SimonBiology Travel: Tanzania Safari with a Purpose

Overview

Tanzania calls to mind vast landscapes dotted with herds of wildlife, lions lounging on sun-drenched rocks, and mighty elephants trundling through tall grasses. This 13-day journey begins in Arusha, where you will oversee and accompany the transport of over 8 tons of local ingredients to two primary schools, providing them with six months of hot lunches. Learn about the Tanzanian secondary educational system and meet the remarkable students and teachers who are transforming lives through education. Culminate the experience with several days in Serengeti National Park and then at Ngorongoro Crater to witness the world-famous Great Migration. Observe the incredibly abundant wildlife including wildebeest, zebras, elephants, giraffes, hippos, baboons, and much more.

Highlights

Visit two primary schools and learn about their curriculum, successes, and challenges.
Meet school children, their parents, and local governmental and school officials.
Descend into Ngorongoro Crater, a collapsed caldera sometimes called the “eighth wonder of the world,” where zebras, lions, and wildebeest can be seen.
Observe the Great Migration in Serengeti National Park and spend four nights at a luxury tent camp observing incredibly abundant wildlife.
Enjoy the chance to observe Africa’s “Big Five” up-close: lions, leopards, elephants, water buffaloes, and rhinos.

Meet your leader

Eric J. Simon

Eric J. Simon, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Biology and Health Science at New England College, in Henniker, New Hampshire. Dr. Simon has led over a dozen international trips to learn about biology and culture to such destinations as Belize, Patagonia, Galapagos, Tanzania, the Amazon, and Cuba. As a biology author, Dr. Simon has over 2 million books in print, translated into 7 languages, and used in over 40 countries.

Depart

Jul 13, 2026

Depart the US.

Arusha

Jul 14, 2026

Upon arrival in Kilimanjaro, you will be taken to your lodge in Arusha. You will be given a pre-safari briefing by your guide before dinner this evening.

Dinner included

Overnight at Arusha Serena

Tarangire

Jul 15, 2026

Start today with a visit to a local market to purchase six months of food for the schools. We will be buying enough maize, beans, cooking oil, sugar, tea leaves and salt to last from July to December. The food will be loaded onto a special hired truck and we will proceed to Losirwa and Lucas Mhina primary schools for delivering. Picnic lunches will be provided on the way. Later, head out to Tarangire National Park. Tarangire is home to approximately 6,000 elephants; you will also find giraffes, buffalos, elands, wildebeest, zebra, antelopes, lions, leopards, jackals, and cheetah. Extensive grasslands, dusted with the occasional acacia or baobab tree, provide the optimum conditions for viewing wild animals.