December through May: Depart for Lake Manyara National Park with a picnic lunch and and enjoy a game drive here until late afternoon.

Lake Manyara is a highly scenic park, rimmed on one side by the tall cliffs of the Rift escarpment, and ringed with a variety of habitats including the namesake for the park, Lake Manyara. Game we see in Manyara include hippos, elephants, giraffes, buffalo, impala, dwarf mongooses, hyraxes, hippos, wildebeest, zebra, and on rare occasions, tree-climbing lions and leopards.

Birding is special here. Species include pink-backed pelican, flamingos, yellow-billed stork and many other Eurasian migrants. The forests provide habitat for the silvery-cheeked hornbill while the savannah is home to the leadbeater hornbill. Birds of prey include ruppell’s griffon, egyptian vulture, martial eagle, Verreaux’s eagle, crowned eagle, peregrine falcon and bat hawk. Bright songbirds found here include Fischer’s lovebird, Peters twinspot and yellow and red barbets.

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June through November: Depart for Tarangire National Park with a picnic lunch and game drive until late afternoon. Tarangire is famous for its huge herds of elephant, healthy and large lion prides, and towering baobab trees. Throughout the dry season, thirsty antelope and elephant trek from many miles away to drink along the Tarangire River. Rare mammals here include the long-necked gerenuk, oryx and wild dog.

Meals included: Lunch, Dinner
Budget/Mid-Range Accommodations: Endoro Lodge
Mid-Range Accommodations: Escarpment Luxury Lodge
Luxury Accommodations: Tarangire River Camp
Elite Accommodations: Lemala Tarangire Camp

Drive to Ngorongoro Crater for half-day game drive in the crater. Afternoon, return to Arusha via Mto Wa Mbu.

The Ngorongoro Crater is the world’s largest caldera measuring nearly 2,000 feet in depth while covering 250-square kilometers in area. The Crater is a spectacular setting and contains an abundance of wildlife with over 20,000 large animals including Tanzania’s remaining black rhino. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is unique in that it allows over 40,000 Masaai pastoralists with their cattle goats and sheep to live alongside the abundant wildlife in a natural setting.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch