7-Day Best Northern Circuit Private Camping Safari

You will be picked up from either Kilimanjaro or Arusha Airport and dropped off at Karibu Heritage House. 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 or near Arusha.

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

Following breakfast, your day kicks off with a 7:30am departure for Materuni Waterfalls. As you traverse the villages of Kishumundu and Kilimanjaro, a scenic 2-hour drive awaits. After arriving at the village office and completing registration, a leisurely 40-minute walk leads you to the captivating waterfalls. Immerse yourself in a coffee tour that follows, gaining insight into the coffee-making process. A local culinary delight awaits, satisfying your taste buds. Continuing your adventure, a drive to Chemka Hot Springs offers relaxation as you swim in the temperate waters, accompanied by the gentle “Garra Rufa” fish for a natural pedicure. Later, you will drive back to your lodge for dinner and overnight. Overnight at Karibu Heritage House • Budget hotel located in or near Arusha.

Arusha sits at 1,400 m at the foot of Mount Meru, a green coffee town and the gateway to the Northern Circuit. Today is for resting, sorting kit and meeting your guide properly.

If you arrive early there is time to walk the coffee plantations, browse the Maasai market or visit a local Tinga Tinga art studio. Otherwise simply enjoy the gardens, the pool and a quiet first dinner under the African sky.

Where you sleep tonight

Karibu Heritage House

Guesthouse in Arusha

After breakfast, we’ll pick you up from your lodge at 07:45 am and drive for about 2 hours to Tarangire National Park, known for its impressive elephant herds and ancient baobab trees. From our open-roof vehicle, you’ll witness the seasonal swamps, savannah, and Tarangire River bustling with diverse wildlife, including birds, giraffes, impalas, zebras, lions, leopards, elands, warthogs, and elephants. A scenic picnic spot with a spectacular view will be our lunch spot before more game viewing. We’ll continue to Fig Tree Lodge for dinner and an overnight stay. Overnight at Fig Tree Lodge & Camp • Budget hotel located in or near Mto wa Mbu.

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

Fig Tree Lodge & Camp

Lodge & camp near Tarangire NP

Following breakfast, we’ll set out for Serengeti. The journey entails a captivating 4- to 5-hour game drive on a long and occasionally bumpy road, leading you through the crater highlands to the expansive Serengeti plains. A pause for a picnic lunch awaits at Naabi Hill Gate within Serengeti. Following this, an afternoon game drive within the park awaits, highlighted by the beauty of the setting sun. As the day transitions, we’ll make our way to Seronera Public Campsite for a hearty dinner and a restful overnight stay. Overnight at Seronera Public Campsite • Authentic in-park public campsite in 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

Seronera Public Campsite

Public campsite, Central Serengeti

Today is all about enjoying the park’s beauty. We start early in the morning as the sun rises, and we spend the whole day exploring. After our first adventure, we go back to our campsite and have a good breakfast. We pack lunch and then set out for a long drive to see animals in the park. We’re hoping to see the famous Big 5 animals. But the Serengeti isn’t just about big animals – it’s also home to more than 500 kinds of birds. Some are really big, like ostriches, and some are interesting, like secretary birds. We’ll keep looking for wildlife until the sun sets, and then we’ll go back to camp for a nice dinner and a good night’s sleep. Overnight at Seronera Public Campsite • Authentic in-park public campsite in 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

Seronera Public Campsite

Public campsite, Central Serengeti

Today, your day begins early as you depart from the campsite around 6 am with your breakfast packed for an exciting sunrise game drive, offering the opportunity to witness animals in their active state. Following this, a breakfast stop is planned, allowing you to enjoy your meal amidst the wilderness. The game drive will carry on, and you’ll return to the camp for a satisfying hot lunch. Post-lunch, the vehicle will be prepared for departure as you make your way to Ngorongoro. The day concludes with dinner and an overnight stay at Simba Campsite. 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

Ngorongoro Simba Campsite

Public campsite, crater rim

Commence your day with a 6 am departure, boarding the safari vehicle for a descent into the crater accompanied by a packed breakfast. The captivating environment will grant you the chance to observe an array of East African wildlife, potentially even the elusive black rhino if luck is on our side. Covering an expanse of 260 square kilometers and boasting a diameter of approximately 20 kilometers, exploration of this area will span 5 hours. Afterward, return to the campsite for lunch before driving back to Arusha to end your 7 day adventure with us.

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.