8 Day Great Wildebeest Migration Safari: Northern Serengeti Ngorongoro and Kilimanjaro

The Great Wildebeest Migration is widely described as the greatest wildlife spectacle on earth. Each year approximately one and a half million wildebeest, accompanied by hundreds of thousands of zebra and gazelle, follow a clockwise circuit across the Serengeti ecosystem in search of fresh grazing. The movement is constant and unpredictable, which is why four full days in the Serengeti across different sections of the park dramatically increases your chances of witnessing the migration in action.

This eight day itinerary begins with a night in Arusha to prepare, then visits Tarangire before making the crossing into the Serengeti with time to spare. Day three takes you through the central Seronera area, day four into the more remote northern Serengeti near the Mara River, and days five and six cover additional migration zones. Each section of the park has its own character and seasonal wildlife patterns, and your guide is expert at positioning the vehicle for the best possible sightings based on current conditions.

The Ngorongoro Crater on day seven provides a powerful contrast to the open plains. Within the enclosed caldera the wildlife is concentrated rather than dispersed, and a morning on the crater floor consistently produces sightings of multiple predator species, black rhinoceros and enormous herds of buffalo. The ancient landscape, visible volcanic geology and the sense of being inside a world within a world make this one of the most memorable experiences in all of East Africa.

The eighth and final day takes you to the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, whose glacier-capped summit dominates the southeastern skyline throughout much of the journey. A guided walk through the National Park's lower rainforest zone, where Colobus monkeys leap overhead and endemic Kilimanjaro animals share the forest with travellers, is an invigorating way to conclude a safari of this depth before returning to Arusha.