Tanzania

DAY 1 – Depart from USA

DAY 2 – Arrival in Tanzania

We arrive into Tanzania at the Kilimanjaro International Airport. Here we are met by our local representative and transferred to our lodge. The Lodge stands at the shores of tranquil Lake Duluti amid coffee plantations.  It is nestled at the foot of the wooded slopes of Mount Meru and designed to echo the traditional style of the colonial coffee farm, which originally stood on this site. Lake Duluti Lodge or similar, Arusha (D)

DAY 3 – Tarangire National Park

After a restful night’s sleep, our day starts with a hefty breakfast and briefing. We then board our exclusive popped roof vans for an amazing Safari. We drive to Tarangire National Park, a perfect place to introduce safari to you. It’s the greatest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti ecosystem – a smorgasbord for predators – and the one place in Tanzania where dry-country antelope such as the stately fringe-eared oryx and peculiar long-necked gerenuk are regularly observed. Tarangire’s mobs of elephants are easily encountered, wet or dry. The swamps are the focus for 550 bird varieties, the most breeding species in one habitat anywhere in the world. On drier ground you find the Kori bustard, the heaviest flying bird; the stocking-thighed ostrich, the world’s largest bird; and small parties of ground hornbills blustering like turkeys. After your picnic lunch, you will proceed to your first game drive in the park before driving to your tented camp to refresh. Tarangire Safari Lodge’s quintessential tents provide the perfect opportunity to connect with the sights and sounds of nature, with breathtaking scenery and game viewing right from your sweeping terrace and the doorsteps of your tents. Enjoying Sundowners from the terrace is the most favorite time of day! Tarangire Safari Lodge or similar, Tarangire National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 4 – Ngorongoro Crater

You start your day with a sunrise game drive until 9 AM. You will then return to the lodge for breakfast and check out from the lodge. The disused termite mounds are often frequented by colonies of the endearing dwarf mongoose, and pairs of red-and-yellow barbet, which draw attention to themselves by their loud, clockwork-like duetting. Tarangire’s pythons climb trees, as do its lions and leopards, lounging in the branches where the fruit of the sausage tree disguises the twitch of a tail. You will enjoy your game drive and picnic lunch in the park. We depart the park around in mid-afternoon and drive to Ngorongoro. On arrival, you will check in at Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge where we will enjoy a view of the crater from the windows, doors or decks of the various hotel rooms. Regularly voted one of the best hotels in the world, this unique lodge clings to the rim of the magnificent Ngorongoro Crater, the largest and most perfect volcanic crater on Earth. Long and low, the lodge is built from local river stone and camouflaged with indigenous vines. Designed to blend completely into the landscape, it is entirely invisible from the floor of the Crater 600 meters below. Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge or similar, Ngorongoro National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 5 – Ngorongoro Crater

After an early breakfast and briefing, we proceed on an amazing tour of the Ngorongoro Crater. We descend into the crater floor, an extinct volcano and the largest unbroken caldera in the world. The cone of this UNESCO World Heritage site is believed to have collapsed nearly two million years ago, and while the cone was standing, it could have been as tall as, if not taller than Mount Kilimanjaro. The crater (1,800 feet deep and 102 square miles) is a microcosm of East African scenery with abundant wildlife including more than 25,000 larger animals, mostly zebra and wildebeest. This is also the best place in Tanzania to see magnificent black-maned lions. The soda lake on the crater floor marvels at the colorful flamingos and a variety of other water birds—more than 100 species of birds found here are not found in the Serengeti. Resident ostriches, crowned cranes, and kori bustards are joined seasonally by migrant flocks of white and Abdim’s storks. Patience may also reward us with glimpses of leopard, cheetah, hyena, jackal, elephant, warthog, buffalo, impala, hartebeest, eland and many other types of antelopes. As we descend, we might be able to see the local Maasai herdsmen taking their cattle down the steep walls of the crater. The mix of cattle with the wild animals makes for some terrific photographs. Our wildlife viewing will be dramatic, and the experience memorable. Regulations specify that no one can stay longer than six hours daily on the crater floor. Therefore, after our picnic lunch, we will slowly ascend to the rim and proceed with our visit to a Maasai village where we learn about the fascinating culture that has existed through the millennia in harmony with nature. In the evening, we make our way back to the lodge. Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge or similar, Ngorongoro National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 6 – Serengeti

On our way to the Serengeti, we stop at Olduvai Gorge where the renowned anthropologist Dr. Louis Leakey made his famous finds of early man. We visit the new museum building and have a guide explain the work of Dr. Leakey. Next, we drive to Serengeti National Park (3,646,500 acres), the jewel in the crown of Tanzania’s protected areas with over 3 million large mammals roaming its plains. It lies between Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Victoria and adjoins Kenya’s Maasai Mara. Our home for the next three nights is at Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge. Set high on the saddle of a tree-clad ridge, commanding panoramic views across the Serengeti, this lodge is the ultimate fusion of traditional African architecture and world-class style. Winner of numerous awards from the world travel press, it is perhaps the finest venue the Serengeti has to offer. Centrally located adjacent to the famous Western Corridor and Grumeti River, the lodge has been designed to blend completely into the living landscape. A series of traditional domed rondavels are widely spaced throughout the grounds, which are cooled by groves of acacia trees and watered by sparkling streams. On the very edge of the ridge is a ‘vanishing horizon’ pool, which looks out over the ‘endless plains’ after which the Serengeti is named. Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge or similar, Serengeti National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 7 – Serengeti

The Serengeti has come to symbolize paradise to all, including the local Maasai, who have grazed their cattle on the vast grassy plains for generations. To the Maasai, it is Siringeti—”The place where the land moves on forever or the endless plains”. The Serengeti National Park, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and the Maasai Mara Reserve across the border in Kenya together protect the greatest and most varied collection of terrestrial wildlife on earth, and one of the last great migratory systems still intact. More than a million wildebeest, accompanied by hundreds of thousands of zebras and other herbivores, descend upon the short-grass plains of the south-eastern Serengeti at the start of the rainy season around December. After calving in January and February, they scatter over the southern and central plains. By May the rain ends, the grass has been reduced to stubble, and the animals begin their long march to dry-season grazing grounds near the permanent waters of the Serengeti’s northern woodlands and Kenya’s Maasai Mara. Reaching these destinations by July or so, they remain until October, when they head back to the south-eastern Serengeti. This struggle for survival still continues unaided and unaltered through the millennia!

Today we begin our in-depth exploration of the seasonal migrations which have made the Serengeti famous, enjoying our wildlife drive in the Western Corridor, a picturesque part of the Serengeti. The drama of the most intense part of the migration unfolds April through June and into July, but there is a substantial amount of wildlife that inhabits this region throughout the year. This is a truly beautiful area to spend two nights and we’re sure to find some kopjes (prehistoric rocky outcroppings) on which to enjoy our Sundowners while watching the panorama that unfolds before our eyes. As an optional excursion, you can take a dawn balloon safari (pre-booked) for an exhilarating view across the Savannah as the early sun rises and the animals are more active. Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge or similar, Serengeti National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 8 – Serengeti

Today we take another game drive into these vast endless plains searching for more wildlife activities. The Serengeti is incredible to visit any time of the year. In the Seronera Valley towering yellow fever trees and palm thickets line the Seronera River and its hippo pools. This is a superb area for seeing predators such as lion, leopard and cheetah, and their prey—giraffe, topi, Bohor reedbuck, Defassa waterbuck, buffalo and impala. The kopjes outcroppings host hyraxes, dwarf mongooses, and red-headed agamas, while patience might reward you with a sleepy black-maned male lion or leopard. The open grassland is home to large groups of Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelles, spotted hyena, jackal, and such birds as the double-banded courser, yellow-throated sandgrouse, red-capped lark, fischer’s sparrow-lark, and capped wheatear. We’ll have a last chance to gaze and photograph the awesome sunset in the plains; enjoy our Sundowner and last supper in the Serengeti. Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge or similar, Serengeti National Park (B,L,D)

DAY 9 – Zanzibar

This morning you enjoy an early breakfast before setting off for the last game drive in the Serengeti enroute to Seronera Airstrip where Coastal Aviation awaits to fly us to Zanzibar (note: baggage allowance 15kg [33 lbs] per person). Our representative meets and transfers us to the Zanzibar Serena Hotel for check-in and lunch.

In the afternoon, we are picked up for a drive to Kidichi area in Zanzibar, where we enter an oasis of greenery and commence our two hour Spice Discovery. We meet the owner, Mzee Yussuf or one of his workers and are taken on a walk through his Spice & Fruit farm that has existed since the second Sultan of Zanzibar. Other than just fruits and spices, this farm used to be a “get-away” for Princess Salme. We still see the ruins of her rest house. Some of the trees and plants still standing today were then planted to provide food and shade for the royalty. We also have the opportunity to learn more on local remedies and herbal medicine—and of course taste some of the seasonal fruits available on the farm. Enjoy a sip of traditionally brewed coffee and a taste from local sweets delight prepared by Bi Maryam (Mzee Yussuf’s wife). Late in the evening we head back to our hotel and enjoy the evening at leisure. Zanzibar Serena Hotel or similar, Zanzibar City (B,L)

DAY 10 – Zanzibar

Zanzibar is an archipelago of islands–the most famous being Unguja located 25 km from the mainland coast of Dar es Salaam. The island is famous for its mile upon mile of beautiful beaches, famous spice plantations, great climate and laid back pace of life, not to mention the unique history (Stone Town being the Capital), diverse culture and remarkable Swahili architecture. Zanzibar is also home to many endangered species including red colobus monkeys and turtles. What makes Zanzibar different to other tropical island destinations is the eclectic mix of sun, sea, sand and spice. But there is much more—vivid history, culture and a variety of excursions that make this one of the most popular all-around beach destinations for people of all ages and interests. Apart from this, a whole range of other endangered species can be found in the warm tropical waters of the archipelago–from bottlenose dolphins and green turtles to the once assumed extinct coelacanth!

Spend the day exploring the mystical island of Zanzibar, which occupies a unique place in the history of the western Indian Ocean. Over the millennia, it has been home for black Africans from the nearby mainland (formerly Tanganyika), Arab and Jewish traders from the Red Sea and surrounding areas to the north, European merchants and seamen, and the occasional visitor from India or China.

After breakfast today, we have a full day to ourselves. You may decide to spend a leisurely day at the beach away from Stone Town (arranged by our hotel), or you may venture onto Safari Blue (pre-booked). Zanzibar Serena Hotel or similar, Zanzibar City (B)

DAY 11 – Dar es Salaam

After an early breakfast today, we are picked up and embark on a Stone Town walking tour (2 hours). Here we enjoy and experience the day-to-day life in this culturally-fusioned town. Experience and embrace the beautiful architecture of Stone Town, take a short pause at a corner and sip on a traditional coffee or tea, whilst observing the daily life passing us by. . . Taste some exotic fruits at the local Darajani Food Market, and if it gets too hot, a nice cold glass of sugarcane juice always does wonders!

After the walking excursion in the narrow streets of this World Heritage Site, we are transferred to Zanzibar Port for our departure on a Fast Ferry to Dar es Salaam. The Coastal Fast Ferries operate passenger ferry boats between the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and mainland Tanzania. The company operates a fleet of five vessels-three catamarans, and one RIB Passenger speed boat. The speedboats are popular among the locals and foreign tourists visiting Tanzania. Our boat ride lasts approximately two hours, getting us into Dar es Salaam around 5:30 PM. We disembark and transfer to Dar es Salaam Serena Hotel. Dar Es Salaam Serena or similar, Dar Es Salaam (B,D)

DAY 12 – Return to USA

It is time to bid our farewells. After breakfast, we have free time until we are picked up and driven to the airport for our late evening outbound flights. NOTE: You may wish to book an optional city tour. This six-hour tour takes you to the Museum, Historical monuments ending up at the carvings and handcrafts markets for souvenirs to take home. (B)

DAY 13 – Return to USA

Today we arrive back in the USA.  Welcome home!