidden treasures. Lake Manyara is famous for its tree-climbing lions, but don’t set your expectations too high; if you spot one, consider it a bonus. Wildlife sightings may include elephants, giraffes, buffalo, and fantastic birdlife.

Leave the Plantation Farm Lodge early in the morning and drive through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area before descending 610 meters to the grasslands of the crater floor, covering an area of about 265 square kilometers. Despite its small size, the Crater hosts the Big 5, and its open terrain allows for easy and rewarding game viewing. Spend the day exploring the crater floor, stopping for a picnic amid the grazing herds. Formed by a massive volcanic eruption, this is the world’s largest intact and unflooded caldera, providing a year-round home to approximately 25,000 large mammals, including black rhinos, wildebeests, and zebras, along with Africa’s densest concentrations of hyenas. The forests of the Crater provide shelter for elephants and buffalo, while its wetlands are home to hippos and flamingos. Additionally, lions, jackals, leopards, and caracals comprise the complete range of predators. In the late afternoon, leave the Crater and return to your accommodation for dinner and an overnight stay.

“Home to the world’s last remaining large mammals.”
After breakfast, depart from Plantation Safari Lodge with a picnic lunch packed for the day. Head to the central part of the Serengeti, known for its abundance of lions and leopards that are often easily spotted. Game viewing in this area is spectacular year-round. Enjoy views of endless plains teeming with stunning wildlife, including cheetahs, elephants, giraffes, hippos, ostriches, jackals, hyenas, and many others.

If your timing is right, you may witness the great migration of wildebeests and zebras between November and June; however, game viewing remains exceptional even when the migration is not occurring. Proceed to your accommodation in the evening for dinner and an overnight stay.

After a leisurely breakfast at your camp, we will explore the endless open plains and stunning skies of Serengeti National Park, a renowned migration corridor and UNESCO World Heritage site. Here, you’ll witness the great migration of wildebeest and zebras. Depending on the time of year, the migration typically occurs within the southern grass plains and central regions from December to May.

On this day, we will investigate the park’s diverse habitats in search of the big cats that dominate the area. Serengeti is home to lions, leopards, hippos, cheetahs, giraffes, elands, warthogs, and hyraxes. The landscape features mammoth rock outcrops, swamps, valleys, acacia tree lines, and riverine habitats, making game viewing excellent throughout the year. Our camp is situated in the park’s central region, allowing us easy access to game viewing. After extensive exploration, we’ll return to camp for dinner and overnight accommodations.

After breakfast, you’ll be driven to the airstrip for your morning flight to Nyerere National Park, formerly Selous Game Reserve. The flight will take approximately two hours. A guide from Seven Wonders Safaris will meet you upon arrival and take you on a game drive through this distinct park, arriving at the camp in time for lunch. Settle in and enjoy views overlooking the great Selous River and watch elephants as they come down for a drink. You can relax with a beverage before embarking on an afternoon game drive, exploring the sandy riverbeds in search of elephants digging for water or leopards hiding in the rocky kopjes.

Each morning and afternoon, you’ll have the option to choose from various safari activities on your Tanzania Northern Circuit. Game drives provide an excellent opportunity to explore farther afield and observe larger wildlife and predators. The Selous features a wide range of habitats, from grassland savannas to floodplains and miombo woodlands, and is home to numerous plains game, large elephant herds, lion pride, and African wild dogs.

At Nyerere National Park, you have the unique opportunity to leave your vehicle—perhaps to approach a tranquil elephant herd unnoticed or to explore what lies around the next river bend on foot. In addition to game drives and guided nature walks, you can enjoy boat trips and picnics on one of the scenic sandbanks, along with excellent birdwatching. Your accommodation, Lake Manze Tented Camp, is an authentic, rustic safari camp nestled among Doum palm and Terminalia trees. Its location is ideal, sitting on the edge of Lake Manze, with a well-used elephant track running alongside the camp.

Each morning and afternoon, you’ll have the option to choose from various safari activities on your Tanzania Northern Circuit. Game drives provide an excellent opportunity to explore farther afield and observe larger wildlife and predators. The Selous features a wide range of habitats, from grassland savannas to floodplains and miombo woodlands, and is home to numerous plains game, large elephant herds, lion pride, and African wild dogs. At Nyerere National Park, you have the unique opportunity to leave your vehicle—perhaps to approach a tranquil elephant herd unnoticed or to explore what lies around the next river bend on foot. In addition to game drives and guided nature walks, you can enjoy boat trips and picnics on one of the scenic sandbanks, along with excellent birdwatching. Your accommodation, Lake Manze Tented Camp, is an authentic, rustic safari camp nestled among Doum palm and Terminalia trees. Its location is ideal, sitting on the edge of Lake Manze, with a well-used elephant track running alongside the camp.

You’ll have a final breakfast at the Serena Selous Camp before being driven to the airstrip for your late-morning flight to Dar es Salaam. The flight may stop several times to drop off or pick up passengers, with a total journey time of approximately two hours. Upon arrival, you will land at the domestic terminal, and the airline will assist you in transferring the short distance to the international terminal, where you can check in for your international flight home.