Southern Serengeti and Ngorongoro Migration 2020
With Hot Air Ballooning
Travel to see the annual wildebeest migration, one of the most epic wildlife events on Earth. Serengeti national park is located in the Mara and Simiyu regions of Tanzania within the Serengeti ecosystem. You’ll be able to see and capture the magnitude of over 1.5 million white bearded wildebeest and 250,000 zebra in their annual migration through the plains. Watch as the wildebeest arrive at the Ndutu plains for the famous calving season, your favorite African animals grazing through the plains, and predators looking for their next meal. This is the tour to capture beautiful, once in a lifetime, pictures.
NgoroNgoro Conservation Area is a protected area and a World Heritage Site located 180 km (110 mi) west of Arusha in the Crater Highlands area of Tanzania. The area is named after the Ngorongoro Crater, a large volcanic caldera within the area. Capture magnificent pictures of the Big 5 animals and the stunning landscape that UNESCO calls “one of the greatest natural wonders.”
Plan Your Perfect Trip With Us
Day 1 : Arusha
Arrive in Arusha, at Kilimanjaro airport. Our team will meet you at baggage claim and transport you to your accommodation.
Accomodation: Planet Lodge Hotel.
Meals : Dinner
Day 2: Lake Eyasi / Native tribal village/ Ngorongoro Conservation Area
After an early breakfast, we will drive to Lake Eyasi and have a picnic lunch.
We will be visiting the tribal native villages of the
Hadzape and/or Datooga Tribe.
After our guided tour at the village, we continue to drive to the Ngorongoro Conservation area and check in to our next lodge, Ngorongoro Serena Lodge, located at the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater with spectacular views of the crater floor.
Accomodation: Ngorongoro Serena Lodge
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 3: Ngorongoro Crater / Ndutu Plains
After an early breakfast at the lodge, we will embark on a journey down to the crater floor for our game drive.
Having enjoyed a delicious picnic lunch on the crater floor, we will ascend from the crater and proceed to Ndutu Plains later in the afternoon.
Ndutu is the southern portion of the great Serengeti Plains.
Our day ends at the Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Camp, our luxurious lodge, for the next three nights.
Accomodation: Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day 4: Ndutu / Serengeti National Park
We shall continue viewing wildlife on the Serengeti Plains with a morning
and afternoon drive with our expert guides. Keep a lookout for the giraffes, zebras, lions, buffalo and impalas. We will return to the lodge for lunch and a short rest in between the drives.
Accomodation: Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day 5: Serengeti National Park
The day starts early, as we will depart before sunrise for an early morning game drive, and enjoy a picnic breakfast in the wilderness.
We will return to the lodge for lunch and in the afternoon you may relax at the lodge or there is an option to do a game walk.
Accomodation: Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Camp
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
Day 6: Hot Air Balloon Safari / Central Serengeti
Rise early for an exciting morning where we will enjoy viewing the abundance of wildlife from a Hot Air Balloon Safari, after which we can enjoy an amazing full breakfast served on the plains of the Serengeti.
We then drive to Central Serengeti (Seronera Area), and continue viewing the animals. We end the day at the Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge.
Accomodation: Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 7: Serengeti National Park
We shall spend the full day in Serengeti with morning and afternoon game drives. Let’s keep a lookout for predators, such as cheetah, lion, leopard and hyena. We may take picnic lunches or come back to the lodge for a hearty lunch.
Accomodation: Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Day 8: Arusha
If possible, we may do a short game drive, in the early morning hours, and then proceed to the Seronera Airstrip for our flights back to Arusha.
Upon arrival to Arusha we will be met with our ground staff and taken for lunch at the Coffee Lodge.
After lunch you can relax, visit the cultural center and do some last minute souvenir and tanzanite shopping.
Then we proceed to Kilimanjaro Airport for our flights home.
Our Serengeti journey ends with fond memories of a great tour!
Departure from Arusha can be arranged as early as 4PM Local time.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Price Includes
Exclusions
What to bring
Passport & Visas
A valid passport is required. Visas are required by all.
Tanzania visas are issued on arrival at the airport with a charge of $100 USD per passport, for a single entry visa.
Please visit the Tanzania Embassy website for detailed information.
Kenya visas are acquired online through an application service.
Please visit the Kenya Online Visa site for detailed information
HEALTH AND IMMUNIZATION
A course of anti-malarial tablets is essential; please seek advice from your doctor.
A mosquito repellent is also advisable.
Yellow Fever Vaccination is now obligatory for all visitors to Tanzania & Kenya. Please ensure that you have this before your arrival.
If on medication, it is best to take a supply of medicines to last the entire trip.
Currency
The Kenyan Shilling (KSH or KES) is denominated in notes of 1000/- 500/- 200/- 100/- 50/- and coins of 40/-, 20/- , 10/- , 5 /- and 1/- .
The Tanzanian Shilling (TZS) is denominated in notes of 10,000/=, 5,000/=, 2.000/=, 1.000/=, 500/=, and coins of 100/=, 50/=, 20/= and 5/=
US Dollars, Sterling Pounds and Euros are acceptable everywhere. However we advise you to have a certain amount of local currency at all times.
‘Bureau de change’ are available at all airports and in the cities. A commission is levied for changing of the foreign currency.
Most of the banks and establishments will not accept US Dollar bills printed prior the year 2003.
ATM’s are also popular and seen in most areas (you may only draw in the local currency).
Baggage Claim
All bags arrive on the conveyor belt.
Each person picks his/her bag, onto a trolley and then clear Customs – where he/she presents their passport. This is just a formality – nothing more than that
Immediately in front of them are the Exit doors to the Public Waiting Area/Rendez-vous point.
MEETING POINT ON ARRIVAL
Once you clear immigration and customs – our representatives will meet you on arrival entry outside the arrival halls.
The common name on the meeting board will read the name of the group.
Power
The national grid power supply ranges between 240v-220v. Many of our lodges/camps in the parks and reserves get this supply from the national grid. Most of them generate their own power supply from generators and power ranges 240v –220v.
For stress-free travel, we recommend you carry a universal adapter.
TELECOMMUNICATION
Auto roaming of mobile phones is available in all East African Countries with excellent network in the cities and in and around some of the national parks and reserves. This will however depend on whether there is a reciprocated agreement with your country. Otherwise, most lodges/hotels are connected to land lines.
There is a cost for usage of the phones.
You may also buy a Pre-Paid line from the various mobile operators with easy switch over from Kenya to Tanzania whilst on holiday here. This is the cheapest option.
Water
Piped water in East African region is chlorinated and safe to use for showering and washing of hands, but should not be drank directly from the tap.
It is highly recommended that you use the purified or mineral water provided for you at the hotel or you may buy some at the hotel bar/shops and service stations.
WHAT TO CARRY
Baggage: the ‘mantra’ is TRAVEL LIGHT!
We encourage you to carry soft bags as opposed to hard or roller cases. This saves time during the loading and offloading of the safari vehicles
RECOMMENDED CAMERA GEAR
WHAT TO WEAR
Summer clothing is worn throughout the year. Casual wear during the day, but business casual dressing is recommended for dinner time at the restaurants in the lodges and hotels. (Lightweight trousers that unzip to become shorts are awesome!)
A light jacket/sweater and light raincoat may be necessary as early morning and evening temperatures are cooler since most of the national parks are located at an altitude of 1000m and above. This is also especially useful for dawn and dusk safaris.
Sensible walking shoes, sunglasses and a hat for protection against the sun,
Swimsuit, if you want to jump into the swimming pool.
TIPPING & GRATUITIES
Tipping is customary and in many occasions, actually ‘paves the way’. It is indeed a way of life in our part of the world.
Whilst the actual amount of money to tip is left at your discretion, we would like to offer some guidelines here below (values are in USD):
Kenya
Tanzania
On average, we would recommend that you budget for US$ 150. per person on a trip of 7-10 days, which would comfortably cover all tipping & gratuities.