3 Days Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater Safari in Tanzania

Tour Briefing

Unless your arrival time yesterday allowed time for your safari briefing, then this will take place after breakfast. We will provide you with all the essential information, before we set off to our first safari destination, the spectacular Lake Manyara National Park.

Journey (morning): Arusha to Lake Manyara National Park

Our two-hour journey takes us westwards from Arusha. Along the route, your eyes will be opened to all the colours and character of Tanzania: perhaps some Maasai herdsmen driving their flocks of goats to new pastures. You’ll get to know your driver-guide, amazed at his depth of knowledge as he effortlessly answers all your questions.

Stunning Location

Your game drive in the wonderful Lake Manyara located with the Rift Valley escarpment and the lake itself as the wonderful, natural backdrops.

Safari (Game Drive) in Lake Manyara National Park

We travel in our vehicle to cover the highlights of this park. Set against the rugged Rift Valley escarpment, and characterised by its shimmering lake, Manyara is rich in vegetation and the wildlife that thrives here. Enjoy the tranquillity as majestic pink flamingos wade elegantly, picking out a meal of algae from the shallow, alkaline waters.

On land, Manyara’s terrain is compact, yet boasts differing environments such as diverse forests fed by waters seeping from the nearby escarpment. Monkeys are abundant, but look out too for the lions, giraffe, warthog and grumpy Cape buffalo who all call this park ‘home’. Hold your nose when we reach the hippo pool, because these big lumps smell!

After our game drive, we journey on to accommodation for Ngorongoro.

Meal plan

Breakfast is enjoyed at your Arusha hotel. Lunch will be a nutritious and balanced meal, also provided by the hotel for you to take out on safari. Your dinner will be a full, cooked meal provided by the Safari Lodge or Campsite.

Journey: Ngorongoro – Arusha

After our morning visit to the incomparable crater – see below - and then lunch, we will have a 4-hour journey, covering the 250km back to Kilimanjaro International Airport.

Day’s Highlight

Like nothing else on Earth, the stunning crater of Ngorongoro is a unique home for many, many species of Tanzania’s wildlife. With some luck, you may even see a black rhino here.

Safari in Ngorongoro Crater

From our safari camp, we set off after breakfast, a 6am departure to reach the rim and then descend into the vast crater itself. At one side there’s the Lerai Forest, classic mountain forest landscape with almost tropical characteristics. This is good elephant country, so keep your eyes peeled. By the side of the nearby swampland is what is sometimes called the ‘elephant graveyard’ as the mighty male tuskers at the end of their lives come to chew on the soft, swampland grasses once their teeth have failed them.

The crater has a population of around 120 lions, with well-defined territories; 15,000 wildebeest, 9,000 zebra, 400 hyenas, and around 50 black rhino. Many wildebeest and other herd animals are resident, benefiting from the many sources of year-round waters and are boosted by some migrators in season. Buffalo, Thomson’s gazelle and eland are also present in numbers. Hippos can be found in pools and swampland and highland birdlife is colourful and plentiful around the waters. Flamingos can often be seen in Lake Magadi, which occupies part of the crater floor.

Meal plan

Breakfast is served at your accommodation at Ngorongoro. Lunch will be prepared by the Ngorongoro accommodation, and enjoyed after your morning game-drive, before we return to Arusha.