Classic Northern Tanzania

Your journey to northern Tanzania starts with a flight to Kilimanjaro Airport via Amsterdam. Requesting a window seat is highly advisable! Your accommodation tonight will be a charming and tranquil lodge set within a leafy coffee plantation, so you can be sure the morning brew will be something special.

What makes our northern Tanzania itineraries really stand out is that you’ll be exploring the country with your own private driver and guide. Their expert local knowledge ensures you enjoy an in-depth experience of Tanzania’s wonderful culture and wildlife, beginning with a safari drive through Tarangire National Park. With habitats including wetlands and wooded savannah, Tarangire is home to the largest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti.

An early start today so that you catch a beautiful sunrise over the pink-tinged plains of Tarangire. This is also the perfect time for a safari drive as the wildlife tends to be at its most active in the early hours of the morning. It’s only mad dogs and Englishmen who go out in the midday sun! Later on you can visit a nearby village to learn about local life and conservation projects.

There’ll be time for a final morning game drive in Tarangire before you move north to the iconic Ngorongoro Crater. Stops along the way include a visit to A&K Philanthropy Project: Doffa Bike Shop and meet the women who run the enterprise. You will experience a typical day at the shop and spend some time with the ladies learning about their life and their new trade - and see what a difference it has made to the women who work there and the community at large. The Ngorongoro Crater is the quintessential safari destination, and for a truly authentic experience you’ll camp in classic style under canvas, with superb views over the crater’s rim.

This spectacular natural amphitheatre for wildlife is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is the home of a thrilling diversity of animals and, as you drive down to the crater floor this morning, you might encounter black rhino, bull elephants and big cats. You’ll have plenty to talk about at your scenic waterside picnic among the acacia trees.

Perhaps the only wildlife destination that could possibly top Ngorongoro is the epic Serengeti. And that’s exactly where you’re headed today. You’ll journey to the best location in the reserve for that time of year, arriving in time for a welcome dinner and sundowners around the campfire.

What we really love about Sanctuary Kichakani Serengeti Camp, your Serengeti safari base, is that the terrain near here is suited to so many different types of animal. The short-grass plains, woodland and rocky outcrops harbour everything from wildebeest to cheetah, making the wildlife viewing here simply sensational. As the camp moves to be in the best location for the migration you’ll be lost for superlatives to describe the sheer numbers as well as variety of animals.

There’s no better way to end a holiday in northern Tanzania than with a stay on the island that puts the spice into the Indian Ocean. You’ll fly to Zanzibar via Arusha for an idyllic couple of days at the majestic Baraza Resort. Here you can spend your days strolling barefoot along powder-soft white beaches, snorkelling colourful coral reefs or roaming the winding alleys of Stone Town.

All good things must come to an end, and today you’ll transfer to Zanzibar airport for your flight to Dar Es Salaam, and from there back to UK on an overnight flight.