10-Day Great Migration, Serengeti Rivers & Lake Natron Discovery

Arrive in Arusha where your safari team greets you and escorts you to your comfortable hotel. Depending on arrival time, you may choose to relax or explore the town’s cultural corners, local markets, or nearby crater lakes. The evening is yours to unwind and prepare for the exciting days ahead.

This morning you journey to Tarangire National Park, celebrated for its towering baobab trees and immense elephant herds. Game drives follow the life-giving river corridor where giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, lions, and buffalo gather in impressive numbers. A picnic lunch in the bush allows you to soak in the sweeping plains before continuing your exploration until sunset.

Travel onward to Lake Manyara National Park, a compact but wildlife-rich reserve tucked beneath the Rift Valley escarpment. Forest tracks reveal troops of baboons and shy antelope, while open floodplains attract buffalo and elephants. With luck, you may spot the park’s famous tree-climbing lions before enjoying lunch and returning to your lodge in the evening.

An early start takes you to the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, where you descend into one of Africa’s most extraordinary natural arenas. The crater floor hosts dense populations of wildlife, offering rare chances to encounter all of the Big Five in a single day. After breakfast near a hippo pool and hours of game viewing, you continue toward the Serengeti for your overnight stay.

Spend the day roaming the famed central Serengeti, particularly the wildlife-rich Seronera Valley. This predator stronghold offers prime chances to see lions lounging on kopjes, cheetahs scanning the plains, and leopards hidden in riverine trees. A picnic lunch in the bush keeps you immersed in the wild before returning to camp at dusk.

Before sunrise, you set off on a morning game drive when predators are most active, then continue north through changing landscapes toward the Mara River region. Here the Great Migration gathers in spectacular numbers, and — when conditions align — dramatic river crossings may unfold as wildebeest and zebras brave crocodile-filled waters. Afternoon exploration rounds out this thrilling day.

Remain in the northern Serengeti for a full day devoted to tracking the immense herds. Your guide follows fresh movement patterns in search of crossings, predators in pursuit, and endless columns of animals flowing across golden grasslands. Lunch in the wilderness keeps you close to the action before another evening return to camp.

Enjoy one more early game drive through migration country, soaking up the scale and drama of the Serengeti ecosystem. After lunch, travel east toward remote Lake Natron, where volcanic cones and vast alkaline flats create one of Tanzania’s most surreal landscapes. Arrive in time to relax and admire the stark beauty surrounding your lodge.

Set out early to explore Lake Natron, famed for its shimmering red waters and seasonal gatherings of flamingos that blanket the shoreline in pink. The lake lies beneath an active volcano, giving the region an otherworldly atmosphere unlike anywhere else on safari. After your explorations, return to Arusha for your final overnight stay.

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your onward flight. If time allows, optional excursions to waterfalls, hot springs, or nearby viewpoints can be arranged before departure — a perfect final note to an unforgettable safari adventure.