01
Day 01
Arrive Kilimanjaro, overnight Arusha
Pickup, the drive to Arusha, and a kit check over dinner: batteries, cards, cleaning gear.
- StayHotel in Arusha or Moshi
- MealsBed and breakfast
01 · Overview
About this safari
A photographic safari is not a different route. It is a different pace, a different vehicle load and a different set of decisions about when to stop.
Three things change. You travel with fewer people, so everyone has a row and a clear side. You are out before sunrise and still out at sunset, with the middle of the day spent editing or asleep. And you wait — twenty minutes at a sleeping leopard, an hour at a river line, because the picture is in what happens next.
Bring more than you think: a long lens is the one thing you cannot borrow. A bean bag beats a tripod in a vehicle. Dust is the enemy, so bring a blower and change lenses as little as possible.
January to March at Ndutu and the calving grounds is the strongest photographic window in the country — short grass, clean backgrounds, storm light and constant action.
Tour length8 days / 7 nights
Start / endArusha → Arusha
PlacesTarangire, Karatu, Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater
AccommodationHotel, lodge or tented camp, lodge, tented camp
Meal planFull board; Bed and breakfast
Vehicle4×4 with pop-up roof
Tour typePrivate, on your dates
Group sizeTo confirm
02 · The price
What the price covers — and what it doesn't
Included 7 items
- Park and conservation-area entry fees for every park listed in the route
- Government taxes and concession fees that apply to those parks
- A 4×4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof, fuel and an English-speaking driver-guide
- Accommodation on the basis shown for each night
- Meals as marked on each day
- Drinking water in the vehicle throughout
- Transfers between Kilimanjaro International Airport or Arusha town and your first night
Not included 6 items
- International flights, and internal flights unless a day says otherwise
- Tanzania visa, passport costs and travel insurance
- Tips for your guide, cook and camp or lodge staff
- Drinks, laundry and other personal spending
- Optional extras — balloon flights, night drives, spa treatments, private vehicle upgrades
- Anything not listed as included
03 · At a glance
Itinerary highlights
- Day 1Arrive Kilimanjaro, overnight Arusha
- Day 2Tarangire
- Day 3Tarangire to the highlands
- Day 4Into the Serengeti
- Day 5Serengeti — cats
- Day 6Serengeti — the herds or the plains
- Day 7To the crater highlands
- Day 8The crater, and departure
04 · Prices
Prices and what moves them
Every quote is written for the dates and the number of people travelling, because park fees, season and vehicle sharing move the figure more than anything else. We itemise it: park fees, accommodation, vehicle, meals.
Mid-range
Luxury
Mid-range
Per person, sharing · international flights not includedSingle supplement: To confirm
| Group size | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per person, 2026 | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm |
| Rooms | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3+ |
Luxury
Per person, sharing · international flights not includedSingle supplement: To confirm
| Group size | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Per person, 2026 | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm | To confirm |
| Rooms | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3+ |
Children. Child rates depend on age, the camps and how rooms are shared. Child policy to confirm
05 · The route
The route, day by day
02
Day 02
Tarangire
Baobabs, elephant herds and the best golden-hour backdrops in the north. Out until the gate time rather than back for a fixed dinner.
- StayLodge or tented camp near Tarangire
- MealsFull board
03
Day 03
Tarangire to the highlands
A dawn session in the park, the hot hours off, then the drive up to Karatu.
- StayLodge on the Ngorongoro highlands rim or in Karatu
- MealsFull board
04
Day 04
Into the Serengeti
West across the conservation area with stops for the landscape, then onto the plains for the late light.
- StayTented camp, central Serengeti
- MealsFull board
05
Day 05
Serengeti — cats
A full day working the Seronera river line and the kopjes: lion on rock at sunrise, leopard in the sausage trees, cheetah scanning from a termite mound.
- StayTented camp, central Serengeti
- MealsFull board
06
Day 06
Serengeti — the herds or the plains
A second full day, placed where the animals are. A balloon flight this morning is the one aerial you will not get any other way.
- StayTented camp, central Serengeti
- MealsFull board
07
Day 07
To the crater highlands
A dawn session, then the drive east, arriving on the rim for sunset over the caldera.
- StayLodge on the Ngorongoro highlands rim or in Karatu
- MealsFull board
08
Day 08
The crater, and departure
First vehicles down at opening, when the floor is misted and the light is low. Out at lunchtime and back to Arusha or the airport.
- StayNone — the trip ends today
06 · Camps
Where you stay
Each night gives the kind of place and the area. The property itself is chosen for your month and your budget, and named in your quote.
Night 1
Hotel in Arusha or Moshi
Bed and breakfast.
Night 2
Lodge or tented camp near Tarangire
Full board.
Nights 3 & 7
Lodge on the Ngorongoro highlands rim or in Karatu
Full board.
Nights 4–6
Tented camp, central Serengeti
Full board.
07 · Add-ons
Optional add-ons
Not in the standard price. Arranged on request and priced in your quote.
Serengeti · sunrise
Hot-air balloon flight
An hour over the plains at first light, followed by breakfast in the bush.
After the safari
Zanzibar beach extension
A short flight to the coast, for days with nothing to track.
On the route
Cultural visit
Time with a community near the route, arranged with people who welcome visitors.
Before the safari
An extra night in Arusha
Useful after a long-haul flight, so the first day does not start tired.
08 · The ground
Where this safari takes you
The big question
Where are the herds in your month?
The migration is somewhere in the Serengeti ecosystem all year. Pick a month to see where the herds usually are — rainfall moves their timing by weeks. For a route built around them, see the 7-day migration safari.
Calving, southern plainsRiver crossings, northern SerengetiHerds on the move
This monthWhere the herds are
09 · Season
Best time to take this safari
Jun – Oct
The dry season
Short grass and animals close to water. The busiest months, and the clearest game viewing.
Late Jan – Mar
Calving on the southern plains
The herds are on the short-grass plains around Ndutu, with predators to match.
Apr · May · Nov
The green season
Rain, long grass and far fewer vehicles — and some camps close for the long rains.
10 · Flights
Flights
Arrive
Kilimanjaro International Airport
The international airport for Arusha and the northern parks. The transfer to your first night is included.
Depart
Kilimanjaro International Airport
Tell us your flight time and the last day is planned around it.
11 · Extras
Budget for these extras
Not in the package price, and worth planning for before you travel.
Most visitors need a Tanzania visa. What applies to your passport, and how to apply, is on our visas and vaccinations page.
Take a policy that covers medical evacuation from remote areas. More on our travel insurance page.
Tipping is customary but yours to decide. Our tipping guide sets out what is usual for guides, cooks and camp staff.
Water is provided in the vehicle. Other drinks at camps and lodges, laundry and souvenirs are paid locally.
12 · Why us
Why book this with us
01
Every route is a draft
Add a night, cut a day, finish on the coast. Most trips we run started as one of these and then moved.
02
Every quote itemised
Park fees, accommodation, vehicle and meals, line by line, for your dates and group.
03
Private, on your dates
Your own 4×4 with a pop-up roof and an English-speaking driver-guide.
04
Planned from Arusha
Ask on WhatsApp and you reach the people who plan the trip.
13 · Reviews
Reviews
Guest reviews for this route will appear here. To confirm
14 · Questions
Asked about this trip
We quote this route with a maximum of four, and most people take it as two or three. Tell us what you want and it is priced accordingly.
A long zoom (something in the 100–400 or 200–600 range), a mid zoom for landscape and camp, and a wide for the skies. Two bodies if you have them, so you are not changing lenses in dust.
Yes, with a packed lunch, and sometimes it pays. Mostly the light is bad and the animals are asleep — better to rest and be sharp at four.
Not in the Serengeti National Park. In parts of the Ndutu area, which is conservation area, yes — one reason the calving season is so strong for photography.
