4-Day Safari Arusha: Tarangire, Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater

★★★★★★★★★★ 5.00 (10 reviews)

Free cancellation

1/16

Duration4d

GroupUp to 6

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Can you see lions, elephants and rhinos in four days?

You spend four days moving through three parks with a professional guide, sleeping in lodges and campsites, and eating meals included in the price. Day one covers Tarangire's elephants and baobabs. Days two and three are Serengeti — early morning drives, predator sightings, sunset game drives. Day four descends into Ngorongoro Crater to hunt for rhinos and other wildlife before returning to Arusha by late afternoon. All park entry, accommodation, and transport between parks are included; you bring yourself and a camera.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Arusha to Tarangire National Park

Pick up from Arusha at 08:00am
Drive to Tarangire National Park (2 hours)
Full day game drive in Tarangire
Picnic lunch by Tarangire River
Evening game drive exiting park
Dinner and overnight at Ngedere Lodge

Day 2 — Serengeti National Park via Ngorongoro

Breakfast at Karatu
Drive to Serengeti via Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Stop at Ngorongoro Crater viewpoint (20 minutes)
Arrive Serengeti late afternoon
Game drive in Seronera until sunset
Dinner and overnight at Tumbili campsite

Day 3 — Serengeti Full Day Game Drive

Early breakfast at 6:30 am
Early morning game drive in Seronera
Picnic lunch in Serengeti
Afternoon game drive to sunset
Drive to Ngorongoro
Overnight at Simba public campsite

Day 4 — Ngorongoro Crater Game Drive

Early breakfast
Descend Ngorongoro Crater at 6:15 am
Game drive searching for black rhino
Lunch inside crater
Afternoon game drive
Ascend crater and drive back to Arusha

The Experience

The game drive starts before dawn on day two, which means you're already moving through Serengeti by the time most tourists are still asleep in their hotels. You've already spent a full day in Tarangire — the 2-hour drive from Arusha on day one, then a morning and afternoon hunting for the park's famous elephant herds among the giant baobab trees, lunch by the river, and an evening drive as the light turns gold. By the time you reach Serengeti after that 6-hour transit through Ngorongoro Conservation Area, you're not fresh, but you're ready, and the guide knows it.

Day two in Serengeti is the one people remember. You're up at 6:30am for an early game drive through Seronera, the park's center, where the big cats hunt — lions, cheetahs, leopards, all of them. The afternoon brings a picnic lunch and another drive into the sunset, and if you're lucky, you'll see a kill or a predator on the move. The light at that hour makes everything look like the Lion King actually happened here, which, well, it kind of did — the film was based on this place. You sleep at Simba public campsite, and the sounds outside your tent are real.

The Ngorongoro Crater comes on day four, and it's different from the other two parks because you descend into it. You start at 6:15am, dropping down into what's essentially a closed ecosystem — a crater floor where animals have nowhere to go but stay put. Black rhinos are the hardest to spot, but most other wildlife is easier to find here than anywhere else. After lunch and a final game drive, you climb back out and head to Arusha, arriving in the late afternoon. Your professional guide has been with you the whole time, and by then you've seen enough to understand why people come back.

The 4 days 3 nights structure means you're not rushing through any single park, but you're also not spending so long that the rhythm breaks. Accommodation is included at each stop — Ngedere Lodge on night one, Tumbili campsite in Serengeti, Simba public campsite on night three — and so are all park entry fees and meals. You get picked up from Arusha around 8am on day one, which gives you time to grab coffee first.

What’s included

Your four days include accommodation at Ngedere Lodge on night one, Tumbili campsite in Serengeti on night two, and Simba public campsite on night three.
All meals are provided, along with entry fees and taxes for Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, and Ngorongoro Conservation Area.
A professional safari guide accompanies you throughout, and transport between parks is included.
Pickup from Arusha starts around 8am on day one.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsNot for back problems

Operated by pazuri porini safaris

Is this one for you?This works well if you want to see Tanzania's three major parks in one trip without arranging transport, park permits, or meals separately — the fixed itinerary and included guide handle all of that. It's not suitable for travelers with spinal injuries, poor cardiovascular health, or pregnancy, as the terrain and early morning drives are demanding.