Overview
This 5-day Serengeti safari is built around predator sightings specifically — lion, leopard and cheetah territory, with guides who track where the resident big cats have been active recently rather than just driving a standard loop.
Accommodation is comfortable throughout without tipping into crowded, high-traffic lodges, keeping the experience feeling genuinely wild rather than like a checklist stop.
See our guide to the Serengeti's big cats, or contact us to book this itinerary.
| Accommodation | Confirmed together with you — see the Rates tab for general comfort levels we work with. |
|---|---|
| Meals | Full board on safari days; meals as specified for any city/beach nights, per your final itinerary. |
Day by Day (5 days)
ARRIVE IN TANZANIA
Arrive anytime at Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO). Abakombe Tours will arrange a private transfer from Kilimanjaro International Airport to Arusha.
Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport in Tanzania, proceed to get your Tourist Visa at the cost of $100 USD per person. This visa is for American and Canadian passport holders, with fees to be paid in exact cash. You will also need a yellow fever vaccination certificate. Your passport has to be valid for six months past your return date, and most have empty pages. After clearing customs and immigration, our representative will meet you and assist you with the transfer to the hotel in Arusha.
GAME IN SERENGETI THE CENTRAL SERENGETI
Today we head towards the Serengeti National Park. En route, there is an opportunity to visit Olduvai Gorge. It is within this steep-sided ravine that Louis and Mary Leakey made some of the world’s most important archaeological discoveries in the 1950s. Here is a small museum we are able to see evidence of our ancestors that have been dated back 2.5 million years. After lunch, we drive into the Serengeti itself and the rest of the afternoon is spent game viewing in the vast plains that are broken only by stands of acacia trees and the occasional kopje. In December, January and February we will normally meet the migration with large herds of wildebeest, zebra, and gazelle. There are always plenty of resident animals, such as giraffes, buffalo, and elephants, and many large predators such as lions, cheetahs, and leopards. We return to our special tented camp chosen by Abakombe Tours.
GAME IN SERENGETI THE CENTRAL SERENGETI
We have another full day in this wonderful park, rising early to make the most of our time. Our guides will choose the best spotting locations for the time of year; we can spend time at the Hippo pool watching these majestic animals laze about in the cool water happily living alongside the crocodiles, watch a big pride of lions, be in the middle of the migration, sometimes surrounded by wildebeest, sometimes by zebras, which travel with the wildebeest. We journey from the wide-open plains to the kopjes: these volcanic rocky outcrops provide protection and shelter for a wide variety of animals and from the top, we can look out across the vast grasslands of the Serengeti. This diverse and interesting landscape will provide us with the ultimate in game viewing, we will hopefully see all of the plain games; elephants, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest, lions and if you are lucky the elusive leopard and cheetah, as well as huge amounts of the interesting birdlife, from the elegant secretary birds to the flightless ostrich. We return to our special tented camp for the night.
GAME DRIVE IN THE NGORONGORO CRATER
We start the day with an early morning game drive before heading to Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Ngorongoro is a special place in that it is a Conservation Area, not a National Park; this means that the whole area is managed for both the animals and the local Masai people who graze their cattle alongside the indigenous wildlife. During the drive-in Ngorongoro, we have a chance to glimpse something of the Masai way of life. After stopping at the entrance gate, where there is a chance to learn more about this fascinating volcanic landscape, we will drive around the rim of the Crater itself, and from here we can look down and see the herd of wildebeest or buffalo. Finally, we descend into the crater. The crater walls provide a natural sanctuary for the animals, which means there is plenty to see: lions, elephants, buffalo, rhinos, and leopards (if you are lucky). The only animal you won’t see in here is a giraffe, whose long legs are unable to cope with the steep sides of the crater. In the late afternoon, we travel back to our special lodge in Arusha.
DEPARTURE
After breakfast or lunch, we will drive direct to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your international flight back home.
Transfers in both directions between the International Airport
Park fees
Rates Per Person
See "Accommodation & Meals" on the Overview tab for the general comfort levels available — send us your dates and group size for an exact quote.
Next: Inclusions →Inclusions
Included
- Private vehicle with your own driver-guide
- Park entry and conservation fees
- Accommodation as specified in your itinerary
- Meals as specified per day (full board on safari days)
- Airport pickup and drop-off
Excluded
- International flights
- Visa fees
- Travel insurance
- Tips and gratuities
- Personal expenses and souvenirs
Getting There
Tour Start & End
This trip starts in Serengeti National Park and ends in Ngorongoro Crater.
Airport Information
Kilimanjaro International Airport or Mwanza Airport is the most common arrival point for this trip.
Transfer Information
Airport pickup and all transfers between destinations are included and arranged by our team.
Accommodation Before/After
Need a night in Mwanza or Arusha before or after this trip? We can arrange that on request.