3-Day Tarangire & Ngorongoro Budget Camping Safari

Destination: Tarangire National Park

Leave Arusha after breakfast and drive south-west toward Tarangire National Park. Once inside the park, the character of the landscape changes quickly: enormous baobab trees rise above open woodland and the Tarangire River forms a natural focus for wildlife, particularly during drier periods. Your guide will use the day to search for elephants, giraffes, zebra, wildebeest, buffalo, antelope and predators while also explaining the park’s ecology and seasonal movement of animals. A picnic lunch is taken at an appropriate site inside the park. In the late afternoon, leave the park and continue to the Mto wa Mbu/Lake Manyara area. The crew prepares camp while the cook begins dinner, giving you time to shower, rest or sit outside as the day cools.

Night accommodation: Migombani Camp camping grounds or comparable organised budget campsite near Mto wa Mbu

Meals: Lunch, Dinner

Destination: Ngorongoro Conservation Area / Ngorongoro Crater

After an early breakfast, drive up the Rift Valley escarpment toward the Ngorongoro highlands. At the crater viewpoint, weather permitting, the scale of the caldera becomes clear before you descend to the crater floor for an extended game drive. The crater supports a dense concentration of wildlife because grassland, marshes, forest and freshwater are compressed into a relatively small area. You may see buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, gazelle, hippo, elephant, hyena and lion; black rhino can occur but sightings are never guaranteed. Lunch is normally enjoyed at a designated picnic area. Later, climb back to the rim and continue to camp. Nights on the rim can be cold, so warm layers are important even when the lowlands have been hot.

Night accommodation: Simba A Public Campsite, Ngorongoro crater rim, subject to campsite allocation

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Destination: Ngorongoro Highlands / Arusha

Wake in the cool highland air and enjoy breakfast prepared by the safari cook. After camp is packed, begin the return journey to Arusha. Depending on the final departure time and your onward plans, the route can include a brief stop in Mto wa Mbu for local produce, crafts or a simple cultural extension at additional cost. The safari ends in Arusha in the afternoon, or you can request a transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport if your flight schedule makes that practical.

Night accommodation: None - end of safari

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch