5-Day Budget Serengeti Safari with Crater Rim Walking Safari

Highlights: Full-day game drive among baobabs and elephant herds, overnight in Karatu

After pickup in Arusha, depart for Tarangire National Park, famous for its towering ancient baobab trees, seasonal swamps, and some of the largest elephant herds in Tanzania. Named after the Tarangire River that draws wildlife from miles around, the park offers superb, uncrowded game viewing. Enjoy a full day of game drives in search of elephant, giraffe, zebra, buffalo, and predators such as lion and leopard, plus over 500 bird species, with a picnic lunch at a scenic site. In the evening, head to the green highland town of Karatu, arriving at your lodge for dinner and overnight.

Highlights: Guided walking safari on the Crater rim, then afternoon game drive into the Serengeti

This morning, set out on a guided walking safari along the Ngorongoro Crater rim, accompanied by an armed ranger. Stretch your legs along the forested rim with breathtaking views down into the caldera, learning about the plants, birds, and smaller creatures often missed from a vehicle. Afterward, journey onward across the plains toward the legendary Serengeti National Park, enjoying a picnic lunch en route. Continue with an afternoon game drive as you enter the park, watching for lion, cheetah, and gazelle before reaching your rest house for dinner and overnight.

Highlights: Full day across the Serengeti plains, picnic lunch, prime predator country

Spend a full day exploring the Serengeti, the most famous safari destination on earth, whose name means "endless plains." Your guide will track the park's legendary predators — lion, leopard, and cheetah — alongside elephant, giraffe, and vast herds of wildebeest and zebra sweeping across the grasslands, following wildlife movements and, in season, the Great Migration. Enjoy a picnic lunch out in the park to maximize your time among the wildlife, then continue your afternoon game drive before returning to your rest house for dinner and overnight

Highlights: Another full day on the Serengeti plains, covering new areas for maximum variety

Enjoy a second full day in the Serengeti, venturing into further reaches of the plains and following the wildlife your guide has been tracking. With more time to explore, you can seek out big cat sightings, kopje-dwelling prides, river valleys, and quiet corners away from other vehicles, with excellent photographic opportunities throughout the day. Enjoy a picnic lunch out in the park, then continue your game drive through the afternoon before returning to your rest house for dinner and overnight in the heart of the wilderness.

Highlights: Full descent into the Crater, Big Five and black rhino, then drop-off in Arusha

After breakfast, depart the Serengeti and travel to the world-famous Ngorongoro Crater, descending approximately 600 meters onto the caldera floor — the largest intact volcanic caldera on earth and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Spend the day game viewing in this natural amphitheatre, one of Tanzania's most reliable Big Five destinations, home to black rhino, dense lion prides, elephant, buffalo, and vast herds of zebra and wildebeest. Enjoy a picnic lunch inside the crater before ascending and driving back to Arusha, where you'll be dropped off in Arusha or at your original pickup point, ending your safari.