Tanzania Safaris
LAKE MANYARA AND NGORONGORO
CRATER
2 Days / 1 Night
Day 1: The drive from Moshi to Lake Manyara National
Park takes about 4 hours. After having a picnic lunch in Manyara, you start a
late afternoon game drive which is the best time to view animals in this park.
When you approach it from the east, the Rift Valley escarpment looms on the
horizon forming an impressive backdrop to the lake. In the tall trees of the
ground water forest, monkeys leap from branch to branch, and on the escarpment,
elephants stand in the shade acacia. Other animals frequently seen are zebras,
impalas, monkeys, giraffes, buffalos, hippos, and others. In the late evening,
you transfer to the TWIGA campsite with full board.
Day 2: Drive 30 minutes from the Highview Hotel to the gate for Ngorongoro
Crater. On the eastern side you will see the Rift Valley, elephant, buffalo,
zebra, monkey, birds, as well as viewing the crater rim. Tanzania’s best
concentration of wild animals is in Ngorongoro’s huge, perfect crater. This is
also the best place in Tanzania to see black rhino as well as prides of lion
that include the magnificent black-maned males. There are lots of colorful
flamingoes and a variety of water birds. Other game you can see includes
leopard, cheetah, hyena, other members of the antelope family, and small
mammals. Then, in the late afternoon, drive back to the Springlands Hotel
in Moshi - bed and breakfast.
Lake Manyara
Located beneath the cliffs of the Manyara Escarpment, on the
edge of the Rift Valley, Lake Manyara National Park offers varied ecosystems,
incredible bird life, and breathtaking views. Located on the way to Ngorongoro
Crater and the Serengeti, Lake Manyara National Park is well worth a stop in its
own right. Its ground water forests, bush plains, baobob strewn cliffs, and
algae-streaked hot springs offer incredible ecological variety in a small area,
rich in wildlife and incredible numbers of birds.
The alkaline soda of Lake Manyara is home to an incredible
array of bird life that thrives on its brackish waters. Pink flamingo stoop and
graze by the thousands, colourful specks against the grey minerals of the lake
shore. Yellow-billed storks swoop and corkscrew on thermal winds rising up from
the escarpment, and herons flap their wings against the sun-drenched sky. Even
reluctant bird-watchers will find something to watch and marvel at within the
national park.
Lake Manyara’s famous tree-climbing lions are another reason
to pay this park a visit. The only kind of their species in the world, they make
the ancient mahogany and elegant acacias their home during the rainy season, and
are a well-known but rather rare feature of the northern park. In addition to
the lions, the national park is also home to the largest concentration of
baboons anywhere in the world -- a fact that makes for interesting game viewing
of large families of the primates.
Ngorongoro Crater
The Ngorongoro Crater is often called ‘Africa’s Eden’ and the
‘8th Natural Wonder of the World,’ a visit to the crater is a main drawcard for
tourists coming to Tanzania and a definite world-class attraction. Within the
crater rim, large herds of zebra and wildebeest graze nearby while sleeping
lions laze in the sun. At dawn, the endangered black rhino returns to the thick
cover of the crater forests after grazing on dew-laden grass in the morning
mist. Just outside the crater’s ridge, tall Masaai herd their cattle and goats
over green pastures through the highland slopes, living alongside the wildlife
as they have for centuries.
Ngorongoro Conservation Area includes its eponymous famous
crater, Olduvai Gorge, and huge expanses of highland plains, scrub bush, and
forests that cover approximately 8300 square kilometres. A protected area, only
indigenous tribes such as the Masaai are allowed to live within its borders.
Lake Ndutu and Masek, both alkaline soda lakes are home to rich game
populations, as well as a series of peaks and volcanoes and make the
Conservation Area a unique and beautiful landscape. Of course, the crater
itself, actually a type of collapsed volcano called a caldera, is the main
attraction. Accommodation is located on its ridges and after a beautiful descent
down the crater rim, passing lush rain forest and thick vegetation, the flora
opens to grassy plains throughout the crater floor. The game viewing is truly
incredible, and the topography and views of the surrounding Crater Highlands out
of this world.
This truly magical place is home to Olduvai Gorge, where the
Leakeys discovered the hominoid remains of a 1.8 million year old skeleton of
Australopithecus boisei, one of the distinct links of the human evolutionary
chain. In a small canyon just north of the crater, the Leakeys and their team of
international archaeologists unearthed the ruins of at least three distinct
hominoid species, and also came upon a complete series of hominoid footprints
estimated to be over 3.7 million years old. Evacuated fossils show that the area
is one of the oldest sites of hominoid habitation in the world.
The Ngorongoro Crater and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area are
without a doubt some of the most beautiful parts of Tanzania, steeped in history
and teeming with wildlife. Besides vehicle safaris to Ngorongoro Crater, Olduvai
Gorge, and surrounding attractions, hiking treks through the Ngorongoro
Conservation Area are becoming increasingly popular options. Either way you
choose to visit, the Crater Highlands are an unforgettable part of the Tanzanian
experience.
Included
in the Cost:
-
Ground transportation
with driver/guide
-
National Park entry
fees
-
All meals whilst on
safari
-
Camping fees (Camping
Safari only)
-
Camping Equipment
(Camping Safari only)
-
Cook (Camping
Safari only)
-
Government Tax
Remember
to bring along:
Itineraries
are subject to change without prior notice.
