Depart on an overnight flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport via Amsterdam, and arrive late the next day.
Serena Mountain Village
Drive to Lake Manyara National Park, famous for its elephants, hippos, giraffes, flamingos, and tree-climbing lions. This afternoon, set out on our first wildlife safari.
Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge (B,L,D)
After breakfast, enjoy a morning safari around Lake Manyara. Visit a Maasai village and continue to the Ngorongoro Crater. This evening, get acquainted with this fascinating culture during a talk by a local Maasai chief and a beading workshop by his wife.
Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge (B,L,D)
Descend 2,000 feet to the base of the crater, where volcanic slopes shelter almost 30,000 animals. We may see elephants, rhinos, buffalo, cheetahs, lions, hyenas, hippos, wildebeests, and much more of East Africa's spectacular wildlife. Then explore the area near the camp on a guided walk. Tonight, National Geographic Explorers-in-Residence Meave Leakey or her daughter Louise joins us for dinner and a discussion of their family's research.*
Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge (B,L,D)
Drive to the Olduvai Gorge where, on a National Geographic-sponsored expedition in 1960, Louis and Mary Leakey discovered Homo habilis, one of the earliest members of the human genus. Meave or Louise Leakey will join us on our visit here.* In 1999, Meave and Louise unearthed a 3.5-million-year-old skull and partial jaw believed to belong to a new branch of early hominid. Continue to the central Serengeti, and on a late afternoon safari, catch a glimpse of the wildebeest migration.**
Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge (B,L,D)
This morning, head out on safari, or soar over the plains on an optional hot-air balloon ride, followed by a champagne breakfast under the shade of an acacia tree. After lunch, enjoy a talk by a local wildlife researcher. Then watch for wildlife as we travel through beautiful scenery on the way to our tented camp in the western Serengeti.
Kirawira Camp Western Serengeti (B,L,D)
Embark on a sunrise game drive and return to the lodge for breakfast and some time at leisure. Then observe the fascinating interplay of Serengeti's legendary wildlife on an afternoon game drive. Look for herds of zebra or wildebeest eyeing a predator warily, and spot crocodiles as their snouts surface in the Grumeti River.
Kirawira Camp Western Serengeti (B,L,D)
After an early morning safari, fly back to Kliimanjaro airport and transfer to your evening flight home, arriving the next day.
(B,L)