Culture and the Wild Itinerary

Welcome to Tanzania! After arriving at Kilimanjaro Airport, drive to your hotel either in or on the outskirts of Arusha. We have many hotel recommendations depending on your preferences and budget.

Meet your Duma Explorer guide at 9 AM, and depart for Tarangire National Park. The drive to Tarangire is approximately two hours. After reaching Tarangire, proceed on a game drive for the rest of the day, with a picnic lunch in the park. Tarangire is famous for its large elephant population, scenery, and diversity of birdlife. At approximately 6 PM, reach a small tented camp nestled in one of the park's quieter environments. Tarangire's wildlife includes elephant, lion, giraffe, and many bird and antelope species.

Enjoy a full day of wildlife viewing. Tarangire National Park is one of the lesser-known parks in Tanzania, but rivals the Serengeti in its biodiversity. It's an excellent option if you wish to encounter big game and fewer tourists during your drives. The park is also an exceptional birding destination, with a unique landscape, punctuated with large baobab trees and termite mounds dotting the woodland ecosystem.

After breakfast, enjoy a final game drive in Tarangire as you exit the park. Drive to Esilalei Village for a cultural tour with members of the Maasai tribe. Esilalei Village is located in the rolling hills near Lake Manyara National Park. You will go on a traditional medicine walk with a Maasai guide, and learn about the traditional uses of medicinal plants. After the walk, visit a boma, the Maasai traditional homestead. Picnic at Isoitok Camp before departing for the Lake Eyasi. Proceed to your tented camp for dinner and overnight.

After a light breakfast at 5am, depart for your hunt with the Hadzabe Tribe. One of Tanzania's only hunter-gatherer tribes, the Hadzabe speaks a click language. The hunt with the Hadzabe involves hiking over rough terrain. Learn how to shoot arrows and see a traditional shelter.

Return to Kisima Ngeda in the late morning for an early lunch. Rest until the afternoon. Around 4pm, visit the Datoga Tribe, a pastoralist, nilotic ethnic group thought to originate from Southern Sudan. Overnight in Lake Eyasi.

After breakfast in Lake Eyasi, depart for Ngorongoro Crater. Often called the eighth wonder of the world, Ngorongoro Crater is the largest unbroken caldera in the world, and is one of the only places in Africa you can view every member of the "big five" (rhinoceros, lion, cape buffalo, leopard, and elephant) on a single game drive.

After your game drive, ascend to the Crater rim and overnight at your lodge overlooking the Crater below.

Depart for Central Serengeti after breakfast, visiting Olduvai Gorge along the way. One of the most important paleoanthropologic sites in the world, Olduvai Gorge has furthered the understanding of human evolution. Visit Olduvai's museum and learn about the discoveries made by Mary and Louis Leakey.

After the visit, continue your drive to Central Serengeti (or Ndutu for December - March itineraries).

Spend the rest of the day on a game drive as you slowly make your way to your Serengeti tented camp. Species commonly seen in the Serengeti include wildebeest, cheetah, zebra, lion, giraffe, impala, topi, and leopard. The Serengeti is also home to more than 540 species of birds.

Spend a full day viewing wildlife in the Central Serengeti. Known for its healthy cat populations, Central Serengeti is perhaps the best place in the world to view large cat species.

Spend the full day on a game drive as you make your way from Central Serengeti to Northern Serengeti. Experience the vastness of the Serengeti National Park, a protected area spanning 5,695 square miles. Make your way to the Mara River, which forms the border between Tanzania and Kenya. The wildebest migration is usually in this area from June through October, providing dramatic views of river crossings as the wildebeest cross back and forth in search of fresh grass. Overnight at a small tented camp in the Northern Serengeti.

Spend a full day following the wildebeest migration.

Transfer to Kogatende Airstrip in time for your flight to your next destination. Fly on to Zanzibar, Kenya, Uganda and more to continue discovering East Africa!