Janice 6 Day Northern Tanzania Overland Safari and Zanzibar
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Page | 1 Embark - Janice 6 Day Northern Tanzania Overland Safari and Zanzibar Extension Arusha - Tarangire National Park - Ngorongoro Crater - Southern Serengeti – Kendwa, Zanzibar 10 Days / 9 Nights 4 Persons Date of Issue: May 28, 2019 March 11, 2020 - March 20, 2020 Click here to view your Digital Itinerary Page | 2 Day 1: Arusha (Wed, March 11) Resting at the foot of Mount Meru, the sprawling city of Arusha is known as the safari capital of northern Tanzania. It serves as an excellent base from which to explore the remarkably scenic surrounding area which includes majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, as well as the Manyara, Tarangire and Ngorongoro National Parks. Arusha is a good spot to take a day or two off from the safari circuit as it features a temperate climate and lush surrounds. Visitors can look forward to exploring the wildlife-abundant Serengeti National Park; the magnificent Arusha National Park; and taking on the challenge of climbing Mount Meru, Africa’s fifth highest mountain. Day Itinerary Upon arriving into Tanzania and clearing customs and baggage claim you will be greeted by your guide and taken to your hotel for the night. Activities Arrive Tanzania and transfer to lodge in Arusha Overnight: Katambuga House Newly opened in 2017, Katambuga house is an intimate 6 room lodge situated close to Arusha Airport with sweeping views of Mount Meru and expansive coffee estates. The main house, with a cozy main area, adorned by a selection of original photography and art, offers 4 rooms; and the family cottage an additional two interconnecting rooms. All the 6 en-suite rooms are very spacious and airy, and offer all modern amenities. Gourmet meals are served to guests daily from the restaurant, and are enjoyed in the main room, on the large veranda or the pool deck. Page | 3 Included Dinner. Specified Activities and Transfers Excluded Drinks and Laundry. Any activities or transfers not specified. Day 2: Tarangire National Park (Thu, March 12) Located just a few hours drive from the town of Arusha, Tarangire is a popular stop for safaris travelling through the northern circuit on their way to Ngorongoro and the Serengeti. The park extends into two game controlled areas and the wildlife are allowed to move freely throughout. After the Serengeti, Tarangire has the greatest concentration of wildlife in Tanzania and in the dry season the Tarangire River is a magnet for thirsty wildlife. Large herds of elephants and migratory wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and eland gather and not surprisingly the predators follow. This is also the one place in Tanzania where dry-country antelope such as oryx and gerenuk are regularly spotted. Tarangire is also known for its spectacular baobab trees, and its breathtaking views of the Masaai Steppe and the mountains to the south. Page | 4 Day Itinerary After morning breakfast, we will head to Tarangire National Park, a few hours out into the bush in Masai country – just three hours from our hotel. Located 120km from Arusha, Tarangire is the sixth largest park in Tanzania. With baobab and acacia trees, much like the Serengeti, Tarangire is home to legions of elephants, which inhabit this park in large herds. In the park you also find other game such as rhino, buffalo, eland, warthog, the fringe-eared oryx, lesser and greater kudu, gerenuk and a large number of impala. The rains scatter the seasonal visitors over a 20,000 square kilometre(about 12,500 sq miles) range until they exhaust the green plains and the river calls once more. But Tarangire mobs of elephant are easily encountered,wet or dry. The swamps, tinged green year round, are the focus for 50 bird varieties, the most breeding species in one habitat anywhere in the world. On drier ground you find Koori bustard, the heaviest flying bird; the stocking sighed ostrich, the world largest bird; and ground hornbills that bluster like turkeys. Tarangire pythons climb trees, as do this lions and leopards, lounging in the branches where the fruit of the sausage tree disguises the twitch of a tail. Activities Climbers will be picked up in Moshi and taken to Arusha to meet up with safari only people Game dive in Tarangire National Park Overnight: Maramboi Tented Lodge View iBrochure This is a unique opportunity to experience and explore the Tarangire and Manyara ecosystem. Maramboi Tented Camp offers permanent camp facilities and endless vistas of rolling golden grasslands and palm lined desert between Tarangire and Manyara Lake. A visit to the area is essential for anyone interested in evolution and the origins of Mankind and an explanation of the Rift Valley and Africa’s big picture. It is a complete semi desert experience focusing on safari walks and game drives. 40 spacious tents built on ample wooden decks, among them there are 12 family rooms with 2 rooms interconnected, ideal for families with children. They all have en suite facilities and private veranda with 24 hours 220V electric lighting. Included Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Specified Activities and Transfers Page | 5 Excluded Drinks and Laundry. Any activity or transfers not specified Day 3: Tarangire National Park (Fri, March 13) Day Itinerary Full Day exploring Tarangire National Park Activities Game Drive in Tarangire Overnight: Maramboi Tented Lodge View iBrochure Included Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Specified Activities and Transfers Excluded Drinks and Laundry. Any activities or transfers not specified Day 4: Ngorongoro Crater (Sat, March 14) Located in Northern Tanzania, the Ngorongoro Crater is best known for its natural beauty and abundance of diverse wildlife; which makes it one of Africa’s most popular safari destinations. Surrounded by Tanzania’s highlands, this UNESCO-listed crater is said to be the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera. Visitors can look forward to spotting the world-renowned Big Five and a host of other wildlife species including large herds of zebra and wildebeest. It is famed as one of Tanzania’s best tourist attractions offering visitors an array of wonderful activities including excellent bird watching, trekking, wildlife viewing, mountain biking and visiting a local Maasai village. Don’t miss the opportunity to jump on an excursion to the magnificent Olduvai Gorge. Page | 6 Day Itinerary After breakfast you will head down into the Ngorongoro Crater. Descend into the sunken cone of the Ngorongoro Crater and enjoy a full-day game drive along the crater floor. The crater’s high walls serve as a natural enclosure for an abundance of wildlife. All the so-called "big five' may be seen. Among the notable birds are Lammergeyer, Vereaux's Eagle and Egyptian Vulture, which make their home in the highest of the crater wall, the beautiful Rosy-breasted Longclaw, which appears on the plains after rains and flocks of lesser and Greater Flamingos which are spasmodic visitors to the crater lakes. Activities Game drive in Ngorongoro Crater Overnight: Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge View iBrochure Perched on the edge of the Ngorongoro Crater, the magnificent Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge is the only property on the eastern rim of this World Heritage Site. Accommodating 186 guests in its 97 spacious en-suite bedrooms, the Lodge has its own private road to the crater floor. The Lodge is perfectly situated to explore the abundant game in what is often referred to as the “Eighth Wonder of the World”. Its location offers awe-inspiring views over the crater and some of the most breathtaking sunsets to be seen in Tanzania. Each suite has a private lounge with mini-bar, en-suite bathroom, central heating and a private solarium. The Lodge has telephone facilities, satellite TV, a conference room, and a swimming pool situated on the very edge of the rim. Included Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Specified Activities and Transfers Excluded Drinks and Laundry. Any activity or transfers not specified Page | 7 Day 5: Southern Serengeti (Sun, March 15) The Serengeti together with Kenya’s Masai Mara Game Park form Africa’s most famous wildlife park. The image of acacia trees on an endless grass plain epitomises Africa for many, and then add a Masai warrior and some cattle to the picture and the conversation need go no further. The annual wildebeest migration through the Serengeti and the Masai Mara is the largest mass movement of land mammals on the planet – with more than a million animals following the rains. But that is not where the game viewing ends; large prides of lions, elephants and giraffes in grasslands, gazelles and eland to mention but a few. Day Itinerary From the Crater Rim, we will travel to the legendary Serengeti National Park. More than 6 million hooves pound the legendary plains of the Serengeti. Every year, triggered by the rains, more than a million wildebeest, 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle gather to undertake the long trek to new grazing lands. Tanzania's first and most famous park, the Serengeti is renowned for its wealth of leopard and lion. The vast reaches of the park help the black rhino to fight extinction and provide a protected breeding ground for the vulnerable cheetah. Today you will witness predator vs. prey and the fundamental independence of the Serengeti's abundant species, from more than 500 varieties of bird to 100 types of dung beetle. Activities Drive to Serengeti via Olduvai Gorge Afternoon game drive in Serengeti Overnight: Chaka Camp - Ndutu area (Dec 1 - March 31) From December through March, the wildebeest migration moves in and out of the Ndutu area. Ndutu is located in Ngorongoro Conservation Area, just south of Serengeti National Park. Chaka Camp’s location provides easy access to prime game viewing areas around Lakes Ndutu and Masek.