Finest East African Safaris with Craig Doria Safaris in Tanzania:
ITINERARIES
Overview:
Planning a safari can be a little confusing so the following ideas will help. By now you are already planning on using Tanzania as your destination. You have probably made this decision because Tanzania is the most diverse safari destination on the continent. The Serengeti plains, the Ngorongoro Crater and Mt Kilimanjaro are all in Tanzania, but these are just scratching the surface of this magnificent country. A standard Northern circuit Tanzania safari might take you to Lake Manyara national park, Ngorongoro Crater, and Serengeti National Park in a minibus with six other people. These are fantastic destinations but ones which can be turned into something even more wonderful and totally personalized. Your very own luxury tented camp can be set up in any number of different areas and combined with some of the finest permanent lodges in East Africa .
Time of year is also often important. If you come late in the dry season, you could extend to take in Tarangire National Park and enjoy the sight of a fantastically high concentration of elephants at that time. Why not put up your own luxury camp nearest to where the wildebeest and zebra migration is as it crosses the Serengeti plains. What about a visit down into the Olduvai gorge to stand on the very site where the Leakeys made their remarkable early hominid discoveries. What about staying in what is arguably the best lodge in Africa perched on the very edge of the Ngorongoro crater rim. Perhaps a couple of days to get really off the beaten track and go into the magical Gol mountains or hike up the active volcano Oldonyo Lengai where other tourists simply don't go.
Below are just two possible itineraries for your personalised African safari, but the variables are of course endless: Itinerary 1:
Day 1:
Arrive Arusha in the evening. Overnight Arusha Coffee Lodge. An intimate lodge on a coffee estate on the outskirts of Arusha.
Day 2:
Drive in your groups personal 4 wheel drive safari vehicle to Tarangire National Park (2 to 3 hours) and stay in your own private luxury tented camp. Afternoon game drive. Overnight private camp.
Day 3:
All day game viewing in the national Park. Overnight private camp.
Day 4:
Drive to Ngorongoro Crater (2 hours) to your accommodation at the dreamlike Ngorongoro Crater Lodge.
Day 5:
Game viewing in the Ngorongoro Crater. Overnight Ngorongoro Crater Lodge.
Day 6:
Drive via Olduvai gorge to the Serengeti National Park to your own private luxury tented camp which has been set up as near to the famous wildebeest migration as we can get. Gameviewing and picnic en-route, (4 to 8 hour drive depending on where the migration is).
Day 7:
Spend the day following the migration and taking in the most spectacular wildlife show on earth. Overnight private tented camp.
Day 8:
Same again. Overnight private tented camp.
Day 9:
Fly back to Arusha on a schedule flight or private. Spend the rest of the day shopping for curios and collectibles. Depart in the evening
Itinerary 2:
Day 1:
Arrive Arusha in the evening, overnight Hatari Lodge in Mt Meru National park. Hatari is a retro lodge recently renovated in the old houses used by the filming crew of the famous John Wayne film by the same name. Magnificent evergreen mountain forests on the slopes of Mt Meru filled with forest wildlife including leopard, buffalo and elephant.
Day 2:
Fly to Mahale mountains to stay in Greystoke Camp on the shore of Lake Tanganyika with the mountains rising behind you reminiscent of the setting of Jurassic Park .
Day 3:
Hike to find the chimpanzees and spend an hour or two observing them in the forest. Spend the afternoon on the beach. Overnight Greystoke Camp.
Day 4:
Fly to Katavi National Park in the west of the country and walk across wide open plains home to all the wildlife you would expect. Overnight Katavi Camp.
Day 5:
Continue to explore the park on foot and by open vehicle. Overnight Katavi Camp.
Day 6:
Fly to the magical island of Zanzibar and board the refurbished 1910 schooner "Midsummer" to sail north to the island of Pemba . Overnight on "Midsummer."
Day 7:
Spend the day diving, snorkeling, skiing, swimming or chilling on your schooner. Overnight "Midsumer"
Day 8:
Return Zanzibar island and explore the old stonetown and museums. Overnight in the historic old Serena Hotel on the sea front.
Day 9:
Fly to Arusha, dayroom at Arusha Coffee Lodge. Shopping in Arusha. Depart in the evening. |