2-Day Tarangire & Ngorongoro Crater Overnight Safari

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 – Arusha to Tarangire, Game Drive, Overnight in Karatu

Your safari begins early from the Kilimanjaro international airport. Your guide from Serengeti Lion Safaris picks you up at your Arusha or Moshi hotel just after sunrise and immediately begins the drive to Tarangire National Park in a peaceful—rolling hills, roadside villages, and the slow unfolding of wild country.

When you enter the park gates, everything shifts. Tarangire is one of Tanzania’s most underrated gems, and that’s exactly what makes it special. Baobab trees tower above the horizon like frozen lightning. The air smells dry and sweet. And the elephants—so many elephants—move through the landscape with quiet authority.

You’ll spend most of the day on a game drive as you observe herds of zebra, impalas, wildebeest, and giraffes wander past you. Warthogs run like they’re late for something. And if luck is on your side, a lion might be napping just a few meters from the track.

The Tarangire River snakes through the park, attracting all the animals in search of water. It’s not unusual to see hundreds of animals gathered near the riverbanks—drinking, watching, living.

Lunch is a bush-style picnic at a scenic spot with views over the savannah. Then you continue the afternoon drive at a relaxed pace, soaking in the stillness and slow movement of the wild.

By late afternoon, you exit the park and make your way to the Ngorongoro Highlands. The landscape rises, cools, and softens. Green hills replace dry bushland, and you settle into your lodge in Karatu—a cozy town perched just outside the crater.

You dine surrounded by trees and soft air. And by the time your head hits the pillow, the sounds of the bush are still playing in your ears.

Accommodation:
Camping: Panorama Campsite
Budget: Eileen’s Tree Inn
Standard: Country Lodge Karatu
Luxury: The Retreat at Ngorongoro

Day 2 – Ngorongoro Crater Game Drive, Return to Arusha

After an early breakfast, you drive up to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area entrance. From the crater rim, the view alone feels worth the trip. The ancient caldera stretches wide below you, perfectly intact, perfectly alive.

Then you descend and just inside the crater, time folds. Everything feels close. Lions sleep near the roads. Hyenas trot past like they own the place. Buffalo, zebra, and wildebeest graze as if no one’s watching. But someone always is—cheetahs on the rise, jackals sniffing out scraps, elephants in the shadows.

You might see a black rhino today. Not a promise, but a possibility—and sometimes those are better.

You’ll pause for lunch beside a hippo pool. The air is thick with birdsong and the occasional snort from the water. You eat quietly. You watch. You listen.

By early afternoon, you begin the climb out of the crater and start your journey back to Arusha. The landscape rolls by, soft and familiar now. You’ve only been gone two days. But something about you feels heavier—in the best way.

You saw something real. And it’ll stay with you long after the dust is gone.