5-Day Northern Circuit

The 5-day northern circuit in brief

This 5-day Tanzania safari covers the three parks most travellers come for: Tarangire, the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. It runs four nights, with one in Tarangire, one on the crater rim and two inside the Serengeti, starting and ending in Arusha. It is the shortest itinerary we sell that reaches the Serengeti without turning the trip into a series of transfers.

• Route: Arusha, Tarangire, Mto wa Mbu, Ngorongoro rim, crater floor, Naabi Hill gate, Serengeti, Arusha
• Nights: 1 Tarangire, 1 Ngorongoro rim, 2 Serengeti
• Longest road day: day three, about 3 to 4 hours of driving after the crater morning
• Best months: January and February for calving, June to October for the dry season
• Style: private Land Cruiser, one guide throughout, up to seven guests

Why three ecosystems in five days works

The northern circuit is the most visited safari route in Tanzania because three very different ecosystems sit within a day's drive of each other. Tarangire is dry-country savanna, with baobabs, a permanent river and some of the largest elephant herds in northern Tanzania from June to October. The Ngorongoro Crater is a collapsed volcano whose floor holds a resident population of lion, hyena, buffalo and a small number of black rhino. The Serengeti is open grassland on a scale nothing else in the country matches, and the stage for the wildebeest migration.

Five days is the shortest version that still lets each of those do its work. Many four-day trips squeeze the crater into a short visit and drive straight on to the central Serengeti in the same afternoon, arriving after dark. We add the fifth day so the crater gets a full morning and the Serengeti gets two nights.

Who the 5-day safari suits

• First-timers with a week's leave who want the Serengeti and the crater and still need time for flights.
• Travellers adding a safari to Zanzibar or Kilimanjaro, who want the headline parks without a second full week.
• Calving-season visitors in January and February, because the southern plains are close to the crater and this route reaches them easily.

It is less suited to:

• River-crossing trips. In July to October the crossings happen in the far north, which needs extra time. Take the 7-Day Classic.
• Travellers who want Lake Manyara too. This route passes it without stopping. The 3-day safari includes it but skips the Serengeti, and the 7-day includes both.

5-day northern circuit vs the 3-day and 7-day safaris

The three northern products share most of their logic, and the difference is the Serengeti:

• 3-Day Tarangire, Manyara and Ngorongoro: no Serengeti. Good if you have three days, with Manyara added.
• 5-Day Northern Circuit (this trip): two Serengeti nights and one full day. The best balance of time and coverage.
• 7-Day Classic: three Serengeti nights, Lake Manyara, and a flight out. Built to follow the migration.

Our guide to how many days you need for a Tanzania safari walks through the choice.

What you're likely to see, by season

• January to March: the herds calve on the southern short-grass plains around Ndutu, usually peaking in February. Your Serengeti nights are on those plains, with high predator activity. Tarangire is greener and quieter.
• April and May: the long rains. Lush, few vehicles, but some roads are slippery. Good for birding.
• June to October: the dry season. Tarangire is at its best as wildlife crowds the river. Your Serengeti nights are in the Seronera valley, where lion, leopard and cheetah are resident. The herds are in the west and far north.
• November and December: the short rains bring the herds back south, and green grass returns.

The crater is good in every month, because its animals stay put. Our wildebeest migration guide maps where the herds are month by month.

Driving times on the 5-day route

Northern-circuit roads are a mix of smooth tarmac and rough gravel, and the times below are for driving only, without game viewing or stops. Your guide plans the day so the long legs fall when the animals are resting.

• Arusha to Tarangire: about 120 km (75 miles), 2 to 2.5 hours, paved.
• Tarangire to the Ngorongoro rim: 3 to 4 hours via Mto wa Mbu and Karatu, paved most of the way, then a forest road up to the rim.
• Crater rim to Naabi Hill gate: about 85 km (53 miles), 2 to 3 hours on a dusty gravel road across the plains.
• Naabi Hill to Seronera: about 60 km (37 miles), around an hour of corrugated road, usually turned into a game drive.
• Serengeti to Arusha: about an hour by scheduled flight, or most of a day by road.

The day-three drive across the plains is the one people remember: the crater rim falls away behind you, the grass opens out to the horizon, and in calving season the first wildebeest appear well before the park gate.

Private safari or shared group tour?

This is a private safari. The Land Cruiser and guide are yours for all five days, and you share the vehicle only with your own party. That matters more than it sounds. On a shared tour the group agrees on when to leave a sighting, when to stop for lunch and whether to wait for a leopard to come down from a tree; on a private trip you decide. It also means a family with young children, or a photographer who wants to wait an hour at a den, can travel at their own pace. Our guide to choosing a Tanzania safari operator explains what else to compare between quotes.

Getting to Arusha from the US

There are no non-stop flights from the US to northern Tanzania. Most American travellers fly into Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) with one connection, typically through Amsterdam, Doha, Istanbul or Addis Ababa, and arrive in the evening. We meet every arrival and drive you about an hour to Arusha for the night, so the safari starts fresh the next morning. If you land early in the day, we can start the same day.

A day on safari

Days follow the light. You are usually out before sunrise with coffee in hand, because cats are most active in the first ninety minutes of daylight. Breakfast is in the park or back at camp. The middle of the day is for lunch and rest while the animals do the same, and the afternoon drive runs until the light starts to go. Vehicles must be off the park roads by nightfall, and night drives are not allowed inside the national parks.

The Serengeti is warm by day, typically 25 to 30°C (77 to 86°F). The crater rim at about 2,300 m (7,500 ft) is a different climate, often around 10°C (50°F) at dawn in June to August, so layers matter. Our safari packing list covers it.

Where you stay

Night one is Tarangire Safari Lodge, in a tented suite on a bluff over the river. Night two is Rhino Lodge on the crater rim: family-run, simple and warm, and a few minutes from the descent road. In the Serengeti we use a tented camp positioned for the season: on the southern plains from December to March, in the Seronera valley the rest of the year. Tents are large, with proper beds, an en-suite bucket shower and three-course dinners cooked at camp. Lying awake to the sound of lions calling in the dark is common there.

What's included

The price covers all park, crater and camping fees and government taxes; the private Land Cruiser with pop-up roof, fuel and your guide; all meals on safari, drinking water, tea and coffee; accommodation as listed; and airport transfers in Arusha or Kilimanjaro. International flights, the visa, travel insurance, alcohol and tips are extra. Park fees make up much of any Tanzania safari price; our safari cost guide explains them without guesswork.

Park rules and practical safety

• Stay in the vehicle except at designated sites, and keep voices low at sightings.
• No off-road driving in the Serengeti or the crater except where rangers permit it.
• Crater time is limited by the conservation authority, which is why we start early.
• Plastic carrier bags are banned in Tanzania. Use zip bags or packing cubes.
• Malaria: the lowland parks are in a malaria area; ask your doctor about prevention. See our vaccinations and health guide.
• Visa: US citizens should read our Tanzania visa guide for US citizens before booking flights.

For park background, see our destination pages for Tarangire, the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. When you are ready, send us your dates and we will tell you which part of the Serengeti your nights will be in.