SAVANNAH SAFARI
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DAY 1: ARUSHA/LAKE MANYARA: L, D.
Pick-up ex Arusha after breakfast. Safari briefing and introduction to your driver guide. Depart for Lake Manyara National Park. Arrive, check-in and lunch at your camp/Lodge. Afternoon game drives. Lake Manyara National Park is unique for its diverse and distinct Ecological zones ranging from the rocky Rift wall and ground water forest to woodland, open grassland, thermal springs and swamp. This diversity of habitat allows the visitor to see a wide variety of wildlife in a relatively small area. Look out for the rare tree-climbing Lions, monkeys galore in the tropical rain forest, hippo and flamingo around the lake and plenty of plains game grazing on the savannah. Spend 1 night on full board.
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DAY 2: LAKE MANYARA/SERENGETI: B, L, D
Breakfast at the lodge. Depart for Serengeti National Park via Ngorongoro. Arrive, enter through Nabi gate and game drives en-route to your lodge/camp. Arrive for check-in and lunch. Afternoon game drives. Spend the next 2 nights at the lodge on full board.
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DAY 3: SERENGETI: B, L, D
Full day spent in the park with morning and afternoon game drives. The Serengeti eco-system contains the greatest concentration of wildlife in Africa. The varied topography and seasons create a hugely diverse range of landscapes and changing wildlife habitats. The wet season starts with the short rains in November and ends with the long rains in April/May. The dry season runs from June to October although this is more extreme in the south than in the north. Great herds of migratory wildebeest, zebra and antelope roam the plains together with their attendant predators such as lion, cheetah, hyena and jackal. The open short grass plains dotted with rock outcrops "kopjes" dominate the south and provide nutritious food for the Wildebeest and their new born calves during Dec to April. look out for hippo and crocodile along the river banks and leopard in the forest. Heading North to Lobo, the plains give way to wooded hills with rocky outcrops and a favourite area for elephants. Here in the north, there is enough rain throughout the year to keep the grasslands nutritious and there are plenty of resident plains game and big cats. Central Serengeti has enough grass year-round to support a large and varied selection of plains game together with the predators such as lion, cheetah, hyena and jackal. Giraffe, buffalo and elephant can also be found. Don't forget to look out for hippo and crocodile along the river banks and leopard in the forest. All meals and overnight stay will be at your lodge/camp.
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Day 4: SERENGETI/NGORONGORO: B, L, D
Arrial at the lodge. Depart for Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Arrive, check-in and lunch at your lodge/camp. Afternoon Descend into Ngorongoro Crater floor for game drives. A first glimpse of Ngorongoro leaves one literally breathless. Once a huge volcano, probably larger than Kilimanjaro, it is now a vast circular amphitheatre, spectacularly beautiful and a garden of Eden for huge numbers of wildlife. The animals are resident throughout the year and it is not difficult to find four of the "Big Five" elephant, lion, buffalo and rhino. Spotting leopard requires sharp eyes and a bit of luck! Centrepiece of the extensive floor is Crater Lake with its pink mantle of Flamingo and other birdlife. Later drive back to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
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Day 5: DEPART: B, L.
Breakfast at the Lodge. Depart for Arusha for your drop off at Arusha.
