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Ngorongoro Crater Safari Tours & Holidays
A Ngorongoro Crater tour is usually combined with a safari in neighboring Serengeti National Park. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area protects the volcanically formed Crater Highlands, which are dotted with deep volcanic craters. The best known, Ngorongoro is the world’s largest intact caldera and a natural wildlife reserve with few peers. Ngorongoro safari tours offer your best chance in Tanzania of spotting all the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and black rhino) in one game drive. The crater is also notable for the spectacularly scenic combination of the verdant plains of the lake-studded crater floor and imposing 600m-/1,968ft-high cliffs that enclose it on all sides.
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Top Rated Operator
8-Day Safari to Most Celebrated African Parks
$3,740 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Hotel
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Central Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Tanzania Roadside Expeditions
5.0/5 – 248 Reviews
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Best Seller
8-Day Great Migration Safari
$3,135 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Central Serengeti, Northern Serengeti NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Foothills of Mt Kilimanjaro, Arusha (End)
Safari Soles
5.0/5 – 246 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
5-Day Mid Range Best of Tanzania
$1,876 to $1,958 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti NP, Lake Manyara NP, Arusha (End)
Lion King Adventures
5.0/5 – 1018 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
11-Day Northern Tanzania Safari and Zanzibar
$7,706 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti NP, Zanzibar (End)
Wayfairer Travel
4.9/5 – 149 Reviews
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7-Day Mid Range Tour to Serengeti Wildebeest Migration
$2,310 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Kilimanjaro Airport (End)
Meru Slopes Tours & Safaris
5.0/5 – 304 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
3-Day Serengeti & Ngorongoro Highlights
$1,300 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourTented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Serengeti NP, Central Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Shemeji Safari Tanzania
4.8/5 – 282 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
4-Day Touch of Wilderness - Mid-Range
$1,690 to $2,130 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Lake Manyara NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Unlimited Expeditions: The Soul of Tanzania
4.9/5 – 438 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
14-Day Combine Serengeti Safari -Zanzibar Beach Holidays
$7,698 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Lake Manyara NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Ngorongoro Highlands, Central Serengeti, Tarangire NP, Stone Town (Zanzibar), Zanzibar (Beach), Zanzibar Airport (End)
Gosheni Safaris Africa
4.9/5 – 418 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
5-Day Tanzania Best Luxury Safari
$2,255 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Hotel
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti NP, Lake Manyara NP, Arusha (End)
Meijo Safaris
4.9/5 – 149 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
10-Day Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Zanzibar & Others
$4,230 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Northern Serengeti NP, Serengeti NP, Zanzibar (End)
Savannah Explorers
5.0/5 – 484 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
6-Day The Touch to Wilderness (Luxury Package)
$3,009 to $3,039 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Hotel
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Central Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara NP, Arusha (End)
Kilimanjaro Adventure Safari Club
5.0/5 – 147 Reviews
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Best Seller
7-Day Luxury Safari All-Inclusive
$2,992 to $3,966 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
African Big Cats Safaris
5.0/5 – 358 Reviews
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8-Day 7 Nights Wonderful Serengeti & the Northern Parks
$2,450 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Central Serengeti, Northern Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara NP, Arusha Airport (End)
Serengeti Green Tanzania
4.9/5 – 26 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
6-Day Midrange Private Safari
$1,870 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Serengeti Wakanda Tours and Safaris
5.0/5 – 474 Reviews
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8-Day African Luxury Lodge Safari - Tanzania (Wps29)
$3,486 to $4,433 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Wild Pride Safaris
5.0/5 – 17 Reviews
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Top Rated Operator
5-Day Mid Range Group Tour
$1,650 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Shared tour (max 6 people per vehicle)Lodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Central Serengeti, Ngorongoro Highlands, Ngorongoro Crater, Arusha (End)
Suricata Safaris
5.0/5 – 1937 Reviews
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9-Day Spectacular Tanzania Safari
$2,640 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourLodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Lake Natron, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Highlands, Ngorongoro Crater, Mto wa Mbu (Town), Arusha (End)
Safari360
4.9/5 – 104 Reviews
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9-Day Tanzania Mid Range Safari
$2,833 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Shared tour (max 6 people per vehicle)Lodge & Tented Camp
You Visit: Arusha (Start), Tarangire NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti NP, Lake Eyasi, Lake Manyara NP, Arusha NP, Arusha (End)
Mirisho Expedition Safaris
5.0/5 – 11 Reviews
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8-Day Beach & Safari Trip Zanzibar & Serengeti
$3,092 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourTented Camp & Resort
You Visit: Zanzibar (Start), Zanzibar (Beach), Tarangire NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Northern Serengeti NP, Serengeti NP, Zanzibar (End)
Paradise & Wilderness
4.9/5 – 129 Reviews
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10-Day Tanzania Budget Camping Safari and Cultural Tour
$2,184 pp (USD)
Tanzania: Private tourCamping & Lodge
You Visit: Kilimanjaro Airport (Start), Tarangire NP, Lake Eyasi, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, Mto wa Mbu (Town), Olpopongi (Cultural Village), Materuni (Highlight), Kikuletwa Hot Springs (Highlight), Arusha (End)
KT African Safaris
5.0/5 – 15 Reviews
8 Questions About Ngorongoro Safaris
Answered by
Philip Briggs
Philip is a renowned Africa expert and author of many Bradt guidebooks to African destinations, including the guide to Tanzania.› More about Philip
8 Questions About Ngorongoro Safaris
When is the best time to visit Ngorongoro?
“It’s worth booking Ngorongoro safari packages for any time of year. June to October is the Dry season, which offers good visibility and wildlife viewing, but the crater is at its most beautiful in the wetter months of November to May. This period broadly coincides with the arrival of large numbers of migrant waterbirds from the northern hemisphere. Most of the crater’s more charismatic wildlife (elephants, rhinos, lions) are more or less resident. Migrant grazers, such as wildebeest and gazelle, tend to be higher in numbers in the rainy season. April and May are the low season, but it’s actually a great time for Ngorongoro holidays due to the relatively low tourist numbers. Safari prices may also drop over April to June as lodges offer discounted rates to attract more business.”
› More about Ngorongoro's best time to visit 1What opportunities are there to meet local Maasai people?
“Ngorongoro Conservation Area is not a national park but a biosphere reserve where a diversity of wildlife lives alongside the iconic Maasai. These traditional pastoralists are recognizable by their trademark toga-like red checkered shuka cloths and fondness for elaborate beadwork jewelry. You won’t need to spend long in Ngorongoro before you encounter Maasai cattle herders walking alongside the road. But if you want to interact with Maasai people, and especially to photograph them, it’s customary to visit one of several manyattas (groups of huts within an enclosure) that now welcome tourists for a fixed fee. Sadly, many visitors tend to disparage these manyattas as touristy, but this assessment is way off the mark. In most cases, the Maasai manyattas visited by tourists are long-standing pastoral settlements. Their inhabitants still live a traditional lifestyle but are very poor by any measure other than cattle ownership, and they make a large portion of their living from tourist visits.”
2Is there accommodation inside the crater?
“No. It is forbidden to overnight on the crater floor. The best base for Ngorongoro safari tours is the crater rim. Options here range from simple campsites through to mainstream Sopa and Serena lodges, a few exclusive tented camps and the legendary ‘bush baroque’ of the unique &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. Alternatively, an ever-growing cluster of lodges and hotels can be found just outside Ngorongoro in the pretty hills around Karatu. Accommodation on the rim is typically more scenically located (the views over the crater are amazing) and better positioned for game drives, but the premier location means they tend to charge a lot more than lodges around Karatu.”
3What animals can I see as part of a Ngorongoro safari?
“In a word, lots. There are few places where you can so reliably see such large numbers of wildlife, including all the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and black rhino), with a bit of luck, all year. The crater floor credibly claims to support the densest concentration of predators in Africa, with lions and spotted hyenas being particularly plentiful. Leopards are also seen regularly, but require a bit more luck. The fever-tree-covered Lerai Forest and adjoining Gorigor Swamp are the main haunt of the crater’s elephant population, which is dominated by old male tuskers. Ngorongoro is the one place in Tanzania where black rhinos are easily seen, usually in the vicinity of Lake Magadi. The open grassland that covers most of the crater floor also supports large herds of wildebeest and zebra, and smaller numbers of buffalo, Coke’s hartebeest, and Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelle. Lake Magadi normally harbors large flocks of flamingos, while other less-salty bodies of water are home to plentiful hippos.”
› More about the wildlife of the Ngorongoro Crater 4How long is the drive to the crater?
“The 150km/93mi road from Arusha to the main gate of Ngorongoro Conservation Area is surfaced in its entirety and can be covered in two hours or less. The short ascent to the crater rim and associated lodges is unsurfaced but in reasonably good condition. Allow 30 minutes to an hour from the gate, depending on the location of your lodge. The descent and ascent roads to the crater floor are short but very poorly maintained. They require a 4WD and some caution behind the wheel. Many people break up the drive from Arusha with a night or two in the vicinity of Lake Manyara National Park, which makes a great addition to Ngorongoro safari trips.”
5Does it get cold while camping on the crater rim?
“Yes. Despite the equatorial location, most of the camps and lodges on the crater rim stand at an altitude of around 2,300m/7,545ft and can be very cold at night. You’ll feel it most if you are camping or staying in a tented camp. However, most accommodation on the crater rim comprises built-up lodges and fires are lit at night to keep it warm and cozy. Still, don’t forget to pack some warm clothing.”
6How is Ngorongoro different from other parks?
“The park’s wildlife-viewing showpiece is the Ngorongoro Crater. The world’s largest intact volcanic caldera, it encompasses 260km²/100mi² of moist savannah hemmed in by sheer 600m-/1,968ft-high walls topped by a cover of dense montane forest. Even without the wildlife, the crater would rank among the world’s most stunning natural wonders. But it also doubles as a unique sanctuary within a sanctuary whose prolific wildlife and immense scenic scale regularly draws comparisons to the biblical Garden of Eden. There is nowhere else in Africa quite like it.”
7What lodges or camps do you recommend for a Ngorongoro safari?
“If your budget stretches to it, try to stay on the rim. It is better placed for game drives and offers a more immersive Ngorongoro experience than staying outside the conservation area. Of the built-up lodges, I tend to favor the Sopa as a base for Ngorongoro safaris. This is not because it is inherently better than its competitors, but because it lies very close to a combined descent and ascent road that is convenient for early morning game drives. If you prefer to sleep under canvas, Lemala Ngorongoro stands close to the same road and has a wonderful location in a stand of lichen-stained flat-topped red-thorn acacias. For unrestrained all-inclusive luxury (including excellent guided activities), &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge is hard to beat. Of the many (mostly cheaper) lodges outside the park, personal favorites include the upmarket Gibb’s Farm, the mid-range Rhotia Valley Tented Lodge, the more affordable Eileen’s Trees Inn and the few-frills but very budget-friendly Karatu Forest Tented Camp.”
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