9-day luxury safari and Zanzibar

The trip we book for people who want the whole of Tanzania and want it comfortable. Tented suites in the Serengeti, a lodge on the crater rim, then a short flight to Zanzibar and four days where the only decision is which end of the beach to walk to.

• Tented suites with private decks in the Serengeti
• A dawn descent into the Ngorongoro Crater
• A short flight to the coast instead of a long drive
• Stone Town, spice farms and the reef
• Four unhurried days to finish

Day by day

The itinerary

1. 1

   Day 1

   Arusha to Tarangire National Park

   Your guide collects you in Arusha after breakfast for the drive to Tarangire. Baobab country, and the elephant herds that come down to the river through the dry months. An afternoon game drive with a picnic lunch in the park, then a lodge with a view over the valley.

   Overnight Tarangire area lodge

2. 2

   Day 2

   Tarangire to Lake Manyara

   A short transfer to Lake Manyara. Groundwater forest with baboons and blue monkeys, floodplain with elephant and buffalo, and flamingos working the shallows of the soda lake. Look up in the acacias for the lions. The escarpment viewpoint on the way out is the photograph everyone takes.

   Overnight Lake Manyara or Karatu lodge

3. 3

   Day 3

   Lake Manyara to the central Serengeti

   West through the Ngorongoro highlands and down onto the plains, with the transfer doubling as a game drive. Wildebeest and zebra on the short grass, and often a first cat before you reach camp. An afternoon drive around Seronera, then your tented suite for two nights.

   Overnight Central Serengeti tented camp

4. 4

   Day 4

   A full day in the Serengeti

   Out at first light for the resident prides, the leopards along the Seronera river line and the cheetah on the open plains. Back through the middle of the day, out again in the afternoon. This is the morning to add a balloon flight and the bush breakfast that follows it.

   Overnight Central Serengeti tented camp

5. 5

   Day 5

   Serengeti to the Ngorongoro rim

   A final morning on the plains, then the road east through the conservation area with lunch on the way and Maasai herds beside the track. You arrive on the crater rim in the late afternoon, when the light drops into the bowl and the view does the work.

   Overnight Ngorongoro rim lodge

6. 6

   Day 6

   Ngorongoro Crater, then the flight to Zanzibar

   Descend at first light, ahead of the day-trip traffic, for a morning on the crater floor: black rhino, lion, elephant, buffalo, hippo and flamingos. Lunch, then the climb out and the transfer to the airstrip for the short flight to Zanzibar, where someone meets you and drives you to the coast.

   Overnight Zanzibar north or east coast

7. 7

   Day 7

   Stone Town and the spice farms

   A morning in Stone Town: carved doors, the old trading quarter, the market and the waterfront, walked with a local guide. A spice farm inland afterwards, which is more interesting than it sounds and smells better than anywhere else on the trip. Back to the coast for the evening.

   Overnight Zanzibar north or east coast

8. 8

   Day 8

   The reef, or nothing at all

   A day with no plan in it. Snorkel or dive the reef, take a dhow out for the afternoon, walk to the end of the beach and back, or move between the pool and the sea until it gets dark. Your guide books whatever you decide on at breakfast.

   Overnight Zanzibar north or east coast

9. 9

   Day 9

   Zanzibar to home

   A last swim and a slow breakfast, then the transfer to Zanzibar airport for your onward flight. Anything you left in Arusha at the start can usually be sent on to reach you before you fly, which we arrange when you book.

   Overnight Trip ends in Zanzibar

Yours, not ours

Make it yours

This is the version we start from. Here is what usually changes. Tell us which one and we will work it through with you.

• How many days Add a night in the Serengeti, or drop one and go straight for the crater.
• The camps Simple and comfortable, mid-range lodges, or canvas with a view and a bath.
• Add-ons A balloon at first light, a walking safari, an afternoon in a village.
• Pace for children Later starts, shorter drives, and a pool at the end of the day.
• Zanzibar extension Three or four nights on the coast once the last game drive is done.

Parks on this trip

Worth adding

Optional, priced separately, and easy to slot in when we build your itinerary.

• Balloon safari over the Serengeti

  An hour above the plains at dawn, then a bush breakfast where you land.

Questions about this kind of trip