Day 1: Arusha – Tarangire National Park
After breakfast, meet your safari guide and chef, then depart with a stop in Arusha for last-minute shopping. Head to Tarangire National Park for a game drive and enjoy a packed lunch at a picnic site. The park is known for large elephant herds, giant baobabs, and diverse wildlife including zebra, giraffe, wildebeest, and predators like lions and leopards. Birdlife is rich, with rare species like Ash starlings and Oryx. In the late afternoon, drive to the Rift Valley base for overnight.
Day 2: Tarangire – Ngorongoro Crater
After breakfast, drive to Ngorongoro Conservation Area and descend 600m into the crater for a game drive. The crater supports wildlife like wildebeest, zebras, buffalo, elephants, hippos, and rare black rhinos. It also has a high predator density, including lions, hyenas, cheetahs, jackals, and leopards. Visit Lake Magadi to see hippos, flamingos, and water birds. In the late afternoon, drive to Simba Public Campsite for sunset viewing, dinner, and overnight.
Day 3: Ngorongoro – Serengeti National Park
After breakfast, drive around the Crater rim and down to “The wild Africa” Serengeti National Park with its endless rolling plains. Move to the central park area called Seronera, named after the river, which is a valuable source of water in the park, attracting a large number of animal species in the Serengeti Maasai Mara ecosystem.
Seronera is among the richest habitats in Serengeti, where you can see animal actions like fighting, hunting, eating, and even killing. Enjoy a packed lunch at kopjes (rocky outcropping) or on the way. After lunch and some rest, embark on a sunset game drive in the vast Serengeti plains in search of the Great Wildebeest Migration (depending on travelling dates). In the late afternoon, during or before sunset, drive to your campsite for dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 4: Serengeti National Park – Lake Natron
Today at 6:30 AM, go for an early morning game drive, which can allow you to spot some cat family on the road as they avoid the morning mist. You may also see other nocturnal predators coming back from their long night of hunting or a group of lionesses organising a morning ambush.
If the Wildebeest Migration is packed in Serengeti, go straight to where they are and spend much time with them before starting your en route game drive towards the Northern Serengeti. Check out at Klein’s gate and drive to Lake Natron, where you will arrive in the late afternoon and go for a sunset walk along the lake shore if time permits.
Have an early dinner and sleep a bit before your driver wakes you up to be ready for your night summit attempt at Ol Doinyo Lengai Mountain.
Day 5: Lake Natron – Arusha
Night ascent and dawn summit bid, Ol Doinyo Lengai Mountain (seismic conditions permitting). Optional waterfall hike and swim, depending on your flight time. Afterwards, drive to Arusha for an airport drop-off or overnight stay.