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9 Day Tanzania Exclusive
Highlights: Arusha, Tarangire, Manyara, Ngorongoro, Serengeti
Trip start: Arusha
Trip end: Arusha
Price Range from $5,409pp (4ppl), to $8,172pp (2ppl) *
Flash Video Video(s): Arusha
* USD per person, double occupancy. Custom designed personal tour. Prices subject to change.

National Geographic Adventure Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth '98.33 Client Satisfaction Rating'

Winner National Geographic 'Best Adventure Travel Companies on Earth'
2008 & 2009

Trip Summary
Map of Itinerary
Expand [+]

Tour Tanzania's greatest parks on a private luxury Tanzania safari with your own guide and 4x4 Land Cruiser safari vehicles. Start in a beautiful coffee plantation on the cool shore of Lake Diluti and a hike of Mount-Meru which offers stunning views and wildlife encounters such as monkeys and giraffe. Then it is on to Tarangire Park with its magnificent herds of elephant. Stay overnight at Lake Manyara, one of the only places to see tree climbing lions. Next stop are the breathtaking beauty of the world’s largest intact caldera, Ngorongoro Crater, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and likened to "Noah's Ark" for its concentration of all different kinds of wildlife. End this unique safari exploring the abundant resident wildlife of the Serengeti or experience the annual Great Migration of zebras and wildebeests. Fly back to Arusha for a refreshing lunch and souvenir shopping before returning home from this unforgettable safari.

Day Activities Hotel
Day 1
Arusha
  • Arusha: Transfer - Airport xfer (JRO) - Game Van/Guide
  • Kensington Cares -
  • Nairobi: Flying Doctors - Emergency Evacuation service - Plane
Mtn. Village, Serena
(Alt: Coffee Lodge) (B,L,D)
Day 2
Arusha
  • Arusha: Deluxe Lunch -
  • Mt Meru hike - Game Van/Guide
  • Dinner (included)
Mtn. Village, Serena
(Alt: Coffee Lodge) (B,L,D)
Day 3
Tarangire
  • Transfer - Arusha - Tarangire [1.5 Hour Drive] - 4X4 - KT
  • Lunch (included)
  • Tarangire: Afternoon Game Drive - Baobab tree - Private
  • Park Fees - Tarangire
  • Dinner (included)
Treetops
(Alt: Swala Camp) (B,L,D)
Day 4
Tarangire
  • Morning Game Drive - Private - 4X4/Guide
  • Lunch (included)
  • Park Fees - Tarangire
  • Afternoon Game Drive - Lovebird - Private
  • Dinner (included)
Treetops
(Alt: Swala Camp) (B,L,D)
Day 5
Manyara
  • Transfer - Tarangire - Manyara [1.25 Hour Drive] - 4X4 - KT
  • Lunch (included)
  • Manyara: Afternoon Game Drive - Private
  • Park Fees - Manyara
  • Dinner (included)
Tree Lodge
(Alt: Serena) (B,L,D)
Day 6
Ngorongoro
  • Ngorongoro: Private vehicle - 4X4 - KT
  • Crater Tour for Crater Lodges - 4X4/Guide
  • Lunch (included)
  • Optional Activities
  • Park Fees - Ngorongoro
  • Dinner (included)
Crater Lodge
(Alt: The Manor) (B,L,D)
Day 7
Serengeti
  • Transfer - Ngorongoro - Serengeti [5 to 6 Hour Drive] - 4X4 - KT
  • Serengeti: Private - Olduvlai Gorge - Entrance
  • Lunch (included)
  • Afternoon Game Drive - Migration - Private
  • Park Fees - Park Fees
  • Dinner (included)
Kusini Camp
(Alt: Migration Camp Elewana)
(Alt: Grumeti River Camp) (B,L,D)
Day 8
Serengeti
  • Morning Game Drive - Private - 4X4 - KT
  • Lunch (included)
  • Park Fees - Park Fees
  • Afternoon Game Drive - Private
  • Dinner (included)
Kusini Camp
(Alt: Migration Camp Elewana)
(Alt: Grumeti River Camp) (B,L,D)
Day 9
Arusha
  • Game Drive & Airport drop off - Private - 4X4/Guide
  • Air - Serengeti - Arusha [Direct - RA (1 hr)] - Economy
  • Arusha: Deluxe Lunch -
  • Souvenir shopping
  • Transfer - Airport xfer (JRO) - Game Van/Guide
Depart (B)
B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner, 1/2d = Half Day, Al = All Inclusive

Trip Options
All of our itineraries may be customized as you wish, add extra days, change a hotel, see different sights. Contact one of our expert consultants for your free, no-obligation vacation plan.

Itinerary

Day 1 Arusha

Airport transfer with private vehicle and guide. Kensington Tours donates a portion of proceeds to our charitable initiative www.kensingtoncares.com which supports education-based initiatives in disadvantaged communities. In the event of serious illness, Flying Doctors will cover the cost of emergency air evacuation service needed to fly back to Nairobi for treatment.

Serena Mountain Village is hidden on a coffee plantation, tucked away from the nurturing arms of Arusha. A calm escape from Arusha’s city atmosphere, the hotel is built of 42 guest rooms, each designed as members of a bona fide African village but with all the necessities of your own home. From the shores of Lake Duluti, mountain breath and clean breeze float through the hotel’s grounds, mingling with halos of rich emerald foliage that set the fairytale mystique of this hotel. Restaurants complete the tropical safari aim of the décor, with tasteful dishes marked by local tradition while retaining key dishes favored worldwide. Guests may develop a soft spot for Duluti waters and the natural surroundings; appreciating walks along the shore and hikes through the cliffs and woods.

Arusha is a city of northern Tanzania surrounded by some of Africa's most famous landscapes and national parks. Beautifully situated below Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the eastern branch of the Great Rift Valley, it has a pleasant climate and is close to Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara, Olduvai Gorge, Tarangire National Park, and Mount Kilimanjaro, as well as having its own Arusha National Park on Mount Meru. International flights arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport, and regional flights use Arusha airport.


Arusha
Arusha
Outside of the Serena Mountain Village
Outside of the Serena Mountain Village
Day 2 Arusha

Stop for lunch at the Arusha Hotel in this tourism capitol of Tanzania. Shop the local souvenir market. Includes a guided hike on the slopes of Mount Meru amongst the wildlife. This hike is at moderate altitude and is suitable for people who are leisurely fit - it is also a good hike for acclimatization prior to a Kilimanjaro climb. Enjoy dinner (included in tour price). Overnight at Mtn. Village, Serena.


Mt Meru Hike
Mt Meru Hike
Day 3 Tarangire

From Arusha, your guide will drive you to the Tarangire National Park. This commute takes 1 and a half hours to complete.
Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). On this afternoon drive you will notice the unusually shaped baobab trees, also known as the “upside-down tree”. Look up and you might find the tree climbing African pythons. This is one of the world's largest species of snakes, but do not worry, it is also a non-venomous species. Enjoy dinner (included in tour price).

Tarangire Treetops Camp is located a short trip outside the Tarangire Conservation Area, offering an especially comfortable and enchanting stay in wooden treehouses. The 20 individual treehouses provide the utmost in privacy and scope, with panoramic views from each veranda. Meals consist of pan-African cuisine as well as some dabbling in international treats. The area overlooks a wateringhole where a multitude of animals gather, while the camp itself is set in the path of the elephant migration and ensures a lot of contact with wildlife. The campsite is perfect for nature walks and game drives.

Tarangire National Park is probably one of the least visited of the northern Tanzanian game parks, and retains a real air of undiscovered Africa, particularly in the south of the park. Just a two hours drive away from Arusha, it lies a short distance to the south east of Lake Manyara and covers an area of approximately 2,850 square kilometres. It is named after the Tarangire River that flows through the park.


Tarangire
Tarangire
Baobab tree
Baobab tree
Treetops, Tarangire
Treetops, Tarangire
Day 4 Tarangire

In the early morning hours, your skilled guide will pick you up and take you for a game viewing drive through Tarangire National Park, which is the sixth largest national park in Tanzania. This park is famous for its massive elephant population. Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). On this game drive you might notice the swamps, tinged green year round, which are the focus for 550 bird varieties. This park boasts of having 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. More ardent bird-lovers might keep an eye open for screeching flocks of the dazzlingly colourful yellow-collared lovebird Enjoy dinner (included in tour price). Overnight at Treetops.


Elephant
Elephant
Yellow-collared Lovebird
Yellow-collared Lovebird
Day 5 Manyara

From Tarangire National Park, your guide will drive you to the picturesque Lake Manyara. This drive will take approximately 1.25 hours. Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). On todays game drive you will have to keep your eyes peeled in order to spot some of this area's beautiful and elusive big cats. It will take a keen eye to take notice of the tree climbing lions, or the camouflaged spotted leopards. You should try to look around shaded area during the hotter hours of the day, as the wildlife will be looking for a cool area to relax. Enjoy dinner (included in tour price).

From soaring groundwater forests and a tranquil lake, to the mountain escarpment of the Great Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park boasts an incredible wealth of habitats and diverse African wildlife. Guests are offered an exciting, interpretive safari experience in game-rich surrounds which include large herds of elephant and buffalo. The Lodge, which was designed to exert minimal impact on the environment, is situated in the remote southwestern region of the Park. Cradled in the boughs of mahogany trees, 10 stilted tree house suites are a sophisticated blend of intimacy and romance, offering privacy and exclusivity in cool, leafy surrounds.

Lake Manyara National Park is a national park two hours west of Arusha. The majority of the land area of the park is a narrow strip running between the Gregory Rift wall to the west and Lake Manyara, an alkaline or soda-lake, to the east. It is famous for its population of flamingos. Manyara is used as an alternate or extension to Ngorongoro, located just outside the conservation area gate. Guests can sightsee in two completely different temperate zones only 90 minutes apart. Park fees are less expensive than Ngorongoro.


Manyara
Manyara
Tree Lodge Patio
Tree Lodge Patio
Day 6 Ngorongoro

Private transportation and guide in the Ngorongoro national park. Includes national park fees. Descend into the Ngorongoro caldera to view the wildlife on the crater floor. The crater is roughly 20 km/12 mi wide and 600 m/2,000 ft deep, once you've reached the top of the caldera it takes about 45 minutes to descend to the crater floor. The floor is home to a rich and highly concentrated wildlife. Some 20,000 mammals of size live there, including about 20 black rhinoceros, making the crater the best place in Tanzania to see the rhino. The crater floor also has one of the highest carnivore densities in the world. Lions, cheetahs, hyenas and jackals are commonly seen, while leopards, servals and bat-eared foxes may be seen with some good luck. You'll spend most of the day in the crater.
Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). Time permitting, there are many optional activities. Depending on which lodge you're staying at, activities range from nature walks to cultural village visits. Some of these can be prebooked through your destination specialist while others can be booked directly with the lodge upon arrival. Enjoy dinner (included in tour price).

Hanging off the edge of the world-renowned Ngorongoro Crater, which is considered a UNESCO World Heritage site, sits the opulent Crater Lodge. On the eastern side of the Serengeti in Northern Tanzania, the lodge is an astonishing example of accommodations somehow built in the great African wilderness. It comprises three separate camps totaling 30 suites of the highest standard and most breathtaking views. Dining is a gala event, where one may put on their best etiquette and flaunt the outfits that have been collecting dust when roughing it during the day. Here, one may feast on cuisine from the American chef’s world-knowledge. Activities include game drives involving visits to the Ngorongoro Crater.

"The Ngorongoro Crater is often called ‘Africa’s Eden’ and the ‘8th Natural Wonder of the World’. A massive extinct volcano, the sheet walls drop thousands of feet to a "Noah's Ark" of animals on the verdant floor below. Large herds of zebra, buffalo, antelope and wildebeest graze nearby while sleeping lions laze in the sun. At dawn, the endangered black rhino returns to the thick cover of the crater forests after grazing on dew-laden grass in the morning mist.


Ngorongoro
Ngorongoro
Lions
Lions
Crater Lodge Bed Room
Crater Lodge Bed Room
Day 7 Serengeti

Your guide will pick you up from the Ngorongoro Conservation area and drive you to the famous plains of the Serengeti. On this trip, you will make a short stop at the Olduvlai gorge, for some brief game viewing before entering the Serengeti. This drive takes 5 to 6 hours, but expect longer trip times during the rainy season. The Olduvai Gorge or Oldupai Gorge is commonly referred to as "The Cradle of Mankind." It is a steep-sided ravine in the Great Rift Valley, which stretches along eastern Africa. Olduvai is in the eastern Serengeti Plains in northern Tanzania and is about 30 miles (48 km) long. The gorge is named after the Maasai word for the wild sisal plant Sansevieria ehrenbergii, commonly called Oldupai. Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). Spend the day taking in the spectacle of the famous wildebeest migration. This annual migration through the Serengeti and Masai Mara is one of the safari highlights of Africa. The wildebeest migration moves in a basic clockwise direction throughout the year in Serengeti eco-system and up into Masai Mara from July to October. The herds are accompanied by zebra and Thomson's gazelle and are stealthily hunted by leopard, lion and hyena.
Enjoy dinner (included in tour price).

Kusini Camp is placed in the centre of a group of kopjes in the Serengeti, a short drive away from the game-rich wilderness that dominates the Great Migration and which otherwise wander around the plains. It features 12 en-suite tents with showers and private, furnished verandas. Dining is taken privately as a bush meal or under candlelight in the dining tent, where one may mingle with other guests. Meals are gourmet specialties from the camp’s chefs. After indulging sit back and sip on a cocktail while reading at the camp library.

Tanzania's oldest and most popular national park, the Serengeti is massive in size, 14,763 sq km (5,700 sq miles). Famed for its annual migration, when some six million hooves pound the open plains, as more than 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle join the wildebeest’s trek for fresh grazing. Yet even when the migration is quiet, the Serengeti offers the most diverse game-viewing in Africa.


Serengeti
Serengeti
Olduvai Gorge
Olduvai Gorge
Room
Room
Day 8 Serengeti

Head out into the park early in the morning for your private game safari. Tanzania's oldest and most popular national park, the Serengeti offers the most expansive game-viewing in Africa: great herds of buffalo, smaller groups of elephant and giraffe, and thousands upon thousands of eland, topi, kongoni, impala and Grant’s gazelle. Explore this amazing park with the help of your expert guide. Enjoy lunch (included in tour price). Today head out with your guide to explore the wide expanse of the Serengeti. The park is well known for its healthy stock of resident wildlife, particularly the "Big Five", named for the five most prized trophies taken by hunters: lion, leopard, elephant, black rhinoceros, and African buffalo. Though there are now few black rhino in the park, you may still spot them. The Serengeti has the largest population of lion and giraffe in all of Africa and the largest concentration of topi and Coke's hartebeest (kongoni). Enjoy the challenge of spotting other game such as cheetah, Thomson's and Grant's gazelle, eland, waterbuck, hyena, baboon, impala, African wild dog and giraffe. The park also boasts about 500 bird species, including ostrich, secretary bird, Kori bustard, crowned crane and marabou stork. Enjoy dinner (included in tour price). Overnight at Kusini Camp.


Elephant
Elephant
Lioness
Lioness
Day 9 Arusha

If time allows, your expert guide will squeeze in one more game drive before dropping you off at the airstrip. It will be your last chance to see the park's diverse range of animals. Take your flight from Serengeti (SEU) to Arusha (ARK) today. The flight duration is approximately 1 hr. Stop for lunch at the Arusha Hotel in this tourism capitol of Tanzania. Shop the local souvenir market. Includes opportunity to visit local handicrafts market to stock up on souvenirs. Airport transfer with private vehicle and guide.

Depart from Kilimanjaro international airport - end of itinerary.


Lioness
Lioness
Arusha Souvenirs
Arusha Souvenirs

Trip Includes
Guaranteed departure – Accommodation, Activities, Transfers, Meals, Fees where indicated as per the itinerary - Local and international traveler assistance during your tour - Specialised and personalised services

Trip Excludes
Tips - Laundry - Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages unless explicitly noted - Optional activities/extras – Visas (unless noted) - Vacation insurance

Trip Terms & Conditions

  • Your deposit is due immediately on booking (30% of program price, minimum $250). The balance is due 90 days prior to departure. We accept payment via credit card, certified check, wire transfer or money order.
  • Tour quotes do not include airfare to/from the trip start point unless noted on the itinerary
  • Cost increases in currency exchange, government fees, taxes, surcharges or hotel/lodge tariff increases between quote date and start date are payable by the client.
  • Availability cannot be guaranteed until booked. We will exercise best efforts to book hotels per the itinerary, however, in busy seasons and with client bookings made within 90 days of tour date we may be forced to offer substitutes.
  • Cancellations 90 days or more prior to departure will receive full refund less any non-refundable paid fees (e.g. non-refundable airfare, cruise, or hotel deposits). 60-89 days will be subject to loss of deposit. 30-59 days will be subject to loss of 50% of program price. 29 days or less will be subject to 100% of program price.
  • Payment of the program price constitutes your acceptance of the terms and conditions set out at www.kensingtontours.com/terms-and-conditions