10-Day Big-5 Camping Safari & Cultural Tourism

You will be picked up from either Kilimanjaro or Arusha Airport and dropped off at your budget accommodation in Arusha. If time allows (depending on your arrival), you will have the option to do an Arusha city tour, visiting the famous art gallery, the Cultural Heritage Centre, the local market, and the Maasai market. Overnight at Karibu Heritage House – Budget hotel located in Arusha (City).

Your safari begins the moment you walk out of Kilimanjaro International Airport. A Serengeti Wakanda guide is waiting with your name on a board and the words every traveller wants to hear: karibu Tanzania, welcome to Tanzania.

We transfer you to your lodge in the Arusha foothills, where you can shower, change into safari clothes and settle in. Your driver-guide joins you for a relaxed welcome dinner, walks through tomorrow's plan in detail and answers every last question. An early night sets you up for the days ahead.

Where you sleep tonight

Karibu Heritage House

Guesthouse in Arusha

Warm, owner-run guesthouse in Arusha — the trusted first/last-night base for our camping and trekking guests.

After breakfast, you will be picked up from your accommodation and drive for approximately 2 hours and a half to Tarangire National Park. The park is famous for its large elephant herds and ancient baobab trees. From our open-roof vehicle, you’ll experience seasonal swamps and savannahs. The Tarangire River teems with wildlife, including birds, giraffes, impalas, lions, leopards, and elephants. You will have a picnic lunch at a picturesque spot before continuing your wildlife viewing. After enjoying watching the sunset while on a game drive, you’ll go to the campsite inside the park for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Budget camping – Inside Tarangire NP.

Tarangire is the elephant capital of northern Tanzania. In the dry season the Tarangire River is the only permanent water for miles, and herds of up to 250 elephants come down to drink, calves tumbling between their mothers' legs.

You spend the day on a private game drive through baobab-studded floodplains: lions resting in the shade, giraffe browsing acacia tops, fringe-eared oryx and the strange dwarf mongoose colonies. We pack a hot picnic lunch so you can stay in the park while the light is good.

Where you sleep tonight

Budget camping inside Tarangire NP

Public campsite, Tarangire NP

Authentic public campsite inside Tarangire — dome tents, bush kitchen, elephants drinking from the river below.

Following an early morning game drive in Tarangire, you will drive to Lake Manyara National Park. It is a relatively small but diverse park, 120km west of Arusha. The park’s namesake is a shallow, salt lake. It covers a large area of the park, flooding and drying with the seasons, and is home to thousands of flamingos and over 500 other bird species. On your exploration of the park, you will see monkeys, giraffes, zebras, wildebeests, buffalos, elephants, and with some luck, lions lounging in the trees. The park is known for its diverse landscapes; not only open grassy plains but also primate-filled woodlands and baobab-dotted cliffs. Later on, you will exit the park and head to Fig Tree Lodge (you’ll stay in rooms with cozy beds and private bathrooms) for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Fig Tree Lodge & Camp – Budget hotel located just outside Lake Manyara NP.

Lake Manyara is a small park with an outsized reputation: a Rift Valley wall on one side, a shallow soda lake on the other and a strip of groundwater forest crammed between them. Tree-climbing lions, large baboon troops and clouds of flamingos.

You travel along the Rift escarpment with sweeping views over the lake, then drop into the forest for a half- or full-day game drive. Birders bring binoculars: more than 400 species have been recorded here.

Where you sleep tonight

Fig Tree Lodge & Camp

Lodge & camp near Tarangire NP

Family-run lodge and camp just outside Tarangire's main gate, with simple chalets, pool and bush dinners under the figs.

After breakfast, you will begin your journey to Serengeti. The route ahead will take you through a long and occasionally bumpy road, providing you with approximately 4 to 5 hours of captivating wildlife viewing as you ascend the crater highlands towards the vast plains of Serengeti. If the weather conditions allow and visibility is clear, a 10-minute stop will be made at Ngorongoro Viewpoint, offering you a glimpse of the breathtaking caldera before continuing the drive to Serengeti. Overnight at Lala Salama Serengeti Camp – Mid-range tented camp located inside Central Serengeti NP.

The Seronera valley is the heart of the Serengeti and a year-round game-viewing area. Permanent water, rocky kopjes and short-grass plains create the highest density of big cats in Africa: roughly 1 lion per 10 km², and the best leopard sightings on the circuit.

Mornings start before sunrise to catch the cats while they are still active; midday is a slow picnic in the shade of an acacia. In the afternoon we work the riverine fig trees for leopards and the kopjes for resting prides. Distances are long but every stop is worth it.

Where you sleep tonight

Lala Salama Serengeti Camp

Tented camp, Serengeti

Classic tented camp pitched in the heart of the Serengeti — warm hosting, hearty bush meals and easy access to the plains right from your tent flap.

Today, you will be spending the entire day in the Serengeti National Park. You will start your exploration at sunrise with a full-day game drive, searching for the Big Five. After returning to the campsite for breakfast, you will head out for an afternoon game drive. There is more to Serengeti than large mammals. The Serengeti is also home to over 500 bird species, including ostriches, secretary birds, and black eagles. You will continue searching for wildlife until sunset. Then, you will return to the camp for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Lala Salama Serengeti Camp – Mid-range tented camp located inside Central Serengeti NP.

The Seronera valley is the heart of the Serengeti and a year-round game-viewing area. Permanent water, rocky kopjes and short-grass plains create the highest density of big cats in Africa: roughly 1 lion per 10 km², and the best leopard sightings on the circuit.

Mornings start before sunrise to catch the cats while they are still active; midday is a slow picnic in the shade of an acacia. In the afternoon we work the riverine fig trees for leopards and the kopjes for resting prides. Distances are long but every stop is worth it.

Where you sleep tonight

Lala Salama Serengeti Camp

Tented camp, Serengeti

Classic tented camp pitched in the heart of the Serengeti — warm hosting, hearty bush meals and easy access to the plains right from your tent flap.

You will enjoy a full day in Serengeti National Park, beginning with a sunrise game drive to seek out the iconic Big Five. After breakfast at the campsite, you will embark on an afternoon game drive, extending your wildlife exploration until sunset. You will return to the camp for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Lala Salama Serengeti Camp – Mid-range tented camp located inside Central Serengeti NP.

The Seronera valley is the heart of the Serengeti and a year-round game-viewing area. Permanent water, rocky kopjes and short-grass plains create the highest density of big cats in Africa: roughly 1 lion per 10 km², and the best leopard sightings on the circuit.

Mornings start before sunrise to catch the cats while they are still active; midday is a slow picnic in the shade of an acacia. In the afternoon we work the riverine fig trees for leopards and the kopjes for resting prides. Distances are long but every stop is worth it.

Where you sleep tonight

Lala Salama Serengeti Camp

Tented camp, Serengeti

Classic tented camp pitched in the heart of the Serengeti — warm hosting, hearty bush meals and easy access to the plains right from your tent flap.

Today’s adventure begins early as you depart from the campsite with a packed breakfast for a sunrise game drive. This offers the best opportunity to spot animals when they are most active. A stop at a picturesque picnic site allows you to enjoy breakfast in the heart of the wilderness. Following this, the game drive will resume, keeping you captivated until you return to the camp around noon for a satisfying hot lunch. Overnight at Budget camping – On the crater rim of Ngorongoro Crater.

The Seronera valley is the heart of the Serengeti and a year-round game-viewing area. Permanent water, rocky kopjes and short-grass plains create the highest density of big cats in Africa: roughly 1 lion per 10 km², and the best leopard sightings on the circuit.

Mornings start before sunrise to catch the cats while they are still active; midday is a slow picnic in the shade of an acacia. In the afternoon we work the riverine fig trees for leopards and the kopjes for resting prides. Distances are long but every stop is worth it.

Where you sleep tonight

Lala Salama Serengeti Camp

Tented camp, Serengeti

Classic tented camp pitched in the heart of the Serengeti — warm hosting, hearty bush meals and easy access to the plains right from your tent flap.

Today, your adventure starts with an early breakfast before heading out for a game drive. You’ll then journey into the Ngorongoro Crater, bringing along your packed lunch. This incredible area is home to a wide variety of East African wildlife, including the rare black rhinoceros. If you’re fortunate, you might catch a glimpse of them. Covering an expanse of 260 square kilometers with a diameter of roughly 20 kilometers, the crater offers a full day of exploration amidst its natural marvels. Afterward, you’ll return to the campsite for dinner and spend the night there. Overnight at Budget camping – On the crater rim of Ngorongoro Crater.

The Ngorongoro Crater is a 260 km² collapsed caldera with 600 m walls, and the highest density of large mammals on Earth. Inside the crater floor live around 25,000 large animals, including the densest population of black-maned lions and one of the last strongholds of the eastern black rhino.

We descend at first light when the floor is still in shadow and the cats are working. A picnic breakfast on the rim, a full morning circuit past the soda lake's flamingos and Lerai Forest's elephants, then a climb back up the escarpment in time for a late lunch.

Where you sleep tonight

Budget camping on Ngorongoro crater rim

Public campsite, crater rim

Dome-tent camping high on the crater rim — cold nights, starry skies, the crater spread out at first light.

You will experience a walking safari at Empakai Crater. You’ll begin by trekking along the rim in the morning, where you can spot wildlife and take in panoramic views. You will pause for a picnic breakfast, then venture further into the crater. You will return to Simba campsite for a hot lunch, followed by a drive to Lake Eyasi for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Budget camping.

The Ngorongoro Crater is a 260 km² collapsed caldera with 600 m walls, and the highest density of large mammals on Earth. Inside the crater floor live around 25,000 large animals, including the densest population of black-maned lions and one of the last strongholds of the eastern black rhino.

We descend at first light when the floor is still in shadow and the cats are working. A picnic breakfast on the rim, a full morning circuit past the soda lake's flamingos and Lerai Forest's elephants, then a climb back up the escarpment in time for a late lunch.

Where you sleep tonight

Budget camping inside Tarangire NP

Public campsite, Tarangire NP

Authentic public campsite inside Tarangire — dome tents, bush kitchen, elephants drinking from the river below.

You will experience a unique opportunity to join the Hadzabe in hunting activities early in the morning. Renowned for their expertise in hunting and gathering, the Hadzabe traditionally focus on small game like dik-diks, monkeys, and hares, along with honey gathering. Their dwellings are simple and easily constructed and abandoned. Communicating through a click language and engaging with the Hadzabe offers a rich cultural immersion. Afterward, you’ll visit the Datoga people, celebrated for their craftsmanship. You’ll return to the campsite for a hot lunch, then followed by a drive to Arusha, marking the end of your 10-day adventure!

Lake Eyasi is a soda lake in the floor of the Rift Valley and home to the Hadzabe, one of the last hunter-gatherer peoples in Africa, and the Datoga, master blacksmiths whose copper rings the Hadzabe trade for honey.

You leave before sunrise with a Hadzabe interpreter to join the men on a real hunt with hand-made bows and poisoned arrows. Later you visit a Datoga compound to see arrows being forged from melted padlocks. It is the most honest cultural visit on the circuit.