Tarangire · Manyara · Ngorongoro · Serengeti · 8 days

the northern circuitComplete

All four northern parks without the rush: two nights among Tarangire’s elephants, an afternoon in Manyara’s forest, a morning on the crater floor and two full days in the central Serengeti. Then a light aircraft flies you back to Arusha instead of a long day on the road.

8days
7nights
4parks
Private4×4 & guide

01 · Overview

The route, and why it runs this way

The four parks sit on one line running west from Arusha, so the route simply follows it: the closest park first, the Serengeti last, and a flight home from the plains so you never drive the same road twice.

You start two hours from Arusha in Tarangire and give it two nights, enough for the river and the southern swamps. Lake Manyara is an afternoon on the way west, and a night in Karatu puts you thirty minutes from the crater gate for an early descent. From the crater floor you carry on over the highlands to Seronera, where the next two days are nothing but game driving. On the last morning you drive to the airstrip and fly back to Arusha in about an hour.

Starts

Arusha or Kilimanjaro airport

We meet you at Kilimanjaro International (JRO) or your Arusha hotel.

Ends

Arusha airport, day 8

A light-aircraft flight from Seronera lands you in Arusha around midday.

Style

Private, mid-range

Your own 4×4 with a pop-up roof, your own guide, lodges and tented camps with en-suite rooms.

Pace

Relaxed, one long day

Day 5 runs from the crater floor to Seronera. Every other day has short drives or none.

Arrival · Dinner

Karibu to Arusha

Your guide meets you in arrivals at Kilimanjaro International and drives you the hour west to Arusha, past coffee farms on the lower slopes of Mount Meru. If you land early there is time for lunch in town; if you land late, it is dinner and bed.

Over dinner your guide walks you through the eight days: which parks come when and how early the mornings start. It is also the time to ask what to keep in your day bag.

Meals: Dinner
Highlight: Meeting your guide
Sleep: Garden lodge, Arusha named when you book

Short drive · game drive · B L D

South to the baobabs

An easy start: two hours on tarmac across Maasai farmland to the Tarangire gate. The roof goes up and your first game drive begins as soon as you are through.

The afternoon follows the Tarangire River, where giraffe, zebra and impala come down to drink among the baobabs. You reach the lodge in time to watch the light go from the ridge above the river.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Highlight: First game drive
Sleep: Tented lodge, Tarangire named when you book

Full game drive day · B L D

A whole day with the elephants

A second night here is what most short safaris leave out. In the dry months the river is the only reliable water for miles, and elephant herds a hundred strong come down to it through the morning.

After a slow lunch you sit out the heat of the day at the lodge. The late afternoon goes south to Silale Swamp for buffalo, lion and some of the park’s 550 bird species, including the yellow-collared lovebird.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Highlight: Elephant herds at the river
Add-on: Walking safari

Game drive · short drive · B L D

Manyara's forest and the lake shore

An hour north to Mto wa Mbu and the gate of Lake Manyara, a narrow park between the Rift Valley wall and a soda lake. The groundwater forest near the gate is full of baboons and blue monkeys, and it opens onto the hippo pool and the floodplain.

Lions here sometimes rest in the trees, though not on any schedule, and when the lake is full the shoreline can turn pink with flamingos. In the late afternoon you climb the escarpment to Karatu, thirty minutes from the crater gate.

Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner
Highlight: Forest, hippo pool and lake
Sleep: Farm lodge, Karatu named when you book

Crater descent · road day · B L D

Down into the crater, then on to the plains

You are at the gate when it opens and on the crater floor, 600 metres below the rim, before most vehicles arrive. Lion, buffalo, hippo and flamingos share one bowl, and with patience you may find one of the few black rhino left in the north.

After a picnic on the floor you climb out and cross the highlands to Naabi Hill gate, then game drive north across the plains to Seronera. It is the one long day of the trip, and the sightings on the way make up for it.

Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner
Highlight: Black rhino at first light
Sleep: Tented camp, central Serengeti named when you book

Full game drive day · B L D

Leopard trees and lion kopjes

No destination today. You leave camp at first light and your guide works the Seronera River, where leopards rest in the sausage trees, and the granite kopjes where lion prides lie up.

Lunch is a picnic on a kopje, with the plains all round, so there is no need to turn back at noon. The central Serengeti is good for the big cats in every month.

Meals: Breakfast, picnic lunch, dinner
Highlight: Leopards on the Seronera River
Add-on: Balloon flight at sunrise

Full game drive day · B L D

Following the herds

The second full day goes where the news is. Guides share sightings over the radio, and if the wildebeest are within reach of Seronera, your guide will take you to them.

Cheetah favour the open grassland south of Seronera, and hyena and jackal are never far from the herds. You are back at camp for a last evening by the fire.

Meals: Breakfast, packed lunch, dinner
Highlight: Cheetah on the open plains
Sleep: Tented camp, central Serengeti named when you book

Game drive · flight · B

A last drive, then the flight home

One more early drive around Seronera, then your guide takes you to the airstrip for the light-aircraft flight to Arusha. From the window you see the whole route in reverse: the plains, the highlands and the crater.

We meet you at Arusha airport and take you to your hotel or on to Kilimanjaro International, about an hour’s drive. That leaves plenty of time for an evening flight home.

Meals: Breakfast
Ends: Arusha airport, then hotel or JRO
Next: Or fly straight to Zanzibar

When to go

Where are the herds?

Two million wildebeest and zebra walk a year-long loop through the Serengeti, following the rain. Choose a season to see where they will be, and what that means for your week.

CalvingDec – Mar

Good

calving season

December to March

The herds gather on the short-grass plains around Ndutu in the south, and around half a million calves are born in a few weeks. The predators are never far away.

On this tripThe herds are usually on the southern plains around Ndutu, and we can spend day 7 there instead of around Seronera.

Green seasonApr – May

Green season

the long rains

April and May

Afternoon rain, emerald plains and very few vehicles. The herds start drifting north-west through the centre of the park.

On this tripQuiet parks and lower lodge rates; the herds are often moving through the centre on days 6 and 7, and Manyara’s lake is full.

The great trekJun – Jul

Best for this trip

the great trek

June and July

Columns of wildebeest move through the central Serengeti and the Western corridor on their way north. The dry season begins.

On this tripThe herds are usually in the centre and west, so days 6 and 7 are often with them, and Tarangire is filling with elephants.

River crossingsAug – Oct

Good

the far north

August to October

The herds are on the Mara River in the far north, crossing back and forth. The rest of the country is dry, golden and full of game.

On this tripThe herds are in the far north, beyond this route, but Seronera’s cats stay put and Tarangire is at its best on days 2 and 3.

Short rainsNov

Green season

the return

November

The short rains bring the plains back to life, and the herds stream south again through the east of the park.

On this tripThe herds often pass back through the centre, Manyara’s lake refills for the birds, and there are fewer vehicles everywhere.

Best for this trip
Good
Green season, fewer vehicles

Herd positions follow the rains and shift a little from year to year. We tell you where they are likely to be before you book.

What it costs

Fill the vehicle, pay less each

Game drives, park and crater fees, seven nights’ accommodation, your private guide and vehicle, and the flight from Seronera to Arusha, priced per person. The more of you share the vehicle, the less each of you pays.

Mid-range fromUS$2,350per person sharing

Important information

All prices are per person and exclude international flights. Final rates depend on your travel dates, seasonal park fees and availability; we confirm them in writing with your quote.

Mid-range

Luxury

Mid-range

Lodges and tented camps, en-suite

Mid-range prices, Northern Circuit Complete

Single supplement to confirm

Group size	1 person	2 persons	3 persons	4 persons	5 persons	6 personsbest value
Per person, 2026	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm
Rooms	1 single	1 double	1 double, 1 single	2 doubles	2 doubles, 1 single	3 doubles

Luxury

Premium camps and lodges

Luxury prices, Northern Circuit Complete

Single supplement to confirm

Group size	1 person	2 persons	3 persons	4 persons	5 persons	6 personsbest value
Per person, 2026	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm	to confirm
Rooms	1 single	1 double	1 double, 1 single	2 doubles	2 doubles, 1 single	3 doubles

Your selection · click a group size2 guests · Mid-range1 double

Travelling with children

Children are welcome on this trip, and a private vehicle makes it easy to travel at their pace. Ask us for child rates and family rooms for your dates; they depend on each lodge’s own policy.

in the price

Private 4×4 with pop-up roof, your group only
Professional English-speaking guide, days 1 to 8
Seven nights as described, full board on safari
Park, conservation and crater service fees
Light-aircraft flight, Seronera to Arusha
Kilimanjaro airport transfers
Bottled water in the vehicle

not in the price

International flights and visa
Travel and medical insurance
Tips for your guide and lodge staff
Drinks at the lodges
Optional activities

Make it yours

Add to the week

Tick anything you like the sound of. It goes straight into your enquiry, and we will price it with the trip.

Day 3 · TarangireWalking safariTwo to three hours on foot with an armed ranger.Add

Day 4 · KaratuAn evening in a Maasai bomaHosted by a family our guides know.Add

Day 6 · SerengetiBalloon flight at sunriseAn hour over the plains, then breakfast in the bush.Add

After day 8Zanzibar beach daysFly from Seronera straight to the coast.Add

Send my enquiry →

Before you go

The practical part

Flights

Other costs

Why Simba Pride

Flights

Other costs

Why Simba Pride

Questions

Why fly out instead of driving back?

The drive from Seronera to Arusha takes most of a day. The flight takes about an hour, so the last morning can still be a game drive and you are in Arusha by lunchtime.

Is Lake Manyara worth including?

As an afternoon on the way west, yes. The forest, the hippo pool and the lake shore are unlike the other three parks, and it costs you almost no extra driving.

Will we see the Great Migration?

It depends on the month. The herds pass through the central Serengeti in some months and are far to the north or south in others. We tell you honestly at booking where they are likely to be.

How much time is spent driving?

Day 5, from the crater floor to Seronera, is the one long day. Days 3, 6 and 7 are only game driving, and the rest have two hours or less on the road.

Can we add Zanzibar at the end?

Yes. There are direct flights from Seronera to Zanzibar, so on day 8 you can fly to the coast instead of Arusha and be on the beach by the afternoon.

ready when you are

Four parks, one guide, your dates

Tell us when you would like to travel and who is coming. We reply with a day-by-day plan and an exact price, including the flight out from Seronera.

Admit

guests

SPS · 08

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