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A fire burning in a pit before canvas camp tents at dusk, director chairs and lanterns set out on the ground around it

Great Migration

5-Day Ndutu Calving Season Fly-In Safari

Duration
5 Days
From
US$ 3,797 per person

Overview

Four nights built around the calving season: a bush flight from Arusha straight onto the Ndutu plains, two nights among the herds as the wildebeest give birth, then the crater floor on the way home.

  • A bush flight from Arusha straight into the calving grounds
  • Two nights close to the Ndutu plains
  • Newborn wildebeest calves and the herds around them
  • Lion, cheetah and hyena working the short-grass plains
  • A private 4×4 and a professional guide throughout
  • More time on safari and less on long road transfers
  • A last morning on the Ngorongoro Crater floor
Duration
5 days, 4 nights
Destination
Ndutu, Southern Serengeti & Ngorongoro
Stops
3
Experience
Great Migration
Best time
December – March

The route, and how far apart these places are

Arusha · Ndutu · Ngorongoro

Route Map

Day by day

Every day here is private — your own guide and your own vehicle — so the order holds but the hours are yours to move.

Day 1 01

Arrival in Arusha

You are met at Kilimanjaro International Airport and driven to Arusha Coffee Lodge, set among the rows of a working coffee plantation.

A quiet evening and a proper night’s sleep before the safari starts.

Meals
Dinner
Overnight
Arusha Coffee Lodge, Arusha
Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge, Arusha

Your Stay

Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge

Day 2 02

Fly to Ndutu

After breakfast you transfer to Arusha Airport for the bush flight south-west to the Ndutu region.

Your guide meets you at the airstrip and the first game drive begins there. In the calving season the short-grass plains fill with wildebeest giving birth, and the lion, cheetah and hyena are never far behind them.

You finish at Lake Masek Tented Lodge, your base for two nights.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Lake Masek Tented Lodge, Ndutu
Highlight
Straight from the airstrip onto the calving plains
Lake Masek Tented Lodge, Ndutu

Your Stay

Lake Masek Tented Lodge

Day 3 03

A Full Day on the Calving Grounds

A whole day out on Ndutu and the southern Serengeti plains, following the herds and looking for the newborn calves and the cats drawn in by them.

Because the vehicle is yours, the day goes where the animals go rather than to a timetable — which on open plains in good light is also what makes the photographs.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Lake Masek Tented Lodge, Ndutu (Cont.)

Optional today

Day 4 04

Ndutu to the Ngorongoro Highlands

A last morning game drive around Ndutu, then the road east into the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

The open plains give way to the green of the highlands, with game to see on the way. You arrive at Lion’s Paw Camp, close to the crater, with the afternoon to yourselves.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Lion’s Paw Camp, Ngorongoro Crater rim
Lion's Paw Camp, Ngorongoro crater rim

Your Stay

Lion's Paw Camp

Optional today

Day 5 05

The Ngorongoro Crater & Departure

An early breakfast and then down onto the crater floor, which holds one of the great concentrations of wildlife anywhere — lion, elephant, buffalo, hippo and, with luck, the black rhino.

A picnic lunch on the floor, then the climb out and the road back to Arusha, and on to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your onward flight.

Meals
Breakfast & lunch
Highlight
A final morning on the crater floor

What the rate covers

Everything below is settled before you travel. What isn’t covered is listed just as plainly, so nothing on this trip arrives as a surprise.

Included

  • A pop-up roof 4×4 safari vehicle, with unlimited mileage on game drives
  • A professional safari guide throughout
  • All accommodation during the safari
  • All meals, catered for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal diets
  • The domestic bush flight from Arusha to Ndutu
  • All activities, unless marked as optional
  • Park fees
  • Airport transfers, and all transport by road
  • Binoculars to use on safari
  • Unlimited bottled water, and beer and wine in the vehicle
  • Taxes and VAT

Not included

  • International flights
  • Tanzania entry visa — US$ 50, or US$ 100 for US citizens
  • Travel insurance, souvenirs and other personal items
  • Tips — our guideline is US$ 20 per person per day
  • Optional activities, such as the balloon flight or a walking safari

FAQs

When is the calving season?
Broadly December to March. January and February are usually the strongest months for newborn calves and for predator activity, but the timing moves with the rain.
Why fly in to Ndutu?
It saves a long day on the road and puts you straight into the migration country, so the time goes on the animals instead of the transfer.
What will we see?
Very large herds of wildebeest, the calves among them, zebra and gazelle — and the lion, cheetah and hyena that follow the herds south.
Does it suit a couple or a honeymoon?
Yes. Private drives, luxury lodges and the bush flight make it a good fit for two, and it is short enough to pair with a few nights on the coast.
Can the itinerary be changed?
Yes. Because it is private, the nights, the lodges, the activities and the pace can all move. Tell us what you have in mind and we will redraft it.

Travel this one

Four questions — what you'd like to see, who is coming and roughly when — and the team in Arusha comes back with dates, the camps that are open and what the 5-day rate looks like for your party. We reply within one working day.

Or reach them directly — +255 654 592 688 or WhatsApp.

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