10 Days Tanzania Bush and Beach Safari

On arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) you are welcomed by your Bespoke Safaris representative or professional driver-guide. After introductions and a short orientation, you board your private safari vehicle for the transfer to Arusha, with views of local settlements, cultivated fields and, when the weather allows, the surrounding mountains.

You check in at your hotel and rest after your international journey. Depending on your arrival time, you can relax in the gardens or explore the immediate surroundings. In the evening your guide reviews the safari programme and the daily schedule and answers any questions. Dinner and overnight in Arusha.

After an early breakfast you leave Arusha for Tarangire National Park, known for its baobab trees, varied savannah and large elephant populations. You enter the park and begin a game drive through woodland, open grassland and the areas around the Tarangire River. In the dry season the river becomes a vital water source that draws elephants and other wildlife from the surrounding landscape.

Look for large elephant families, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, impalas and buffaloes, while your guide helps you read tracks, feeding behaviour and signs of predators. Tarangire also has lions, leopards and many birds, though sightings depend on local conditions.

You stop for a picnic lunch at an authorised site and continue with an afternoon game drive through other parts of the park. You then leave the park for your lodge or tented camp for dinner and the night.

After breakfast you travel to Lake Manyara National Park, a compact and varied reserve beneath the Great Rift Valley escarpment. You begin your game drive in the groundwater forest, where baboons, blue monkeys and forest birds move through the vegetation, then continue into woodland, grassland and the shore of the alkaline lake.

Depending on water levels and the season, the lake may attract flamingos, pelicans, storks and other waterbirds. Look for elephants in the woodland, buffaloes in the clearings and giraffes browsing among the trees. Lake Manyara is also associated with tree-climbing lions, though these sightings are not guaranteed.

You have a picnic lunch at a designated site and explore further in the afternoon. You then leave the park for Karatu, a highland town among rolling hills and farmland, where you check in at your lodge, have dinner and rest before the journey to the Serengeti.

After an early breakfast you check out and begin the scenic drive to Serengeti National Park through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where forested highlands, volcanic landscapes and open grassland mark the change from the crater region to the Serengeti plains. Where time, weather and the final route allow, you stop at an authorised viewpoint over Ngorongoro Crater to look down into the caldera and take photographs.

You continue into the Serengeti, a landscape of endless savannah, rocky kopjes and abundant wildlife, and game viewing begins along the route with zebras, wildebeest, gazelles, giraffes and ostriches. In the central Serengeti, especially around Seronera, rocky outcrops and riverine habitats are important areas for lions and leopards.

You stop for a picnic lunch at an authorised location and reach your lodge or tented camp in the late afternoon for check-in and dinner under the African sky.

After an early breakfast you set out on a full-day game drive in Serengeti National Park. The cooler early hours give a good chance to see predators still active and herbivores starting to graze. You explore the Seronera region and its surroundings for lions resting on rocky kopjes, leopards in riverine trees, cheetahs scanning the grassland and hyenas on the move.

The Serengeti is also famous for the Great Migration, the yearly movement of wildebeest and zebras across the wider Serengeti-Mara ecosystem in response to rainfall and grazing. Depending on the season and the herds’ location, you may meet large concentrations of migrating animals or the resident wildlife of the plains. Migration movements and river crossings cannot be guaranteed, but your guide uses current conditions and recent sightings to plan the best route.

You have a picnic lunch at an authorised site and continue the game drive in the afternoon with time for photography. You return to camp in the late afternoon for dinner and the night in the Serengeti.

You begin with an early game drive as the sun rises over the savannah. The changing light is excellent for photography, and the cooler conditions can bring sightings of predators returning from the night and herbivores gathering to feed. You explore selected areas of the central Serengeti for lions, elephants, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest and other wildlife.

You return to camp for breakfast and check out, then travel towards the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, with wildlife viewing on the way where conditions allow. As you climb into the highlands, the scenery changes from open savannah to cooler, higher country.

You reach your accommodation near the crater rim in the afternoon. If the weather is clear, take time to enjoy the panoramic views into the volcanic caldera, whose floor lies hundreds of metres below. Dinner and a quiet evening before tomorrow’s crater safari.

After an early breakfast you descend into Ngorongoro Crater for a game drive across one of Tanzania’s most remarkable wildlife landscapes. The crater’s grassland, woodland, wetlands and soda lake support a high concentration of wildlife. Look for lions, elephants, buffaloes, zebras, wildebeest, hyenas, hippos and many birds. The crater is also home to endangered black rhinoceroses, though sightings are not guaranteed. Its compact setting can bring several iconic species into one visit, depending on wildlife movements and conditions.

You have a picnic lunch at an authorised site, then climb out of the crater and transfer towards Arusha Airport or Kilimanjaro International Airport, according to your confirmed flight arrangements. You board your scheduled domestic flight to Zanzibar, with time allowed for the journey to the airport and check-in.

At Abeid Amani Karume International Airport you are met by your local transfer representative and driven to your beachfront resort, where you settle in and relax beside the Indian Ocean after several days of wildlife.

After a leisurely breakfast at your beachfront resort you spend the day on the relaxing side of Tanzania. Zanzibar is known for its white-sand beaches, turquoise water, palm trees and rich coastal culture. You can spend the morning on the beach, swim where conditions are safe or unwind by the resort pool.

If you want more activity, options include snorkelling, scuba diving with a licensed operator, kayaking, kite surfing or a traditional dhow excursion, depending on location, weather, tides and availability. These should be booked separately unless they are included in your final package.

You have lunch at the resort or a nearby restaurant, followed by a free afternoon. As evening comes, watch the Indian Ocean change colour and enjoy dinner in Zanzibar’s island atmosphere.

After breakfast you check out of the beach resort and travel inland to a guided visit to one of Zanzibar’s spice plantations. Your local guide introduces the island’s long link with the spice trade, with aromatic plants, tropical fruits and spices such as cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and lemongrass, depending on what is growing during your visit, and explains how they are grown and used in local cooking and traditional practice.

You continue to Stone Town, Zanzibar’s historic centre, known for its Swahili heritage and the influence of African, Arab, Indian and European traders. A guided walk takes you through narrow streets, historic buildings and busy market areas. Depending on opening hours and the route, you may see the Old Fort, the former Sultan’s Palace area, the exterior of the House of Wonders or the waterfront, along with carved wooden doors and traditional architecture. Access to particular buildings varies with restoration work and local arrangements.

Your guide explains Stone Town’s history, maritime trade and cultural diversity. You then check in at your boutique hotel for dinner and the night in the historic heart of Zanzibar.

After breakfast you spend the morning at leisure, depending on your international departure time. You can browse nearby craft shops and bazaars, buy locally produced spices and handmade souvenirs, or take a last walk along the waterfront and enjoy Stone Town’s architecture and street life.

After checking out, your driver transfers you to Abeid Amani Karume International Airport in time for your outbound flight. The transfer time depends on your hotel, traffic and airline check-in requirements.

You leave with memories of Tanzania’s elephants and baobabs, the Serengeti plains, Ngorongoro Crater and the beaches and cultural heritage of Zanzibar.