A 2027 Incredible Serengeti Southern Circuit Safari Package.
All-Inclusive Serengeti Southern Circuit Tour Itinerary.
A 2027 Incredible Serengeti Southern Circuit Safari Package
This 2027 itinerary focuses on the southern Serengeti and its neighboring landscapes, where open short-grass plains, acacia woodland and volcanic highlands change within a few hours’ drive. Depending on the season, this area can offer strong wildlife viewing, including large herds, predators and varied birdlife, with fewer crowds than some better-known areas. We plan the route around the time of year you travel, so the stay matches the conditions you are likely to find.
Each itinerary is built around your preferences: private guiding, accommodation style, trip length and optional extras. [CONFIRM: exact route, 2027 dates, accommodation list, and pricing.] Request a custom itinerary and we will map out how the southern Serengeti could fit your travel window.
At a glance: 7 days | Tarangire, Ngorongoro, Ndutu and the southern Serengeti | Best for first-timers and travelers wanting a southern focus | Particularly strong January to March, workable year-round | [CONFIRM: 2027 dates, price, accommodation]
Editorial note: “Southern Circuit” is sometimes used for Nyerere, Ruaha and Mikumi in southern Tanzania. This itinerary treats it as the southern Serengeti and Ndutu region. Confirm that this is the intended meaning, or clarify the title.
Day 1: Arrival in Arusha
Your guide welcomes you at Kilimanjaro International Airport and transfers you to your Arusha lodge. After the flight, the day is for resting, perhaps a stroll through lodge gardens, and a short briefing on your 2027 route. Your guide explains how the southern Serengeti differs from the central and northern areas, what the season is likely to offer and how game drives are run. You can ask about packing, photography and anything else on your mind. Dinner is at your lodge, after which you can sleep, ready for an early start to Tarangire. [CONFIRM: lodge and transfer details.]
Day 2: Arusha to Tarangire National Park
A drive of roughly three to four hours brings you to Tarangire National Park, known for large elephant herds, baobab trees and the Tarangire River, which draws animals in the dry season. Your guide takes an afternoon game drive through riverine woodland and open ground, watching for elephants, giraffes, buffalo and a rich range of birds. Lions and leopards are present but not guaranteed. The park is at its most dramatic from about June to October, though it remains scenic year-round. You spend the night at a lodge or camp inside or near the park. [CONFIRM: accommodation.]
Day 3: Tarangire to the Ngorongoro highlands
After a morning game drive in Tarangire, you leave the park and travel north through Rift Valley farmland toward the highlands around Ngorongoro. The scenery shifts from dry bush to cool, green hills and coffee-growing country. Depending on timing, you may pass Lake Manyara and Mto wa Mbu, a busy local market town where stopping to see everyday life is worthwhile. You reach your lodge on or near the crater rim in the late afternoon, with time to rest and to enjoy the views if the weather is clear. Evenings here can be chilly. [CONFIRM: lodge and any Manyara stop.]
Day 4: Ngorongoro Crater
An early descent takes you into the Ngorongoro Crater, where wildlife is concentrated in a small area. A day on the crater floor can offer lions, spotted hyenas, hippos, buffalo, elephants, flamingos on the soda lake in some conditions, and, rarely and at a distance, black rhinos. Your guide uses the time limit on the floor wisely, moving between grassland, swamp and forest edges. Lunch is a picnic by a hippo pool. In the afternoon you ascend and either stay at the rim or continue toward the southern Serengeti. [CONFIRM: overnight location.]
Day 5: Olduvai Gorge to Ndutu and the southern Serengeti
You travel across the highlands and the edge of the Serengeti plains, with a stop at Olduvai Gorge, a famous archaeological site, if time allows. The landscape opens into short-grass plains around Ndutu, a seasonal wildlife area on the border of the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. In calving season, roughly January to March, huge herds of wildebeest and zebra can be present, and predators follow. Outside this period, the area is quieter but still scenic. You arrive at camp by late afternoon, ready for an evening drive or a sundowner. [CONFIRM: camp type, seasonal or permanent.]
Day 6: Full day in the southern Serengeti
Today is dedicated to exploring the southern plains and their rock outcrops. Your guide may take you toward areas such as the Gol Kopjes or Moru Kopjes, depending on the season, where lions, cheetahs and leopards sometimes use rocky outcrops as lookouts. Expect open horizons, big skies and good photography. In the middle of the day you rest at camp before an afternoon drive. Wildlife depends on rainfall and herd movement, so we say honestly that sightings vary, and your guide adapts the plan daily. A candlelit dinner closes the evening.
Day 7: Departure
After breakfast and, if you wish, a short morning game drive, you transfer to a nearby airstrip for a light-aircraft flight to Arusha, or drive back if you prefer to extend the safari on the ground. In Arusha, your guide or driver takes you to Kilimanjaro International Airport or to a hotel for an extension. If you plan to go to Zanzibar for a beach stay, this is a natural point to connect. [CONFIRM: airstrip used, flight schedule and whether flights are included, plus the Zanzibar extension.]
inclusions:
- Private airport transfers
- 6 nights’ accommodation across Arusha, Tarangire, the Ngorongoro rim and the southern Serengeti or Ndutu [CONFIRM]
- Meals as specified [CONFIRM]
- Professional guide and 4×4 with pop-up roof
- Game drives in Tarangire, Ngorongoro Crater and the southern Serengeti
- Park and conservation-area fees
- Return flight or road transfer from the Serengeti [CONFIRM]
- Bottled water
Best time: January to March (calving on the southern plains), and December as herds return south. Tarangire is best June to October, so choose the season by which part of the route matters most.
Approach with care: April and May have long rains and some Ndutu camps close. From June to October the main herds usually leave the southern plains, so a southern focus is less dramatic, though resident wildlife remains. [CONFIRM 2027 camp operating dates]