Vast herds of wildebeest gathering at a river during the Great Migration

Tanzania safari

6-Day Ultra-Luxury Fly-In Migration Safari

Duration6 days
Per person$5,643 – $11,250
Places visited
  1. Arusha
  2. Central Serengeti
  3. Northern Serengeti
  4. Arusha or Zanzibar

Overview

Long road transfers play no part in this trip. After a night on a coffee estate near Arusha, light aircraft carry you into the Serengeti and between its camps, so your days go to watching wildlife rather than sitting in a vehicle on the highway. Two nights in the central Serengeti come first, close to the Seronera valley and the Moru Kopjes, an area known for big cats. A short hop north then brings you to the Mara River for two nights in a seasonal camp placed for the migration.

Both Serengeti stays are in small, high-end tented camps with attentive staff, private verandahs and meals served in camp or out in the bush. Game drives are in open-sided 4×4 vehicles, which give clear sightlines and good angles for photography. A dawn balloon flight over the central plains can be added.

Tanzania Tourism Safaris arranges the flights, camps and guiding as one private package. Local drinks are included, and on the final morning you fly out from Kogatende to Arusha, or straight to Zanzibar if the beach is next.

Tour highlights

  • Light-aircraft flights into and around the Serengeti
  • A coffee-estate lodge night near Arusha
  • Two nights near Seronera and the Moru Kopjes
  • Two nights by the Mara River in the far north
  • Open-sided 4×4 vehicles for game drives
  • Fly out to Arusha or straight to Zanzibar

Day by day

  1. Day 1 Kilimanjaro Arrival and a Coffee Estate Stay Stay Luxury lodge on a working coffee estate near ArushaMeals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    Your guide meets you at Kilimanjaro International Airport for the drive of roughly an hour to Arusha. The first night is at a lodge set among the coffee bushes of a working estate, a calm place to recover from the long journey. Stroll through the gardens, enjoy an unhurried dinner and sleep well. Tomorrow you leave for the Serengeti by air, so there is no early start for a long day on the road.

  2. Day 2 Flight to Seronera and a First Game Drive Stay Small luxury tented camp in the central SerengetiMeals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    After breakfast, transfer to the airport for a flight of about 50 minutes to the Seronera airstrip. Your guide is waiting with an open-sided vehicle, and the game viewing starts on the way to camp. The migrating herds pass through this part of the park on their journeys north and south, and its rivers and kopjes draw lions, leopards and cheetahs throughout the year. Settle into your tent and watch the plains turn gold from your verandah.

  3. Day 3 Seronera and the Moru Kopjes Stay Small luxury tented camp in the central SerengetiMeals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    If you have added the balloon flight, you are collected before dawn to drift over the plains as the sun comes up, then rejoin your guide for the rest of the day. Otherwise, set out early for the Seronera valley and the granite outcrops of the Moru Kopjes, where lions lounge on warm rock and leopards rest in the trees. Take a picnic for a long drive, or return to camp at midday for lunch and a quiet afternoon before heading out again.

  4. Day 4 Short Hop North to the Mara River Stay Seasonal luxury tented camp in the northern SerengetiMeals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    A flight of about 30 minutes lifts you over the park to the northern Serengeti, a landscape of hills, riverine woodland and long views toward the Kenyan border. Your camp here moves with the seasons to stay near the herds, so you are close to the river from the moment you arrive. Spend the afternoon on a first drive toward the Mara, then return for a fire, dinner and a sky full of stars.

  5. Day 5 Waiting for the Herds to Cross Stay Seasonal luxury tented camp in the northern SerengetiMeals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    Today belongs to the river. Start early, take breakfast out in the bush among the grazing herds and let your guide choose a position near the crossing points. Wildebeest gather on the banks, hesitate, and then plunge in, past crocodiles and grumbling hippos. Crossings cannot be timed, so the day is about patience; when the river is quiet, there are lions, elephants and plenty of plains game to watch nearby.

  6. Day 6 Kogatende to Arusha or Zanzibar Meals Breakfast, Lunch

    After a final breakfast, transfer to the Kogatende airstrip. Your flight takes you either back to Arusha, about an hour away, for onward travel or a connection home, or directly to Zanzibar if you are continuing to the coast. Either way, the view of the northern Serengeti falling away beneath the aircraft makes a fitting close to the safari. Tell us your onward plans when you book so the flight can be matched to them.

Prices by season

Per person in US dollars. The price depends on when you travel and how many travelers share the trip.

Season1 traveler2 travelers4 travelers6 travelers
Low season 1 Mar – 31 May $9,618 $6,412 $5,856 $5,643
High season 1 Nov – 20 Dec and 6 Jan – 29 Feb $10,125 $6,750 $6,165 $5,940
Peak season Now 1 Jun – 31 Oct and 21 Dec – 5 Jan $11,250 $7,500 $6,850 $6,600

Tour price includes

  • Airport meet and greet with private transfers
  • Domestic flights into, within and out of the Serengeti
  • Game drives in open-sided 4×4 vehicles
  • English-speaking local guides
  • Luxury accommodation for 5 nights as described
  • Breakfast daily, plus lunches and dinners as listed for each day
  • Local alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks
  • National park fees and taxes
  • All activities in the itinerary
  • Departs with a minimum of two travelers

Tour price excludes

  • International flights
  • Tanzania visa fees
  • Travel insurance
  • Souvenirs and other personal spending
  • Hot air balloon flight (optional extra)

Questions about this safari

When is the best time to book this fly-in safari?

The Mara River crossings in the northern Serengeti usually happen between July and October, which is when this route works best. If you want to travel at another time of year, we can swap the northern camp for one closer to where the herds are likely to be during your dates.

How is this different from your 6-Day Fly-In Wildebeest Calving Safari?

Both trips fly between high-end Serengeti camps. This one starts with a night on a coffee estate near Arusha and finishes beside the Mara River for the dry-season crossings. The calving safari flies straight to the Serengeti on arrival day and spends three nights at Ndutu during the early-year births.

Can I end the safari on Zanzibar?

Yes. On the last morning you can fly from Kogatende directly to Zanzibar instead of Arusha, which makes this an easy safari to pair with a beach stay. The beach nights themselves are not part of this package, so tell us how long you would like on the island and we will add them to your quote.

Before you go

Listed in Luxury safaris

Where you will go

Parks on this safari

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A giraffe walking behind a line of zebras on the open plains

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