Day Trip Ngorongoro Crater
A day in the Ngorongoro Crater with no overnight stay: down into the crater to the Big Five, privately guided, from Arusha City or with a flight from and to Zanzibar.
1 dayCalculate the price
Arusha City
Anyone going on safari in Tanzania can hardly avoid Arusha: our routes start and finish here, and this is where the vehicles set off for Tarangire and the Serengeti.
Arusha City at a glance
Anyone going on safari in Tanzania can hardly avoid Arusha: our routes start and finish here, and this is where the vehicles set off for Tarangire and the Serengeti. The city itself has around 600,000 inhabitants and lies at the foot of Mount Meru, roughly halfway between Kilimanjaro and the Serengeti.
Thanks to the altitude, the climate stays mild, and the evenings can turn cool. And because markets, coffee plantations and the small national park next door easily fill a day, nobody has to move on straight away.
Safari: prefer to plan it yourself?
Put your safari together in the trip planner.
Exploring the city
Finding your way around is easy: the Clock Tower stands in the middle, and everything important can be reached from there on foot or by taxi. At the Central Market, bananas, spices and fabrics are piled high; if you are looking for souvenirs, you are more likely to find them at the Maasai Market. Haggling is part of the deal at both.
For rainy days or your last afternoon: the Cultural Heritage Centre shows art and crafts from all over the country, and at the Shanga Workshop people with disabilities make jewellery and glass from recycled materials. Visitors are welcome to watch.
Arusha National Park and Mount Meru
Just over half an hour from the city, Arusha National Park begins: montane forest, the Momella Lakes and, right in the middle, Mount Meru. On a walking safari you walk through the park with a ranger, canoes glide past flamingos on the lakes, and black-and-white colobus monkeys clamber about in the trees.
Mount Meru stands at around 4,560 metres; in Tanzania, only Kilimanjaro is higher. The climb takes three to four days, leads through the national park and is considered good preparation for Kilimanjaro; a ranger accompanies the trek.
Day trips in the surrounding area
There is more to do around Arusha than most itineraries allow for. The Materuni Waterfalls combine a short hike with a coffee tour in Chagga country. At the Chemka hot springs you bathe in clear, warm water among palm trees, and Lake Duluti, a crater lake, is only a short drive away: good for canoeing and birdwatching.
Then there are the coffee plantations in the surrounding countryside and a visit to a Maasai village. You can add any of these with us as an activity; just tell us in the form what appeals to you.
Getting there
- Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO)
- around 55 kilometres, a little over an hour's drive; this is where international flights land
- Arusha Airport (ARK)
- around 15 minutes from the centre, for domestic flights
- In town
- dala-dala (minibus), plus bajaj (tuk-tuk) and taxis
Taxis and pre-booked transfers link both airports with the city.
Fees
To enter Tanzania you need a visa (50 USD, online or on arrival; as of March 2024) and a passport valid for at least six more months. Since 1 October 2026 you have also needed mandatory inbound travel insurance. Arusha lies in a malaria area, so discuss prophylaxis with your doctor. Only Arusha National Park charges an entrance fee; the city itself does not.
Tours that start here or pass through
Day trip · 2 tours
Day Trip Tarangire
A day of game drives in Tarangire with no overnight stay: elephants and baobabs, privately guided from Arusha City, with an optional Zanzibar flight at the start or end.
1 dayCalculate the price
2 days · 3 tours
2-Day Fly-in Serengeti, return flight from Seronera
By plane into the central Serengeti and back: two travel days full of game drives without a long drive to get there, from Arusha City or Zanzibar.
2 daysCalculate the price
2-Day Tarangire & Ngorongoro Crater
Compact two-day safari from Arusha City: elephants on the Tarangire River, then down to the Big Five in the Ngorongoro Crater. One overnight stay, privately guided.
2 daysCalculate the price
2-Day Tarangire & Lake Manyara
Two privately guided days: first to the elephants of Tarangire, then into the groundwater forest at Lake Manyara, with one overnight stay, from Arusha City.
2 daysCalculate the price
3 days · 4 tours
3-Day Arusha National Park, Tarangire & Lake Manyara
Three days through Arusha National Park, Tarangire and Lake Manyara: three landscapes in three days, with two nights on the road, from Arusha City.
3 daysCalculate the price
3-Day Fly-in Serengeti, return flight from Seronera
Three days in the central Serengeti with arrival and departure by plane, two nights in the park and game drives around Seronera. From Arusha City or Zanzibar.
3 daysCalculate the price
3-Day Fly-in Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater
Fly into the Serengeti, return via the Ngorongoro Crater: three safari days with two overnight stays, from Arusha City or Zanzibar.
3 daysCalculate the price
3-Day Tarangire, Lake Manyara & Ngorongoro Crater
Three days on the northern route from Arusha City: Tarangire, Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater, with two overnight stays and a Big Five finale.
3 daysCalculate the price
4 days · 3 tours
4-Day Arusha National Park, Tarangire, Lake Manyara & Ngorongoro Crater
Four days, four parks: from Arusha National Park via Tarangire and Lake Manyara down into the Ngorongoro Crater, with three nights from Arusha City.
4 daysCalculate the price
4-Day Fly-in Serengeti, return flight from Seronera
Four travel days and three nights in the heart of Serengeti National Park, flying in and out by light aircraft, with game drives from Seronera to the kopjes.
4 daysCalculate the price
4-Day Tarangire, Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater
Four days from Arusha City: elephants in Tarangire, two days in the central Serengeti and finally the Ngorongoro Crater. Three nights, privately guided.
4 daysCalculate the price
5 days · 2 tours
5-Day Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater
The great northern circuit in five days: from Tarangire via Lake Manyara into the Serengeti and finally down into the crater. Four nights, privately guided.
5 daysCalculate the price
5-Day Tarangire, Serengeti (3 days) & Ngorongoro Crater
Five travel days, three of them in the Serengeti: a start in Tarangire, a finish in the Ngorongoro Crater, four nights from Arusha City.
5 daysCalculate the price
6 days · 2 tours
6-Day Arusha National Park, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater
Six days right across the north, from the Momella Lakes to the crater floor, with two full days in the Serengeti and five nights.
6 daysCalculate the price
6-Day Arusha National Park, Tarangire, Serengeti (3 days) & Ngorongoro Crater
Six days with the focus on the Serengeti: three days in a row in the park, framed by Arusha National Park, Tarangire and the Ngorongoro Crater.
6 daysCalculate the price
7 days · 2 tours
7-Day Arusha National Park, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti (3 days) & Ngorongoro Crater
Seven days, the whole of the north: first Arusha National Park, Tarangire and Manyara, then three Serengeti days, and finally the crater.
7 daysCalculate the price
7-Day Fly-in Serengeti (3 days), Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara, Tarangire & Arusha National Park
Seven days, Serengeti first: fly in, stay three days, then back via the crater, Manyara and Tarangire all the way to Arusha National Park.
7 daysCalculate the price
Send us a message
We put your route together — free of obligation and in person. We reply the same day, usually faster on WhatsApp.
Prefer to talk? Dominic Dreiner is happy to help.
Alle Preise sind unverbindliche Richtpreise pro Person bei zwei gemeinsam reisenden Personen, einschließlich der in der Leistungsübersicht genannten Leistungen und ohne Flüge nach Tansania. Bei größeren Gruppen sinkt der Preis pro Person. Der endgültige Preis richtet sich nach Reisezeitraum, Gruppengröße, gewählten Unterkünften und Verfügbarkeit; er wird Ihnen im individuellen Angebot verbindlich genannt. Angebote sind bis zur abschließenden Verfügbarkeitsprüfung freibleibend. Es gelten unsere AGB.