A 50th Anniversary Celebration in Tanzania!

Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, our representative will meet you and take you to the hotel. Pazuri Inn is located at Kisongo Area near St Joseph Secondary school.
*Group is all arriving early and overnighting at Pazuri Inn on May 15th... Tour will start on the morning of the 16th.

Spend today exploring Arusha National Park, beginning in a section of the park known as Little Serengeti. The open grasslands are dotted with giraffes, warthogs, antelopes, flamingos, and a variety of other bird species. We'll receive an introduction to the park, including its history, wildlife, and the towering Mt. Meru. Later, we'll set out into a wooded area of the park in search of black-and-white colobus monkeys. A boxed lunch will be provided. at 5pm this evening, enjoy a presentation given by the Holbrook representative as well as a group orientation, afterwards enjoy dinner at the hotel.

This morning, depart for Tarangire National Park, an often-overlooked park less than two hours from Arusha. The 1,100 square miles of protected lands are home to a large variety of animals, such as wildebeests, elephants, zebras, gazelles, elands, gerenuks, lions, and leopards. Extensive grasslands, dotted with acacias and the iconic baobab tree, provide the optimum conditions for viewing resident fauna. Bird enthusiasts will have the opportunity to see more than 500 avian species, including Yellow-collared Lovebirds, Rufous-tailed Weavers, Ashy Starlings, Common Ostriches, and Kori Bustards. Stop at Ang'ata Camp for site inspection and lunch before continuing on to Tarangire Sopa for overnight.

Today enjoy a full day game drive in Tarangire NP. In the late afternoon, we continue to Osupuko Lodge, less than half a mile from the entrance to Tarangire in time to relax and freshen up before dinner this evening.

We travel several hours north today toward Ngorongoro Crater; this sunken caldera is approximately 10 to 12 miles in diameter and is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its important role in biodiversity conservation. Descend into the crater for a wildlife-viewing drive amid one of the most unique concentrations of wildlife on earth. Vast grasslands cover most of the crater floor and provide ample grazing for zebras, gazelles, wildebeest, elephants, warthogs, and the highly endangered black rhino. With such a large number of prey species contained within the crater, Ngorongoro is also home to a dense population of lions. Enjoy lunch in the crater. Later this afternoon continue to the hotel and check in.

Check out and drive to Southern Serengeti for a wildlife-viewing drive. Serengeti is Tanzania's first national park and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site where up to two million wildebeest famously migrate each year. The park's high concentration of wildlife also includes the Big Five (lions, leopards, elephants, black rhinos, and buffalos), as well as cheetahs, zebras, giraffes, gazelles, monkeys, and over 500 bird species. Later, we continue on to Central Serengeti to spend the night at our semi-permanent camp.

Early in the morning, we head out for our first wildlife-viewing drive of the day in Central Serengeti. Our safari experience will include breakfast out in the field. We return to camp late in the morning. After lunch at the camp, enjoy some free time to rest and relax before heading out for our mid-afternoon wildlife-viewing drive. Before dinner, we will gather around the campfire and have a discussion with our group leader about the Great Migration.

We take our final wildlife outing in the Serengeti this morning before continuing to Karatu. En route, we stop at Olduvai Gorge, where the museum curator will escort us through the on-site museum and on a walk to the Leakey Camp. Learn about archaeologists Louis and Mary Leakey, who began their first excavations of this area in the 1930s as they searched for clues to the origin of humankind. The Leakey team's discovery of primitive tools and, later, fossilized hominid remains (Australopithecus boisei and Homo habilis) at this site helped lay the foundation for present-day theories on human evolution.

Today will be dedicated to understanding more about Tanzania's people and cultures. Start early with a visit to a local Maasai village to learn about the community members and their daily way of life. Afterwards, we'll visit Meali Primary School and see what a typical school day is like as we interact with teachers and students and sit in on classes. Next, visit the culturally diverse village of Mto wa Mbu for a special cooking presentation and lunch. This afternoon walk the Lake Manyara buffer zone.

Enjoy excellent birding early this morning at Lake Manyara with a picnic breakfast. Look for flamingos, pelicans, herons, spoonbills, ibises, eagles, mousebirds, hornbills, kingfishers, barbets, woodpeckers, swallows, flycatchers, starlings, sunbirds, weavers, and rollers. Also keep your eyes open for elephants and the legendary Lake Manyara tree-climbing lions. Afterward, we pay a visit to a local home to enjoy a family-hosted lunch. Check in to the hotel for day room accommodations, where we will be able to rest, finish packing, or freshen up. Before leaving for the airport, enjoy a light snack at the hotel. Check out at 6 pm and head to the Kilimanjaro International Airport for overnight flights to the U.S.

Arrive home.