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Safarimondo
Tanzania safari landscape
All destinations

East Africa

Tanzania

Endless Serengeti plains and the Ngorongoro Crater.

Best time
Jun–Oct (dry, classic game viewing); Jan–Mar (calving in the southern Serengeti)
Malaria
Malaria present — prophylaxis advised
Book ahead
8–18 months for premium northern camps
From
$550 pp / day land-only
A lone acacia on the plains at sunset
SerengetiPhoto · Hu Chen / Unsplash
An elephant and her calf in dry grass
SerengetiPhoto · Hu Chen / Unsplash
A cheetah standing on a fallen tree
Serengeti National ParkPhoto · Partha Narasimhan / Unsplash

The Serengeti is vast enough that the migration is always somewhere within it. Add the wildlife amphitheatre of the Ngorongoro Crater and the remote southern parks, and Tanzania rewards both first-timers and returning safari-goers.

When to go

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Dry season
Calving
Green/quiet

Dry season

Jun – Oct

Classic viewing; northern Serengeti crossings Aug–Sep.

Calving

Jan – Mar

Hundreds of thousands of wildebeest born in the south — predator drama.

Green/quiet

Nov – Dec, Apr – May

Lower rates; long rains Apr–May are the quietest.

Signature parks & reserves

Map of Tanzania showing Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park, Nyerere National Park, and Kilimanjaro International Airport.Kilimanjaro International Airport1. Serengeti National Park2. Ngorongoro Crater3. Tarangire National Park4. Ruaha National Park4. Nyerere National Park
Numbered as in the list below. Each pin sits at the Wikidata coordinate for its park or a place inside it; borders and lakes from Natural Earth.

Serengeti

Endless plains; the migration is always somewhere here.

Ngorongoro Crater

A caldera packed with wildlife, including rhino.

Tarangire

Baobabs and huge elephant herds in the dry months.

Ruaha / Nyerere

Wild, uncrowded southern circuit for return visitors.

Know before you go

Mobile camp
A seasonal camp that moves to follow the migration — you stay where the wildlife is.
Northern vs. southern circuit
North = famous Serengeti/Ngorongoro; south = remote, wild, fewer vehicles.
Internal flights
Light aircraft link the parks. Soft bags only, typically a 15kg limit.

Field film · Grumeti River, Serengeti

Wildebeest crowd the bank of the Grumeti River to drink.

Film · Bettina May / Wikimedia Commons (trimmed) · CC BY 3.0
The floor of the Ngorongoro Crater from the rim
Ngorongoro CraterMatthew Stephenson / Unsplash
Two giraffes necking on the plains
SerengetiMagdalena Kula Manchee / Unsplash
Wildebeest grazing beneath a lone acacia
Serengeti National ParkKai Pütter / Unsplash
Elephants grazing among scattered trees on green plains
Serengeti National ParkChris Onstein / Unsplash
A cheetah walking through short grass
SerengetiTeam Mfina / Unsplash
Zebras on golden grass in the crater, clouds on the rim
Ngorongoro CraterJorge Tung / Unsplash
An elephant family walking along a dry riverbed
Mto TarangireMatt Benn / Unsplash
A dense herd of wildebeest on green grass
SerengetiDawn Westveld / Unsplash
Stone Town and its beach from the air
Stone TownJavi Lorbada / Unsplash
An elephant family feeding in long grass
SerengetiCrystal McClernon / Unsplash
Four zebras standing close together under trees
SerengetiMatteo Di Iorio / Unsplash
A dhow pulled up on a white-sand beach
MatemweCrispin Jones / Unsplash