3-Day Lake Manyara & Ngorongoro Safari

Depart Arusha mid-morning and drive 2 hours to Lake Manyara National Park, located at the base of the Great Rift Valley escarpment. Enter the park through the lush groundwater forest and begin searching for elephants, blue monkeys, and baboons. Drive along the lakeshore looking for flamingos, pelicans, and hippos. Lake Manyara is one of the best parks in Tanzania for tree-climbing lions — keep your eyes on the mahogany and fig trees. End the day at a nearby campsite.

After breakfast, continue with a morning game drive in Lake Manyara if time allows, then drive up the Rift Valley wall to the Ngorongoro Highlands. Pass through Karatu town — the gateway to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area — and continue to the crater rim. Set up camp at Simba Campsite with jaw-dropping views into the 600-metre-deep caldera below. In the late afternoon, take a stroll along the rim and watch elephants and buffalo moving on the crater floor far below.

Descend into the Ngorongoro Crater at first light for a spectacular morning game drive. The crater floor hosts approximately 25,000 animals including the Big Five. Search for black rhino near the Lerai Forest, lion prides in the grasslands, and large herds of buffalo and wildebeest. Flamingos line the soda lake, and hippo pods inhabit the marshes. Enjoy a packed lunch at the picnic site, then ascend from the crater and drive back to Arusha, arriving by late afternoon.