12-Day Rwanda Gorilla Trekking and Tanzania Grand Safari - Tarangire, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater

On arrival at Kigali International Airport, your guide meets you for the road transfer to Musanze in the Northern Province, on the doorstep of Volcanoes National Park. The drive takes approximately two hours through Rwanda's green hills. Check in at your lodge for dinner and an early night ahead of tomorrow's gorilla trek.

Distance: Approximately 2 hours from Kigali to Musanze

Activity: Transfer to Musanze, Volcanoes National Park

Accommodation: Lodge near Volcanoes National Park, Musanze

Meals: Half Board

After breakfast, transfer to the Rwanda Development Board offices at Kinigi for the 7:00 AM briefing, where ranger guides cover the gorilla trekking code of conduct before trekking begins through the forest and volcanic slopes in search of your assigned gorilla family. Treks can last from one to four hours depending on where the group has ranged overnight, with one hour of observation once located. After the trek, the drive returns to Kigali.

Distance: Trekking in Volcanoes National Park, then approximately 2 hours back to Kigali

Activity: Mountain gorilla trek, return to Kigali

Accommodation: Hotel in Kigali

Meals: Half Board

After breakfast, transfer to Kigali International Airport for a scheduled flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport. On arrival, your Tanzania driver-guide meets you for the road transfer to Tarangire National Park, with an afternoon game drive on arrival.

Distance: Flight from Kigali to Kilimanjaro, then approximately 2 hours by road to Tarangire

Activity: International flight, road transfer, afternoon game drive in Tarangire

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in Tarangire National Park

Meals: Lunch and Dinner

A full day is spent inside Tarangire, working the river and swamp areas where elephant herds, buffalo, and resident predators gather, alongside the baobab-lined ridgelines that define the park's landscape.

Distance: Game drives within Tarangire National Park

Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in Tarangire National Park

Meals: Full Board

Departing Tarangire, the route climbs through the Ngorongoro highlands before descending onto the open plains of the central Serengeti, with photo stops along the rim for the crater and highland scenery. The afternoon is spent on a game drive into the Seronera area on arrival.

Distance: Approximately 6 hours from Tarangire to central Serengeti via the Ngorongoro highlands

Activity: Travel day with scenic stops, afternoon game drive on arrival

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in central Serengeti

Meals: Full Board

A full day is dedicated to the Seronera valley and surrounding plains, the most predator-dense section of the Serengeti year-round, with resident lion, leopard and cheetah all realistic sightings.

Distance: Full-day game drive within the central Serengeti

Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in central Serengeti (second night)

Meals: Full Board

A further day of game drives covers different parts of the park, maximising the chance of strong wildlife encounters and, depending on season, the possibility of the Great Migration passing through the area.

Distance: Full-day game drive within the central Serengeti

Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in central Serengeti (third night)

Meals: Full Board

A third day in the Serengeti allows a wider exploration of the park, with your guide tracking recent predator activity and any reported migration movement to make the most of the additional time.

Distance: Full-day game drive within the central Serengeti

Activity: Morning and afternoon game drives

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp in central Serengeti (fourth night)

Meals: Full Board

A final morning game drive in the Serengeti is followed by the drive up to the Ngorongoro Crater rim, arriving in time for the afternoon and evening light over the caldera ahead of an early start the following morning.

Distance: Approximately 3 hours from central Serengeti to the Ngorongoro Crater rim

Activity: Morning game drive, afternoon transfer to the crater rim

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp on the Ngorongoro Crater rim

Meals: Full Board

An early descent into the Ngorongoro Crater floor follows, with the enclosed caldera holding one of the densest concentrations of wildlife in Africa, including the rare black rhino, resident lion prides, and large flamingo flocks on the soda lake.

Distance: Full crater floor game drive

Activity: Full descent into the Ngorongoro Crater

Accommodation: Lodge or tented camp on the Ngorongoro Crater rim (second night)

Meals: Full Board

A relaxed morning before the drive back down to Arusha, with time at leisure in the afternoon ahead of departure the following day.

Distance: Approximately 3 hours from Ngorongoro to Arusha

Activity: Transfer to Arusha, afternoon at leisure

Accommodation: Hotel in Arusha

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

After breakfast, transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your onward or international flight, bringing the safari to a close.

Distance: Airport transfer in Arusha

Activity: Departure transfer

Accommodation: N/A - end of safari

Meals: Breakfast

Extend your trip

Short on time? See our 6-Day Rwanda Gorilla and Serengeti Fly-In Safari or 9-Day Rwanda Gorilla and Tanzania Serengeti and Ngorongoro Safari. Want a Zanzibar beach extension after the safari? See our 6-Day Zanzibar package.