7 Day Tanzania Safari Tarangire Manyara Serengeti & Ngorongoro

7 Day Tanzania Safari Tarangire Manyara Serengeti & Ngorongoro | 1 Night Tarangire National Park, 1 Night Lake Manyara National Park, 2 Nights Serengeti National Park & 2 Nights Ngorongoro Crater Safari | Tanzania Safari tours & Trips | 7-Days Northern Tanzania Safari | Tanzania Safari Holidays

This 7 day Tanzania road safari explores Tanzania’s northern safari circuit which is the most celebrated safari area in Africa and home to the world-famous Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater, and the lesser-known parks of Lake Manyara and Tarangire.

A morning departure from your Arusha hotel begins the safari. You travel south for around two hours to Tarangire National Park. Tarangire is one of East Africa’s best places to see elephants up close, hosting about 4000 elephants.

Other animals include giraffes, buffalos, lions, leopards, baboons, and a variety of antelopes and gazelle species. This diverse Tanzanian park covers 2600 km² of diverse habitats, ranging from grassy savannahs and seasonal marshlands to woodlands and giant old baobab trees. After game viewing in Tarangire, we head to our camp/ lodge.

On day two we continue exploring Tarangire National Park on game viewing drives. The Tarangire River is the only permanent water source in the park, during the dry season (July to October), attracting numerous animals to its banks. Herds of buffalo and wildebeests, as well as elephants, are frequently sighted along the river. We also keep an eye out for various birds on our game drives, as Tarangire is also home to over 100 bird species.

Day three begins with a transfer from Tarangire National Park to Lake Manyara National Park. We enjoy a game drive along the shallow alkaline lake that attracts enormous numbers of birds, including tens of thousands of flamingos. 

The park is also known for its tree-climbing lions, often spotted sleeping in the trees or the shade below, as well as its big baboon troops. On our game drive, we lookout for elephants, hippos, buffalos, banded mongooses, monkeys, klipspringers, and numerous gazelle and antelope species.

On day four we drive on to the world-famous Serengeti National Park. As we travel the southern Serengeti Plains open up before us, en route to our next camp in Tanzania. This scenic journey reveals the vast rolling plains of Serengeti dotted by rocky hills called “Kopjes” (inselbergs).

The Serengeti aptly derives its name from “Siringitu”, the Maasai word for endless plain. The plains of the southern Serengeti truly appear to stretch on infinitely, providing prime hunting territory for Africa’s big cats, especially cheetahs.

We spend day five on game viewing on the game-rich plains of Serengeti National Park, Tanzania’s premier safari destination. The park’s main attraction is the Great Migration, consisting of up to 2 million wildebeest, 200,000 zebras, and 350,000 Thompson, impala, and grant’s gazelles – many consider it to be the most spectacular remaining African wildlife spectacle.

The predator viewing here is exceptional with approximately 3-4,000 lions and huge numbers of cheetah, leopard, and hyena. Other animals commonly found in the park include topi, eland, hartebeest, buffalo, elephant, caracal, serval, bat-eared fox, hyrax, genet, hares, porcupine, aardvark, giraffe, jackal, mongoose, crocodile, monitor lizard, aardwolf, many kinds of primates including baboons, vervet and colobus monkeys, and over 500 species of bird. 

Day six sees you on the Ngorongoro Crater floor, enjoying a game drive in a destination with a reputation for the easiest Big 5 viewing in Africa – lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo are usually all seen within a day in the Crater. Ngorongoro Crater is home to over 25 000 larger animals, the highest density of animals inhabiting any one area in Africa.

We stop for a picnic lunch during our game viewing drive in the Crater, ascending the crater walls in the afternoon.

Day seven begins with breakfast, before you travel back to the town of Arusha, arriving in the evening. Your guide will drop you off at a hotel of your choice or the airport for your onward travel arrangements and an end to this tour.

Day 1: Arusha – Drive to Tarangire National Park
Day 2: Explore Tarangire National Park
Day 3: Tarangire – Drive to Lake Manyara National Park
Day 4: Lake Manyara – Drive to Ngorongoro Crater
Day 5: Ngorongoro – Drive to Serengeti National Park
Day 6: Explore Serengeti National Park
Day 7: Serengeti – Drive to Arusha

Day 1: Arusha – Drive to Tarangire National Park

Overnight at Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge or similar
Meal Plan: {Lunch & Dinner}

Day 2: Explore Tarangire National Park

On day two we continue exploring Tarangire National Park on game viewing drives. The Tarangire River is the only permanent water source in the park, during the dry season (July to October), attracting numerous animals to its banks. Herds of buffalo and wildebeests, as well as elephants, are frequently sighted along the river.

We also keep an eye out for various birds on our game drives, as Tarangire is also home to over 100 bird species.

We overnight at a camp/ lodge inside or outside Tarangire again on our second night in Tanzania.

Overnight at Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge or similar
Meal Plan: {Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner}

Day 3: Tarangire – Drive to Lake Manyara National Park

Today starts with a morning coffee before we make our way to Lake Manyara National Park for an early morning game viewing drive. This scenic national park protects the north-western part of Lake Manyara, running along the base of the Great Rift Valley’s western escarpment.

The shallow soda lake attracts over 380 bird species and is known for its large flamingo flocks. This compact and diverse game park is also home to the elusive tree-climbing lion.

After a rest at the lodge during the heat of the day, we head out on a short afternoon game drive in Manyara National Park.

Overnight at Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge or similar
Meal Plan: {Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner}

Day 4: Lake Manyara – Drive to Serengeti National Park

On day three we leave the African Rift Valley traveling to the lush crater highlands. Next, we drive via Karatu to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, passing the crater highlands we witness the wide-open plains of the southern part of Serengeti National Park.

Looking out over the rolling plains it is easy to see why the Maasai people call it “Siringitu” – the endless plain. The southern section of the Serengeti Plains truly appears to go on forever, stretching as far as the eye can see.

The Kopje (small rocky hill) dotted plains offer an ideal hunting terrain for cheetahs and the other big cats of Africa. We stay at a tented camp/ lodge located in the central area of Serengeti National Park, arriving in the afternoon.

Overnight at Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge or similar
Meal Plan: {Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner}

Day 5: Explore the Serengeti National Park

Day 6: Serengeti – Drive to the Ngorongoro Crater

After breakfast, we make our way back to the Ngorongoro Crater and descend the steep crater walls to explore this diverse wilderness area, teeming with Africa’s wildlife.

Ngorongoro, part of the Serengeti ecosystem, is a massive caldera spanning an impressive 18 km in diameter with walls as high as 600m. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to the densest mammalian population in Africa, with around 25,000 large animals.

The Crater hosts the Big Five of Africa (lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo), boasting one of the highest concentrations of lions in the world. The Ngorongoro Crater not only hosts the Big Five of Africa but also almost all of the wild animal species found on the savannahs of East Africa.

Ngorongoro offers first-class game viewing and is considered one of the best places to capture the endangered black rhino on film. The diverse habitats found on the fertile crater floor support a variety of wildlife, including elephants, monkeys, hyenas, jackals, and herds of zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, and other antelope species.

We stop for a picnic lunch in the crater and after our thrilling wildlife experience, we depart from the Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area returning to our overnight lodge near Karatu.

Overnight at Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge or similar
Meal Plan: {Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner}

Day 7: Ngorongoro – Drive to Arusha