8-Day Following the Great Migration
OVERVIEW
GO WHERE THE HERDS GO.
The Great Migration doesn’t have an address.
Across the year, immense herds of wildebeest and zebra move through the Serengeti ecosystem in search of fresh grazing and water. This eight-day journey is designed around that movement, positioning your Serengeti stay according to the season rather than promising the same route every month.
Begin among Tarangire’s elephants and explore the floor of Ngorongoro Crater before turning toward the Serengeti. From there, we follow the season, whether that means the calving grounds of the south, the western reaches or the river country of the north.
We can’t tell the herds where to be.
We can know where to look.
DAY 01 / ARUSHA - ARRIVE. THE HERDS ARE WAITING.
Welcome to Tanzania.
Meet your Wildpack representative at Kilimanjaro International Airport and transfer to your lodge in Arusha.
Today is about arriving properly. Settle in, recover from your flight and meet your guide for a briefing on the journey ahead.
We’ll also talk through current migration conditions and how they may influence the Serengeti portion of your safari.
Tomorrow, you head into the wild.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Lodge, Arusha
MEALS
Dinner, depending on arrival time
DAY 02 / TARANGIRE - FIRST, THE GIANTS.
After breakfast, leave Arusha and travel toward Tarangire National Park.
Before following wildebeest across the Serengeti, meet some of northern Tanzania’s other giants.
Tarangire is famous for its elephants and monumental baobabs. Spend the day game driving along riverine woodland and open plains in search of elephant families, giraffes, zebra, buffalo, wildebeest and predators.
Stop for lunch before continuing into the afternoon.
As the light softens, make your way toward your lodge for the evening.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Lodge / Tented Camp, Tarangire or Karatu Area
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 03 / NGORONGORO - INTO THE CRATER.
Rise early and travel toward Ngorongoro before descending approximately 600 metres to the crater floor.
Within the walls of this ancient caldera lies one of Tanzania’s richest concentrations of wildlife.
Search the grasslands for lions, buffalo, wildebeest and zebra, visit wetlands frequented by hippos and keep watch for the endangered black rhino.
Enjoy a picnic lunch inside the crater before continuing your game drive.
Later, climb back into the highlands for a relaxed evening.
Tomorrow, the migration becomes the focus.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Lodge, Ngorongoro / Karatu Area
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 04 / SERENGETI - FIND THE MOVING WILD.
Leave the Ngorongoro Highlands and travel toward the part of the Serengeti ecosystem offering the best seasonal access to the migration.
The destination changes with the year.
During the southern season, this may take you toward Ndutu and the short-grass plains. Later in the year, the route shifts through central and western areas before reaching the far north.
Your game drive begins along the way.
As you approach migration country, wildebeest may begin appearing first in scattered groups, then hundreds, then thousands.
And suddenly the landscape itself seems to be moving.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Seasonal Tented Camp, Serengeti
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 05 / GREAT MIGRATION - WHERE THOUSANDS MOVE AS ONE.
Head out early with one purpose: follow the movement.
Your guide will use current wildlife information, tracks and local knowledge to locate the herds and position you where the day’s activity looks most promising.
Migration safari isn’t simply about counting wildebeest.
The herds create an entire moving ecosystem.
Lions follow them. Cheetahs hunt along their edges. Hyenas patrol nearby. Vultures circle overhead. Zebra mix among the wildebeest while newborns struggle to keep pace during calving season.
Spend the day following this enormous natural drama.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Seasonal Tented Camp, Serengeti
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 06 / GREAT MIGRATION - NO TWO DAYS MOVE THE SAME.
Yesterday tells you very little about what today will bring.
The herds move. Predators move. Weather changes. Rivers rise and fall.
So we head out again.
During the northern season, your guide may explore areas around the Mara River where crossings are possible. A crossing, however, is never scheduled and never guaranteed. Sometimes the herds wait for hours. Sometimes for days.
During the southern season, the focus may instead be newborn calves and the intense predator activity surrounding the herds.
Wherever the migration is, today is about patience.
Because nature rarely performs on command.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Seasonal Tented Camp, Serengeti
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 07 / SERENGETI - ONE LAST DAY AMONG THE HERDS.
By now, the scale of the migration has become strangely familiar.
Head out for one final full day of exploration.
Follow the herds if they’re moving, search for predators if they’ve settled, or leave the largest concentrations behind for a while and explore the wider Serengeti ecosystem.
This can also be an excellent morning for an optional hot-air balloon safari, depending on your location and seasonal camp.
Return to camp toward evening.
Your final Serengeti sunset deserves nowhere else on the schedule.
OVERNIGHT
Midrange Seasonal Tented Camp, Serengeti
MEALS
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner
DAY 08 / SERENGETI → ARUSHA - THE HERDS MOVE ON. SO DO WE.
Wake for your final morning in migration country.
After breakfast, enjoy a short game drive depending on your flight schedule before transferring to the nearest suitable Serengeti airstrip.
Board a scheduled bush flight back to Arusha, watching the wilderness shrink beneath the aircraft as you leave the plains behind.
On arrival, transfer for your onward journey or continue with additional nights in Tanzania.
The migration carries on without us.
It always does.
MEALS
Breakfast
END POINT
Arusha / Kilimanjaro International Airport
Where the Wild Moves
DECEMBER – MARCH
SOUTHERN SERENGETI & NDUTU
Calving season and predator activity.
APRIL – JUNE
CENTRAL & WESTERN SERENGETI
Herds begin moving north and west as the seasons change.
JULY – OCTOBER
NORTHERN SERENGETI
Northern migration season and potential Mara River crossings.
NOVEMBER
CENTRAL / EASTERN SERENGETI
A transitional period as the herds begin moving south again.
Migration movements are natural and vary with rainfall and grazing conditions. Specific wildlife sightings and river crossings can never be guaranteed.
$3,350
MAKE THIS JOURNEY YOURS
Safari Includes
- All Park Fees
- All transportation
- Professional private safari guide
- Roundtrip airport transfer
- Private 4×4 safari vehicle with pop-up roof
- Accommodation as specified in the itinerary
- Government taxes and VAT
Safari Excludes
- International flights
- Additional accommodation before and at the end of the tour
- Tips
- Personal items
- Government imposed increase of taxes and/or park fees
- Some Meals