Accommodation in Tanzania’s Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Lake Manyara

Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and Lake Manyara National Park offer a wide variety of accommodation alternatives in lodges and tented camps, ranging from the most luxurious and exclusive to small, owner-run hostels. Many accommodation spots are located inside the protected areas, while others sit just outside the borders.

Most accommodation choices usually offer two daily game drives, one early in the morning and one in the afternoon, when temperatures are milder and animals are most active. This is specially true of lodges and camps found in the Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, among the best worldwide sites for wildlife watching. Indeed, while the former is widely recognised as the major wildlife reserve in the world, the latter boasts the densest population of mammalian predators in Africa.

Other activities often available include balloon safaris, birding safaris, natural hikes, and day trips to Lake Victoria. Night game drives are only available at Klein’s Camp, as it is located in a private game concession just outside the Serengeti National Park. Most Ngorongoro lodges and camps offer adventure hikes around the crater and the nearby highland volcanoes, as well as excursions to the Olduvai Gorge archaeological site and the Shifting Sands ash dune. At Lake Manyara, canoeing safaris on the lake are most common and interesting.

Tanzania offers an astonishing diversity of ecosystems, and there isn’t an absolute best season to visit this incredible country. The best time to go to the Serengeti largely depends on the specific area you’ll be visiting. While wildlife in the central Seronera valley is numerous all year round, the Western Corridor area offers phenomenal game viewing only from late May to mid July, when the sheer migratory herds of herbivores pour through this area before moving northward to the Masai Mara National Reserve, in Kenya. Likewise, the Northern Lobo area of the Serengeti is best from July through mid November, when game viewing is excellent due to the migratory herds, particularly in July (northward migration) and October (southward migration). Ngorongoro is great all year round, though the crater rim gets quite cold from June to August. Lake Manyara, being home to more than 400 of the country’s 1,000 bird species, is best for bird watching during the wet season (November-June), while the dry season (July-October) is more suitable for getting a glimpse of the large mammals.

Last but not least, consider there are important temperature and climate differences between the three above mentioned protected areas. While the Serengeti is quite hot and dry, many Ngorongoro facilities are found at an elevation of more than 2,000 metres, which means it can get pretty cold at night and in the early morning. Be sure to pack the adequate attire for your safari trip. Accommodation in Masai Mara National Reserve -Kenya

The Masai Mara National Reserve offers a wide variety of accommodation choices, both in lodges or in tented camps. Many of these are located inside the reserve, while others are to be found at the outer limits.

Most -if not all- accommodation choices usually offer two daily game drives, one early in the morning and one in the afternoon, when temperatures are milder and animals are most active, both preys and predators.

Some even offer a night drive, which is the only way to spot the many night-goers of the reserve: African wild cat, caracal, ant bear, spring hare, black-tipped mongoose, zorilla, bat-eared fox, side-striped jackal, porcupine, and civet, amog others.

Balloon safaris, walking safaris, and visits to Maasai villages can be arranged at the front desk of most lodges and camps.