Tanzania Offbeat & Masai Mara Safari

Upon your arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, our safari guide will greet you based on your flight schedule. You will then be transported to Arusha town, which is approximately a one-hour drive away. Once you reach the lodge, you can relax and prepare for your upcoming adventure on the Tanzania Offbeat and Masai Mara Safari, set to commence the following day.

You will be greeted by your private guide and vehicle at your hotel in Arusha at 7:00 AM, after which you will embark on a drive to Tarangire National Park, allowing ample time for both morning and afternoon game drives. The park is traversed by the Tarangire River, which draws a significant population of elephants, buffalo, giraffes, and antelopes, especially during the dry season from June to October. It is common to observe large herds of elephants wandering through the savannah or seeking refuge under the distinctive baobab trees scattered throughout the area. Additionally, Tarangire is home to over 550 bird species, making it the most diverse avian habitat in Africa, including the Kori bustard, recognized as the heaviest flying bird globally. In the late afternoon, you will be transferred to Karatu for your overnight accommodation.

After breakfast, you’ll traverse the rough road from Karatu to Lake Eyasi. Lake Eyasi is a seasonal shallow endorheic salt lake on the floor of the Great Rift Valley. It is in northern Tanzania, south of the Ngorongoro highlands. You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy this tranquil environment and to absorb its natural setting.
You’ll arrive in the afternoon for a cultural interaction with the Tatoga tribe, a very interesting tribe. Our Tatoga guide at the village will lead the tour.

You’ll explore the dry and rugged landscape area on foot, which is still inhabited by a small group of Bushmen, the Hadzabe or Watindiga. These tribes still live in bands, hunting with bows and arrows, gathering roots, tubers and wild fruits, just as humans did to survive 10,000 years ago.
Another interesting tribe in this area is the Datoga (also called the Barabaig or Mang’ati). Initially, they were exercising a lot of rivalry over grazing lands with the Maasai tribe.
After all the activities you’ll be transferred to the lodge for an evening relaxation, dinner and an overnight stay.

Following a delightful breakfast, you will embark on a scenic road journey from Karatu to the stunning Ngorongoro Crater. This remarkable site is recognized as the largest intact and unflooded caldera in the world. Your journey will take you through the verdant rainforests that line the rim, descending 610 meters (2,000 feet) to the expansive grasslands of the crater floor, which spans approximately 260 square kilometers (100 square miles).

This ecological paradise serves as a year-round sanctuary for a variety of wildlife, including wildebeest, zebra, eland, and gazelle, as well as hosting the highest density of lions in Africa. The rainforests are home to elephants, mountain bucks, buffalo, hyenas, and leopards. You will have the opportunity to spend an entire day observing and exploring the crater floor, with a break for a picnic on the grasslands among the grazing herds. After a day of adventure, you will return to the Lodge in Karatu for a relaxing evening, followed by dinner and an overnight stay.

You will set off with packed lunch boxes towards Lake Natron, which is approximately a 3.5-hour drive from Karatu. This destination is a remarkable and distinctive natural wonder, characterized by its highly alkaline and relatively shallow waters, with an average depth of just one meter.

After checking into your lodge or camp and taking a brief rest, you will don your walking shoes for an excursion led by a Masai tribesman to the Ngare Sero Waterfalls, cascading from the Nguruman Escarpment to the west of Lake Natron. Additionally, you will have the opportunity to stroll along the shores of Lake Natron, where you can observe various bird species, particularly the lesser flamingos. Lake Natron serves as a crucial and consistent breeding ground for lesser flamingos in East Africa, accommodating up to 2 million of these birds during the breeding season, which typically occurs from September to January. In the evening, you will return to the camp for dinner and an overnight stay.

Today, you will journey to the Northern-central region of Serengeti National Park. The Rift Valley ascends into the expansive plains of the Serengeti, which is renowned as one of the largest natural migration systems for wildlife. Each year, over 1.4 million wildebeests, nearly 300,000 Thomson’s gazelles, around 200,000 zebras, and several thousand topis migrate between conservation areas, following the rainy seasons to seek out verdant landscapes and lush meadows. In addition to these species, the park is also inhabited by a diverse array of wildlife, including giraffes, buffalo, hyenas, elephants, and crocodiles. Notably, the park boasts a significant population of feline predators.

On this day, following an early breakfast, you will say goodbye to the Serengeti and Tanzania. You will embark on a game drive en route to Isibania, the border crossing point between Kenya and Tanzania. It is important to note that there will be a change of vehicle and guide; however, this transition is smooth and should not cause you any concern. Once the immigration procedures are completed, with our guide managing all the required documentation, you will be introduced to your new Kenyan guide/driver. You will then proceed to the Masai Mara for an evening of game viewing before settling in at your reserved camp for dinner and an overnight stay.

Depart at the camp after breakfast with packed picnic lunches for a full-day game drive in Masai Mara.

Masai Mara National Reserve is famously known for its annual great migration. The wildebeest and zebras cross from Serengeti to Masai Mara between Julys to October.
Enjoy an 8-hour with a thrilling game drive characterized by several up-close encounters of African wildlife species. The sightseeing of the day is lions, leopards, cheetahs, buffaloes, elephants, gazelles, elands, hyenas, waterbuck among others.
Later on evening you’ll driven back to the camp for dinner and overnight.

Depart on early morning game drive since animals both nocturnal and diurnal are generally found active before the sun sends them off to cover under shades, following with sunrise in Masai Mara plain till 8:00am; Afterwards drive back to the lodge for breakfast then you’ll depart to Nairobi with lunch en route.

Arrive on evening in Nairobi for dropping off at the hotel or transfer to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your onward travel.