Classic Northern Circuit — Tarangire, Ngorongoro & Serengeti
Tarangire, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti
Cost
On request
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Safari itinerary
People and Plains — Culture and Safari in the Rift
Duration
6 days
Group
Private departure
Pace
Moderate
Best season
June – October, and January – March
Most safaris treat culture as a photo stop on the way to somewhere else. This one gives it real days: a morning hunting with Hadzabe men near Lake Eyasi, a Datoga blacksmith making arrowheads from scrap, a coffee farm on the slopes above Karatu, and a Maasai homestead arranged directly with the family rather than staged for coaches.
The wildlife is still here — Ngorongoro and Lake Manyara are on the route — but it shares the trip rather than owning it.
How we arrange it
Every visit on this itinerary is paid directly to the family or the group involved, arranged in advance rather than turned up to. If any of it feels like a performance to you, tell us and we will change it. We would rather hear that than not.
Parks visited
Lake Manyara, Lake Eyasi, Ngorongoro Crater
Highlights
What makes this trip
- A morning out with Hadzabe hunters near Lake Eyasi
- A Datoga blacksmith working scrap into arrowheads
- A Maasai homestead arranged directly with the family
- Coffee farm and waterfall walk above Karatu
- Ngorongoro Crater without rushing it
Day by day
The itinerary
A short drive and an afternoon walking the irrigated smallholdings behind the town — rice, bananas, a banana-beer brewery — with guides from the local association.
Overnight: Lodge, Mto wa Mbu
Meals: L, D
A half day in the park: groundwater forest, baboon troops, elephant among the figs, flamingo on the lake when the water is right. Up to Karatu in the afternoon.
Overnight: Lodge, Karatu
Meals: B, L, D
Out before dawn to join Hadzabe men on a hunt — one of the last hunter-gatherer communities in East Africa. Later, a Datoga homestead where a blacksmith turns scrap metal into arrowheads.
Overnight: Lodge, Karatu
Meals: B, L, D
A working coffee farm on the escarpment in the morning and the Elephant Cave falls on foot. In the late afternoon, a Maasai family we have known for years, at their homestead, on their terms.
Overnight: Lodge, Karatu
Meals: B, L, D
Down the descent road at six with a packed breakfast and the morning on the floor, with Maasai cattle on the rim as you come back up.
Overnight: Lodge, Karatu
Meals: B, L, D
A last stop at Olduvai Gorge if you want it, then the drive back down the escarpment to Arusha or the airport.
Overnight: —
Meals: B, L
The price
What is and is not included
Included
- All park, crater and concession fees
- Private 4×4 Land Cruiser with pop-up roof and a window seat each
- Your own licensed guide throughout
- Accommodation on the stated basis
- All meals from lunch on day one
- Drinking water, coffee and tea in the vehicle
- Airport transfers on arrival and departure
- Flying Doctors evacuation cover
Not included
- International flights
- Tanzanian visa
- Travel and medical insurance
- Alcoholic drinks
- Tips for your guide and camp staff
- Balloon flights and other optional extras
- Laundry and personal items
Before you ask
Common questions
Some of what is sold in Tanzania is. We pay the families directly, arrange in advance rather than turning up, and keep groups small. It is still a visit rather than a documentary, and we would rather say that plainly.
Ask first, every time, and accept no as an answer. Your guide will tell you what has been agreed before you arrive anywhere.
Yes — add three or four days and we will run it on into the Serengeti afterwards.
Enquire
Ask about this itinerary
Want it longer, shorter, in a different month, or at a different level of camp? Say so — we will price the version you actually want.
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