6-day Private Big 5 Midrange Tour & Kilimanjaro Hiking
About this tour
You will come to experience the adventure and enjoy the beauty of wildlife. During this trip, you will completely immerse yourself in breathtaking nature as well as explore animals and their habitats. Playing game drives in national parks, taking part in the crater tour, and camping in airy space will become part of your wonderful memories through this holiday. Join Meru Slopes Tours and Safaris and you will know why this tour is worth it.
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1: Arusha Airport, Arusha, Tanzania to Arusha, Tanzania
The first day's excursion includes a tour of the city's sights. Visiting the local markets, Maasai market, cultural heritage, and Arusha City Museum are all part of the city excursion. Later in the evening, you will be briefed on your tour with an option to go visit Arusha city and a sunset view. Upon your arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport, you will be welcomed by a Meru Slopes transfer driver and taken to Arusha Planet Lodge within Arusha. The rest of the day will be spent at leisure and you can even relax at the hotel. In the evening, you will attend a briefing in preparation for the upcoming safari. Your accommodation is on a full-board basis.
Day 2: Arusha, Tanzania to Tarangire National Park, Tanzania
After an early breakfast, you will proceed for a full-day game drive at Tarangire National Park with picnic lunches. Dinner and your overnight stay are at Ngorongoro Marera View Lodge. It’s the national park where herds of up to 300 elephants scrape the waterless river bed for alternative streams, while nomadic wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest, and eland mass the decrease lagoons. It has the most concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti ecosystem—a smorgasbord for predators—and one place in Tanzania where dry-country antelope such as the stately fringe-eared oryx and peculiar long-necked gerenuk are regularly seen. It is the only national park that holds migrants during the dry season and provides a welcoming home to different species of animals.
Day 3: Tarangire National Park, Tanzania to Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
After breakfast, you will continue towards the fertile highlands where wheat, coffee, and corn are grown by the Iraqw people. You'll pass through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a crater of unimaginable beauty created some three million years ago with the explosion of a volcano. You will be able to see the breathtaking expanse of the Ngorongoro Caldera before traveling onwards to the Serengeti National Park. Serengeti means 'endless plain' in Maa, the tongue of the Maasai. You will reach Serengeti by late evening. The Serengeti National Park is the largest in Tanzania with diverse landscapes and habitats, such as grassy plains, swamps, lakes, savannahs, and mountains. Here, the biggest wildebeest and zebra migration takes place. Depending on the season, you may have the opportunity to witness thousands of animals in their search for food and water. After an extensive game drive, you will drive to Heritage Tented Lodge where you will enjoy dinner and an overnight stay.
Day 4: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania to Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania
After an early coffee, you will head out for a game drive in the Serengeti. You might be able to spot the Big Five—lion, elephant, buffalo, rhino, and leopard—before embarking on your journey to the Ngorongoro Crater. The animals roam freely through the unfenced reserves, offering you an uninterrupted game-viewing experience. You'll be arriving at the edge of the crater. You will have your first glimpse of what awaits you the following day—glistening streams, open grassland, and an infinite amount of animals. You will spend the night at Rhino Lodge directly on the crater’s edge with the orange glow of sunset surrounding you as you drift off to sleep.
Day 5: Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania to Arusha, Tanzania
The early risers are rewarded with breathtaking views of the rising sun over the crater’s edge. After a hearty breakfast, you will drive down the adventurous track into the crater. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is one of the Seven Wonders of Africa and the most incredible ecosystems on Earth. It was formed millions of years ago in the massive explosion of a volcano. It is 610m deep and covers roughly around 260sq km. Due to its dense animal population of approximately 25,000, the crater offers the best game viewing of all the parks in Tanzania. In a matter of minutes, you will be able to see wildebeests, zebras, gazelles, elephants, and some of the more than 500 bird species in the area. With a little bit of luck, you might catch a glimpse of the endangered black rhino through the grass. After lunch, you will ascend the steep walls of the crater and head to Arusha for an overnight stay.
Day 6: Arusha, Tanzania to Kilimanjaro National Park Headquarters, Tanzania
You will hike Mount Kilimanjaro for a day. You've had this hike on your list of things to do for a while, and if you don't have the time or money to climb it, this is your best bet. You can reach a very high altitude and take in the best mountain view without having to pay the full cost of the ticket. You will be able to take in a good taste of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak at 5,985 meters. Later you will drive back to the airport for departure.
What's included
Park fees (For non-residents) All activities (Unless labeled as optional) All accommodation (Unless listed as upgrade) A professional driver/guide All transportation (Unless labeled as optional) All Taxes/VAT Roundtrip airport transfer Meals (As specified in the day-by-day section) Drinks (As specified in the day-by-day section)
International flights (From/to home) Additional accommodation before and at the end of the tour Tips (Tipping guideline US$10.00 pp per day) Personal items (Souvenirs, travel insurance, visa fees, etc.) Government imposed increase of taxes and/or park fees
What to know
This tour can be customized. Please get in touch with me.
Route & locations
Arusha Airport, Arusha, Tanzania to Arusha, Tanzania