Classic Northern Circuit — Tarangire, Ngorongoro & Serengeti

Leave after breakfast and reach Tarangire before midday. Afternoon game drive along the river, where the elephant concentrate from July onwards. The baobabs here are the oldest living things you will see on this trip — some of them were standing before the Portuguese reached the coast.

A full morning in Tarangire, then west and up. The road climbs through Mto wa Mbu and onto the crater rim in the late afternoon. It gets genuinely cold up here — around 10°C at night — so the fleece you packed reluctantly comes out.

Down the Seneto descent road at first light with a packed breakfast. Six hours on the floor is the maximum any vehicle is permitted, and the first two are worth more than the last four. Black rhino are the hope rather than the promise. Up the Lerai road in the early afternoon and on towards the Serengeti.

A full day in the Seronera valley — the river-fed centre of the park, and the most reliable big-cat country in Tanzania. Out early, back to camp through the middle of the day when everything is asleep, out again for the last two hours of light.

A flexible day. Depending on the season your guide will push south onto the short-grass plains, north towards the Mara river, or stay put in Seronera. This is the day the trip stops being an itinerary and starts being a safari.

A last morning drive, then the short flight from Seronera back to Arusha — about an hour, against seven by road. Transfer to Kilimanjaro International for your onward flight, or into town if you are staying on.

On this route, sometimes. The herds are in the southern Serengeti roughly December to March and in the north roughly July to October, and this itinerary is centred on Seronera. If the migration is your priority, say so and we will build the trip around the herds instead — see our migration itineraries.

Two long transfer days of five to seven hours, and everything else is game driving rather than getting somewhere. The flight out of the Serengeti removes the longest drive of the trip.

From about seven upwards, yes. Below that the driving days are hard work for everyone. We will happily rework the route into shorter hops for a family.

A Toyota Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof, charging points, a cool box and a maximum of six passengers with a window seat each. We own our vehicles rather than hiring them in.