8 days Serengeti Balloon Safaris

8 days Serengeti Balloon Safaris, Every day before dawn, a select few partake in the quintessential Tanzania safari experience on the grasslands of Serengeti National Park. As the sun ascends over the Maasai Kopjes, the Serengeti hot air balloon rises alongside its captivated passengers.

Your Tanzania balloon safari commences with your collection from your resort or designated camp for a rendezvous at Seronera resort or any hotel within the central Serengeti National Park at 5 a.m.

Shortly after 5 a.m., you embark on the Land Rovers for a 40-minute ride to the launch location, arriving in time to observe the dawn and the inflation of the balloon. Following a conclusive pre-flight safety briefing, you embark for takeoff. The precise trajectory and duration of the trip are contingent upon the wind and meteorological conditions of the day; nonetheless, the average flying time is approximately one hour. A portion of the flight will occur at an altitude of no less than 1,000 feet, providing breathtaking panoramic vistas of the plains; another segment will be at treetop level, offering distinctive perspectives of African animals.

Day 1: Arrival

Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport and meet our agent. Following greetings, you will be transported to the Impala Hotel in Moshi for a hot shower and overnight accommodation.

Day 2: Arusha Town – Lake Manyara National Park

Following breakfast, our tour guide/driver will provide a brief overview of the safari. You will go to Lake Manyara National Park for a game drive accompanied by our picnic lunch. Upon your arrival in Manyara, you will be greeted by the vista of the Great Rift Valley Escarpment and groups of playful baboons at the entrance. We will traverse the agricultural and fresh produce market village of Mto Wa Mbu, located adjacent to the entrance of Lake Manyara National Park.

The town is a paradise for souvenir hunters, hosting thousands of souvenir vendors eager to engage at the first opportunity. Lake Manyara National Park is one of Tanzania’s most spectacular wildlife regions, with a vast yet shallow soda lake that occupies two-thirds of the park, situated at the base of the western escarpment of the Great Rift Valley. The park’s diverse ecology draws several animal species, including one of Africa’s most populous herds of African elephants, renowned tree-climbing lions, and substantial flocks of flamingos, lured by the lake’s algae.

We will partake in a picnic lunch within the park and engage in two exhilarating game drives, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, to observe the wildlife and avifauna that inhabit Manyara, along with a view of the renowned hot spring known as “Maji Moto.” In the late afternoon, you will be transported to Lake Manyara Hotel or Lake Manyara Serena Lodge for a hot shower, dinner, and overnight accommodation.

3 Day: Serengeti National Park

After breakfast, travel for Serengeti National Park, traversing Olduvai Gorge, the location of the Leakey family’s discovery of fossils of human and animal predecessors dating back nearly two million years. The Olduvai Gorge is a significant historical monument, rich in the early history of humanity and offering valuable knowledge that merits a visit. Your picnic lunch will be consumed en route to the Serengeti. Upon arrival, you will check in at the lodge for a hot shower, dinner, and overnight accommodation at Serengeti Sopa, Seronera Wildlife Lodge, or Serengeti Serena.

4 – 5 Days: Serengeti National Park – Full Day

Following breakfast in the morning, you will convene with your tour guide to commence a full-day wildlife drive in Serengeti National Park. The Serengeti is the largest national park in Tanzania, encompassing over 14,000 square kilometers. The park boasts a plethora of distinctive features and attractions, including the annual great wildebeest migration, where wildebeest, zebras, and gazelles traverse from Serengeti National Park to Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya and return later in the year. It is renowned for its expansive plains and savannah vegetation, as well as for offering balloon safaris and being the most wildlife and birdlife-rich park in Africa.

The park accommodates several wildlife species, including lions, African leopards, African elephants, cheetahs, African buffalo, Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelles, topis, elands, waterbucks, hyenas, baboons, impalas, African wild dogs, and giraffes. The park is home to around 500 avian species, including the ostrich, secretary bird, Kori bustard, crowned crane, marabou stork, martial eagle, lovebirds, and various vulture species.
Your tour guide will return you to your resort in the late afternoon for a hot shower, dinner, and overnight accommodations at either Serengeti Sopa, Seronera Wildlife resort, or Serengeti Serena.

6 Day : Ngorongoro Crater

Following breakfast in the morning, you will rendezvous with your driver-guide and be transported to the Ngorongoro Crater gate, equipped with your picnic lunch for a comprehensive day tour of the crater, renowned for its substantial concentration of wildlife and avian species. With a stroke of luck, one may witness a predator pursuing its prey or experience any extraordinary adventure that the Ngorongoro Crater offers. The Ngorongoro Crater is renowned for its diverse attractions, including alkaline lakes, forests, varied vegetation, hot springs, a multitude of fauna and avian species, as well as its distinctive scenery.

The prevalent fauna in the crater comprises lions, leopards, zebras, elephants, African buffaloes, warthogs, hyenas, wild dogs, the rare black rhinoceros, wildebeests, and a diverse array of migratory and resident avifauna, with over 350 distinct species documented.
In the late afternoon, you will rise to the crater floor and be transferred to Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge or Ngorongoro Serena for a hot shower, dinner, and overnight accommodation.

7 Day : Lake Manyara Nature walk

Depart post-breakfast for a nature walk in Mto Wa Mbu Village, followed by lunch amidst a banana plantation. Subsequently, return to the lodge for a hot shower, supper, and overnight accommodation at either Lake Manyara Hotel or Lake Manyara Serena Lodge.

8 Days: Arusha / Departure

Following breakfast, visit a Masai village, then return to Arusha. We will arrive in Arusha in the afternoon for shopping and other procedures, or for relaxation in a day room. In the evening, you will be transported to Kilimanjaro International Airport in preparation for your return flight home.