This 3-Day Ngorongoro Crater Safari & Optional Hadzabe Bushman Tour takes you to one of the most important wildlife areas in Tanzania, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. The highlight of this safari is a visit to the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest unbroken volcanic caldera and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The conservation area lies in northern Tanzania and forms part of the wider Serengeti ecosystem.
The area is close to other popular parks such as Lake Manyara National Park and Tarangire National Park, making it easy to combine this safari with other destinations. This tour focuses on wildlife viewing in the crater, with an option to add a cultural visit to the Hadzabe Bushmen near Lake Eyasi.
Ngorongoro Crater Safari Highlights
- Day 1: Pick up from Arusha to Ngorongoro
- Day 2: Ngorongoro Crater game drive
- Day 3: Drop off in Arusha and end of safari
Detailed Safari Itinerary
Day 1: Pick up from Arusha to Ngorongoro
Your driver guide will pick you up from your hotel or the airport in Arusha in the morning. You will drive toward Ngorongoro Conservation Area, enjoying views of the countryside, farmlands, and the Rift Valley along the way. You will arrive in the afternoon, check in at your safari camp or lodge, and have lunch.
Later in the day, you will go for an afternoon game drive around the crater area. This first drive gives you a chance to see animals such as zebras, wildebeests, gazelles, antelopes, and cheetahs. You will also enjoy wide views of the crater. In the evening, you will return to your camp for dinner and overnight.
Day 2: Ngorongoro Crater game drive
After an early breakfast, you will descend into the Ngorongoro Crater for a full game drive on the crater floor. About 30,000 animals and more than 500 bird species live here all year. The resident wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles do not take part in the great migration.
During the drive, you may see lions, elephants, buffaloes, hippos, jackals, flamingos, and the endangered black rhino. You will stop for a picnic lunch inside the crater. After lunch, you will continue game viewing before ascending back to the crater rim in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight will be at your safari camp.
Day 3: Drop off in Arusha and end of safari
After breakfast, you will check out from your camp. Your guide will drive you back to Arusha for drop off at your hotel or the airport, marking the end of the 3-Day Ngorongoro Crater & Hadzabe Bushman Safari Tour.
