9 days / 8 nights
Tanzania Great Migration & Calving Season Safari: November to April
Arusha · Ngorongoro · Central Serengeti · Southern Serengeti · Ndutu
Experience the Great Migration during Tanzania's green season and calving period, when vast herds of wildebeest and zebra gather across the southern Serengeti and Ndutu ecosystem. From approximately January to March, the region becomes a spectacular nursery, with thousands of wildebeest calves born and predators closely following the herds.
November and December can offer excellent opportunities to see the herds arriving in the southern Serengeti following the short rains, while the exact timing and location vary naturally from year to year.
Safari highlights
- Follow the Great Migration through the southern Serengeti
- Experience the spectacular calving season, particularly around January-March
- Excellent predator activity around the migrating herds
- Search for lions, cheetahs and leopards
- Opportunities to see elephants, buffalo and other Big Five wildlife
- Explore the wildlife-rich Ngorongoro Crater
- Discover the Ndutu and southern Serengeti ecosystem
- Experience Tanzania's lush green-season landscapes
- Exceptional opportunities for wildlife and newborn-animal photography
- Experience one of Africa's most important natural wildlife cycles
Out on safari
Day by day
9 days, 8 nights
The route below is the standard version. Game drives follow the wildlife rather than a timetable, and your guide adjusts as the animals move.
- 1
Arrival in Arusha
Arrive in Arusha and meet your safari representative. Transfer to your hotel for check-in, relaxation and a safari briefing.
- 2
Arusha to Ngorongoro Highlands
After breakfast, travel toward the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Enjoy scenic views as you ascend into the highlands and settle into your accommodation.
- 3
Ngorongoro Crater to Southern Serengeti
Descend into the Ngorongoro Crater for an early game drive. Explore the crater floor, where wildlife is concentrated year-round, with opportunities to see lions, elephants, buffalo, zebras, wildebeest, hippos and, with luck, black rhino.
After the crater experience, continue toward the southern Serengeti and Ndutu area.
- 4
Ndutu: Great Migration & Calving Season
Spend a full day exploring the Ndutu ecosystem, one of the most important areas during the calving season.
During the peak calving period, large concentrations of wildebeest gather across the short-grass plains. Newborn calves attract intense predator activity, creating opportunities to observe lions, cheetahs and other carnivores.
- 5
Southern Serengeti: Migration & Predators
Continue exploring the southern Serengeti and Ndutu plains. Follow the location of the herds and look for predator interactions around the migration.
The green-season landscape provides excellent photographic conditions, with dramatic skies, fresh vegetation and abundant wildlife.
- 6
Southern to Central Serengeti
Enjoy a final morning game drive in the southern Serengeti before moving north toward Central Serengeti.
Continue with wildlife viewing en route and explore the changing landscapes as the plains become more extensive.
- 7
Full-Day Central Serengeti Safari
Spend a full day exploring Central Serengeti. Search around the plains, kopjes and seasonal water sources for resident wildlife and predators.
Depending on the time of year and rainfall patterns, migrating herds may still be present in parts of the central ecosystem.
- 8
Serengeti to Arusha
Enjoy an early morning game drive for a final opportunity to experience Serengeti wildlife.
After the game drive, begin your journey back to Arusha, with a picnic lunch or lunch stop depending on the day's schedule.
- 9
Departure from Arusha
After breakfast, transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport or Arusha Airport for your onward journey.
Included
What the price covers
- Private 4x4 safari vehicle with pop-up roof
- Professional English-speaking safari guide
- Private game drives throughout the safari
- 8 nights of accommodation
- Meals
- Serengeti National Park entry fees
- Ngorongoro Conservation Area and crater fees
- Ndutu/southern Serengeti conservation and applicable area fees
- Drinking water during game drives
- Arusha airport/hotel transfers as specified
- All applicable government taxes and tourism fees
Accommodation options: Your accommodation will be selected according to your preferred comfort level, travel dates, availability and safari route. Exact properties will be confirmed in your personalised quotation
Not included
What you arrange yourself
- International and domestic flights
- Tanzania visa fees
- Travel and medical insurance
- Tips for safari guide and lodge staff
- Alcoholic and premium beverages
- Laundry and personal expenses
- Hot-air balloon safari
- Optional cultural activities and excursions
- Souvenirs and personal purchases
- Any service not specifically mentioned under "Included"
- Important Great Migration & Calving Season Note
- The migration follows rainfall, fresh grazing and natural animal behaviour, so exact herd locations and calving dates cannot be guaranteed. The main calving period is generally January-March, while November-December can see the herds moving into the southern Serengeti after the short rains. Your safari team will monitor current conditions and adjust game-drive locations where possible to maximise wildlife-viewing opportunities
Best for
This safari is ideal for wildlife photographers, families, couples, nature enthusiasts and travellers fascinated by the Great Migration and predator-prey dynamics. The itinerary provides extended time in the southern Serengeti and Ndutu during one of the most dramatic periods of Tanzania's wildlife calendar.
Accommodation levels
Choose the level, and we build the trip around it
The same route can be run four ways. The level you pick decides where you sleep, how far you drive to the wildlife each morning, and most of what the safari costs.
Budget
Clean, simple camps and small lodges. Everything you need after a day in the park, and nothing you do not.
Mid-range
Comfortable lodges and permanent tented camps with en-suite bathrooms, pools and full service. Where most safaris sit.
Luxury
High-end lodges and luxury tented camps in prime locations, with the shorter drives to the wildlife that come with them.
Premium
The best addresses in each park. Exclusive-use camps, private guiding and the quietest corners of the reserves.
Why there is no price on the page
A safari price that fits everyone fits nobody. Two people in a premium camp in August and a family of four in a mid-range lodge in April are different trips at different costs, on the same itinerary. Rather than publish a figure that would be wrong for most people reading it, we price each trip properly.
Tell us your dates, your group and the level you want, and you get an accurate quote back with the accommodation named.
What the quote is built from
- Accommodation level and the type of camp or lodge
- Where you sleep: park rates differ, and so do the drives
- Travel dates, since low, high and peak seasons are priced apart
- Group size, and the ages of any children
- Safari style: private, shared, or tailor-made
- Length of the trip, the parks you enter and the activities you add
- Vehicle and transport arrangements
- Anything special: flights, transfers, honeymoon touches, dietary needs
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