14 Days Tanzania Cultural Safari & Zanzibar
14 Days, 13 Nights
From $5,960
Not many countries in Africa can offer a variety of wildlife, nature, and cultures found in Tanzania. Explore some of the fascinating cultures in this safari mecca – from Bushmen to the famous Maasai Warriors. Get a glimpse into the culture and lifestyles of these local tribes. Escape to the exotic island of Zanzibar to relax after your exhilarating Safari. This Cultural Safari is a beautiful blend of Tanzania’s culture, wildlife, and beautiful tropical beach life.
- All meals and accommodations during the entire safari
- A very high-quality safari land cruiser with pop up roof
- A highly experienced English speaking safari guide
- Unlimited mineral water during the entire safari
- All park fees for all the national parks
- Unlimited game drives
- All activities as mentioned in the itinerary
- All transfers in the mainland and Zanzibar
- Flight from Arusha to Zanzibar
- Meals and accommodations in Zanzibar are on half board basis
- AMREF flying doctors rescue cover
- International flights
- Tips
- Drinks at the lodges
- Any other things not mentioned above
Duration: 14 Days
Destinations: Arusha, Lake Manyara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Monduli and Zanzibar.
Price: $5,960 per person
Accommodation Type: Mid-Range Lodges & Tented Camps
Day 1: Arrival – Arusha
Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro airport, you will be met by your driver and transferred to Ambureni Coffee Lodge in Arusha for dinner and overnight. Settle into your accommodation, ready to start your safari proper in the morning.
Day 2: Arusha National Park
After breakfast you drive to Arusha National Park for morning game drive with picnic lunch. This is one of the smaller national parks in Tanzania, but it has a rich variety of wildlife and landscapes. From the swampy Ngurdoto Crater and alkaline lakes to dense jungle and the towering peaks of Mount Meru and Kilimanjaro. In the afternoon you go on a 2-hours forest hike on the base of Mount Meru to the Tululusia waterfall. Apart from the amazing view of this mountain from the park, it is also the best place to view the highest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. In the late afternoon return to Ambureni coffee lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 3: Lake Manyara National Park
After breakfast you will drive to Mto wa mbu town on the floor of the great rift valley, for a guided village tour. In a small but very busy town where people belonging to all 120 tribes in Tanzania live together, you will have the opportunity to see the typical daily life of Tanzanians. Your walking guide who comes from that area will take you to rice and banana plantations where you will interact with the people working in their farms, you will visit a traditional beer bar/factory, you will visit a school and carvings factory where the famous “Makonde” use ebony black wood to carve different statues. You will then continue to Lake Manyara national park for a game drive with picnic lunch. This beautiful park with its lush vegetation and tropical forests of giant fig and mahogany trees takes its name from the Maasai word for “euphorbia tirucalli”, a bush which is used to make a thorny hedge to protect their cattle. Elephant, giraffe, buffalo, zebra, and a variety of antelope inhabit the park as well as a variety of monkeys and a large population of hippos. If you are lucky you may see the Manyara lions, well known for their tree climbing habits, lazily resting on the branches of an “Acacia tortilis” tree. The birdlife is also abundant, with flamingoes, pelicans, hornbills, and plenty of forest species. In the late afternoon continue your drive to Burudika Manyara Lodge for dinner. After dinner, you return to lake Manyara national park for a night game drive. Discover nocturnal animals like porcupines, pangolin, aardvark and others, then return to your lodge for overnight.
Day 4: Serengeti National Park
Today you go on a morning and afternoon game drive in the famous Serengeti National Park. If you want to spot the Big Five – lion, elephant, leopard, rhino and buffalo- all in one park, the Serengeti is one of the best places to do so. The abundance of wildlife in this park is unmatched anywhere else in Africa. Depending on which time of the year you visit this park, you can also witness the Great Migration. It’s an impressive experience to see all those hoofed mammals, followed by iconic predators, migrate in a clockwise circle every year. Late in the afternoon, you return to Serengeti Osinon camp for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Serengeti
Another day of morning and afternoon game viewing in the Serengeti. With so many wildebeest, gazelles and zebras present it is no wonder the Serengeti is also home to 4,000 lions and 1,000 leopards. Apart from the Big Five the Serengeti boasts the cheetah, jackal, hyena, serval, aardvark, pangolin, porcupine, crocodiles, giraffe, python, black mamba, spitting cobra, ostrich, martial eagle, lovebirds, and vultures, just to name a few. Enjoy this supreme game viewing and return to Serengeti Osinon camp in the evening. After taking a hot shower you will meet your guide at the fireplace for a cold Serengeti beer or a glass of wine as he gives you a short history of Tanzania. Dinner and overnight will be at Osinon camp.
Day 6: Ngorongoro Crater
After early breakfast you will collect picnic lunch and drive to the Olduvai gorge. This is the place where Dr. Leakey and his wife Mary Leakey found a fossil of a hominid. You will then visit the shifting sand (a dune of magnetic volcanic sand that changes its location every year). Later you will continue to Ngorongoro crater rim for a hiking on the rim of the Ngorongoro crater with an armed ranger/guide. This hiking is a great opportunity for you to enjoy seeing the wildlife in the distance while out of the car, see different plants with their medicinal uses and animal tracks. It feels nice also stretching yourselves after several days of seating in the vehicle. In the late afternoon you will continue to Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge for dinner and overnight. This lodge is located at the highest point on the Ngorongoro Crater’s rim and offers great views across the enormous crater.
Day 7: Ngorongoro Crater
Today you set off towards the Ngorongoro Crater for your last game drive. It shelters close to 30.000 animals including the Big Five. The crater teems with zebras, buffaloes, lions, wildebeest, warthogs, baboons, elephants, flamingos, ostriches, hippos, cheetahs, and a small population of the rare black rhino. The beautiful colors and dancing clouds make the crater almost surreal. Because of its natural beauty the Ngorongoro Crater is chosen as one of Africa’s Seven Natural Wonders. In the late afternoon you drive to Lake Eyasi safari lodge for dinner and overnight.
Day 8: Monduli
This day will be full of culture, with interesting encounters with a local tribe. After breakfast, you drive to the Hadzabe Bushmen. This tribe hunts on wild animals with bow and arrows, eating roots, honey and wild fruits. You can join the Bushman on a hunting and gathering trip. Walk-behind them and see how they shoot their animals by using bows and arrows, then see how they skin them, roast them and eat. After this fascinating experience and lunch at the lodge, you drive to Monduli Juu. A Maasai guide welcomes you and leads you around a Maasai village where he introduces you to family members. You can communicate with them, see how they cook and dance, and get a real insight into the way of life of the Maasai. After dinner, the chief of the village will explain their culture and traditions and you can also share your stories with him. You can spend here the night (we will provide some bedding for you if you sleep in the Maasai hut). It’s also possible to sleep at the nearby A1 hotel for overnight.
Day 9: Monduli – Arusha
Early wake up today to milk the cows with the Maasai ladies. After breakfast, you go fetch water with the ladies and learn how they carry the water buckets on their heads. Later you visit a traditional Maasai doctor and experience how he uses plants to cure different diseases, then drives to Tulia hotel for lunch and a short siesta. In the afternoon you will visit mama Chris home and join her to prepare your dinner. Today you will participate in preparing your dinner (great opportunity to learn about African cuisine). After your dinner with this Tanzanian modern family, you will be transferred to Tulia hotel for diner and overnight. After lunch, you drive to a local market in Arusha to buy some food that you can eat today. The owners of a Home Stay welcome you later this day. There is time for a shower and a little rest. During dinner time you can interact with this family and prepare dinner together. This is a great opportunity to learn about cooking African dishes. Dinner and overnight will be at a Home Stay. We choose a safe and clean homestay for you.
Day 10: Zanzibar
This is the last morning you spend with the family. After lunch you head off to Arusha Airport for your flight to Zanzibar. Upon arrival at Zanzibar Airport, you will be met by your driver and transferred to Next Paradise Boutique Resort for dinner and overnight in a beachfront bungalow.
Day 11: Stone Town
Explore the lively Stone Town today – the cultural and historical heart of Zanzibar. It is a fascinating labyrinth of narrow streets and alleyways that are a joy to explore. Discover the architectural gems, tasteful restaurants, churches, markets and gardens. There are plenty of interesting places to visit on a cultural tour, like the House of Wonders, Darajani market place, Sultan’s Palace, and the Slave Market. The mix of Arab, Persian, Indian and European influences makes Stone Town absolutely unique. In the afternoon you go on a boat trip to visit Prison Island. This island was once used as a place where slaves were detained and later it functioned as a camp where people with deadly diseases were sent. Today the island is a nature reserve for giant tortoises and a place to see the ruins that once functioned as the prison. Dinner and overnight will be at Next Paradise resort.
Day 12 and 13: Zanzibar beach
These 2 days will be at leisure to relax or explore as you like. All meals and overnight will be at Next Paradise Boutique Resort. This resort is protected by a coral reef and set along the white sand, palm-fringed beach offering views of the Indian Ocean.
Day 14. Departure
After breakfast, you will be transferred to Zanzibar airport for your departure (this will depend on your departure time).
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