Tarangire and Ngorongoro Crater
Tarangire › Ngorongoro highlands › Ngorongoro Crater › Arusha
From $1,450 mid-range$2,650 luxury
Park guide · Northern circuit
Ngorongoro Crater
A collapsed volcano full of animals, and the best place for black rhino.
- Size
- crater floor about 260 km²
- Getting there
- about 3 h by road
- Stay
- 1 day (2 nights in the highlands)
The Ngorongoro Crater is a volcanic caldera about 600 metres deep, its floor a closed world of grassland, swamp and a soda lake. Animals live here all year, so in a single morning you can see lion, hyena, buffalo, hippo and, with luck, the black rhino that the crater is known for.
The crater sits inside the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where Maasai families still graze their cattle. Lodges line the rim or the green farmland around Karatu below it. We descend at first light and bring a picnic for lunch on the floor.
When to go
All year. Go down as the gates open to have the floor almost to yourself for the first hour.
Safaris
Safaris that include Ngorongoro Crater
Serengeti and Ngorongoro
Serengeti › Ngorongoro highlands › Ngorongoro Crater › Arusha
From $2,250 mid-range$3,550 luxury
The Northern Circuit
Tarangire › Serengeti › Ngorongoro highlands › Ngorongoro Crater › Lake Manyara
From $3,250 mid-range$4,950 luxury
The Great Migration
Ngorongoro highlands › Southern Serengeti (Ndutu) › Ngorongoro Crater
From $4,450 mid-range$7,450 luxury
Family safari
Arusha National Park › Tarangire › Ngorongoro highlands › Ngorongoro Crater › Lake Manyara
From $2,650 mid-range$4,250 luxury
Safari and Zanzibar
Tarangire › Serengeti › Ngorongoro highlands › Ngorongoro Crater › Zanzibar
From $4,350 mid-range$8,450 luxury
When is the best time to visit Ngorongoro Crater?
All year. Go down as the gates open to have the floor almost to yourself for the first hour.
How long should I spend in Ngorongoro Crater?
We recommend 1 day (2 nights in the highlands). Travel time: about 3 h by road.
Where do you want to wake up?
Tell us your dates, who is travelling and the kind of lodges you like. A real person replies within 2 hours with a first itinerary and price.