3-Day Budget Safari: Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater

Your journey begins early, with a 6:00 AM pick-up from your Arusha hotel. After a quick safari briefing, you'll depart in a 4x4 safari vehicle, heading west toward Serengeti. Drive through the Ngorongoro Highlands, enjoying views of volcanic landscapes and Maasai villages along the way. Around 12:30 PM, enjoy a packed lunch en route or at Naabi Hill Gate, the entrance to Serengeti. After checking in to the park by 2:00 PM, enjoy an afternoon game drive through the sweeping plains where lions, elephants, giraffes, and possibly the first herds of the migration can be spotted. Arrive at your public campsite inside Serengeti by 5:30 PM, where your team will set up camp and prepare dinner. Enjoy the evening under the stars with the sounds of wildlife nearby.

Start your day with a hearty breakfast, then begin a full-day game drive at 7:00 AM, venturing deeper into Serengeti’s endless plains. Today’s focus is on spotting big cats like lions, cheetahs, and leopards, as well as large herds of wildebeest, zebras, and antelopes. You’ll break for a picnic lunch around midday, then continue exploring until 4:30 PM. The flexibility of the day allows you to chase sightings and visit different ecosystems. Return to the same campsite by evening for dinner and another overnight stay under the Serengeti sky.

After an early breakfast, depart camp by 6:00 AM for a scenic drive back toward Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Arrive at the crater rim around 8:30 AM, then descend 600 meters to the crater floor for a half-day game drive. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is rich in wildlife—expect to see hippos, buffaloes, zebras, and possibly endangered black rhinos. After a picnic lunch by a hippo pool, begin your ascent out of the crater around 1:00 PM, and start the return drive to Arusha, arriving back at your hotel around 6:00 PM.