Northern Circuit Safari — 7 Days

Seven days across all four northern parks, with three nights in the Serengeti rather than two. The extra night is what lets you reach the further corners of the park where the vehicles thin out.

Highlights

• Three nights in the Serengeti
• A full morning on the Ngorongoro Crater floor
• Tarangire and Lake Manyara at either end
• Optional balloon flight over the plains

The itinerary, day by day

1. 01

   Arusha to Tarangire

   Tarangire National Park

   Afternoon game drive among the elephants and baobabs.

2. 02

   Tarangire to central Serengeti

   Central Serengeti

   North through the highlands with a stop at Olduvai Gorge, into the Seronera valley by late afternoon.

3. 03

   Full day in the central Serengeti

   Central Serengeti

   Out at dawn for the cats, back for a late breakfast, out again in the afternoon.

4. 04

   Serengeti — moving with the herds

   Serengeti National Park

   A day driving to whichever part of the park the migration is in, and staying there.

5. 05

   Serengeti to Ngorongoro

   Ngorongoro Conservation Area

   A slow morning drive out of the park, then up to the crater rim for sunset.

6. 06

   Crater floor, then Karatu

   Ngorongoro Crater

   A full morning in the caldera, then down to the farmland around Karatu for the night.

7. 07

   Lake Manyara, then Arusha

   Lake Manyara National Park

   A morning through the groundwater forest and along the lake, then the road back.