Polecat Safaris
Enquire
A table laid with white linen and a candle in a hurricane glass on a brick terrace, uplit trees and lanterns in the garden behind

Fly-In Safari

7-Day Luxury Fly-In Tanzania Safari from Zanzibar

Duration
7 Days
Rate
On request

Overview

Six nights that fly from Zanzibar to Arusha and drive the whole northern circuit — Tarangire, Lake Manyara, the Ngorongoro Crater and four nights on the Serengeti — before a flight out from the Serengeti airstrip.

  • A scheduled flight from Zanzibar to Arusha to begin
  • A night inside the Tarangire wilderness at Elephant Springs
  • Lake Manyara, and a night at Kitela Lodge in the Karatu highlands
  • A game drive on the Ngorongoro Crater floor
  • Four nights across the Serengeti, at three different camps and lodges
  • A private 4×4 vehicle and a professional local guide throughout
  • A scheduled flight out from the Serengeti at the end
Duration
7 days, 6 nights
Destination
Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro & Serengeti
Stops
6
Experience
Fly-In Safari
Best time
June – October & December – March

The route, and how far apart these places are

Zanzibar · Tarangire · Lake Manyara · Karatu · Ngorongoro · Serengeti

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

Fly from Zanzibar to Arusha & Tarangire

After breakfast you transfer to Zanzibar Airport for the scheduled flight to Arusha, where your guide meets you and the drive to Tarangire begins.

A game drive among the baobabs, the seasonal riverbeds and the elephant herds, with giraffe, zebra, buffalo and the predators to look for, and then the evening at Elephant Springs, inside the park.

Meals
Lunch & dinner
Overnight
Elephant Springs by Karibu Camps, Tarangire
Elephant Springs by Karibu Camps, Tarangire (inside park)

Your Stay

Elephant Springs by Karibu Camps

Optional today

Day 2 02

Lake Manyara & the Karatu Highlands

After breakfast to Lake Manyara National Park — groundwater forest, open grassland and the lake itself — for a game drive after elephant, giraffe, buffalo, hippo and the birdlife. With luck, the park’s tree-climbing lions too.

Then up into the Karatu highlands and Kitela Lodge for a quiet evening.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Kitela Lodge, Karatu
Kitela Lodge, Karatu

Your Stay

Kitela Lodge

Day 3 03

The Ngorongoro Crater & On to the Serengeti

An early breakfast and down onto the floor of the Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive after the Big Five, the endangered black rhino among them.

Afterwards you carry on through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area as the country opens out into the Serengeti plains, and finish at Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge, Central Serengeti
Highlight
A morning on the Ngorongoro Crater floor
Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge, Central Serengeti

Your Stay

Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge

Day 4 04

The Serengeti

A morning game drive on the plains, with your guide choosing where to go by the season and where the animals have moved to.

Later you move on to Meliá Serengeti Lodge.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Meliá Serengeti Lodge, Central Serengeti
Melia Serengeti Lodge, Central Serengeti

Your Stay

Melia Serengeti Lodge

Day 5 05

A Full Day in the Serengeti

A whole day out after the big cats, the elephants and the herds, with a picnic lunch in the bush between drives.

Depending on the season, part of the Great Wildebeest Migration may be within reach. Back to Meliá Serengeti for the evening.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Meliá Serengeti Lodge, Central Serengeti (Cont.)
Day 6 06

More of the Serengeti

Another day on the Serengeti, in new country. How long you stay out and where you stop for lunch depends on where the wildlife is and the pace you want.

Later you continue to Serengeti Luxury Retreat for the last night.

Meals
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Overnight
Serengeti Luxury Retreat, Serengeti
Day 7 07

A Last Game Drive & Departure

Breakfast, and a final game drive on the plains.

Then the airstrip, and the scheduled flight back to Zanzibar or on to wherever you are going next.

Meals
Breakfast & lunch, depending on the flight time

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

  • Domestic flights
  • A private 4×4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof, for your party alone
  • A dedicated professional English-speaking safari guide throughout
  • Accommodation as listed
  • Meals during the safari as shown in the itinerary
  • Game drives
  • Park fees
  • Airport transfers
  • Water, wine, beer, juice and soft drinks in the safari vehicle
  • Government taxes

Not included

  • International flights
  • Travel insurance
  • Tanzanian visa fees
  • Items of a personal nature
  • Tips and gratuities
  • Optional activities not listed in the itinerary

FAQs

Can this safari start from Zanzibar?
Yes. It begins with a scheduled flight from Zanzibar to Arusha, where your guide meets you and the northern circuit starts.
How many nights are in the Serengeti?
Four, across three properties, which leaves time for several game drives in different parts of the park.
Will we see the Great Migration?
That depends on the season and where the herds are. Your guide plans the drives around the conditions at the time, but no sighting can be guaranteed.
Is this a private safari?
Yes. The vehicle, the guide and the itinerary are yours alone — you share the day with nobody outside your own party.
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 7-day rate looks like for your party. We reply within one working day.

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

Enquire About This Journey

It opens with this itinerary and its 7 days already filled in.

More Itineraries