12-Day Rwanda & Tanzania Safari

Arrive at Kigali International Airport. Our representative welcomes you and transfers you to your hotel for the night.

After breakfast, optional Kigali city tour with a visit to the Kigali Genocide Memorial. Drive north to Musanze. Stop at the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. Dinner at your volcanic mountain lodge.

Park briefing at headquarters before entering the Virunga forest with your ranger guide. Trek through bamboo and Hagenia woodland to find one of the habituated mountain gorilla families. Spend one extraordinary hour in their presence. Return to camp for lunch. Afternoon: golden monkey tracking or a visit to Dian Fossey's tomb.

Morning at leisure before driving back to Kigali. Brief city stop for lunch and last-minute shopping. Transfer to Kigali International Airport for your charter flight to the Serengeti, departing approximately 2 p.m. and arriving at Seronera around 4:30 p.m. Our guide meets you on the airstrip and immediately begins an evening game drive en route to camp.

Spend the day on extensive game drives along the Grumeti River in western Serengeti. The Grumeti is crocodile-infested and: in June and July: the site of dramatic wildebeest crossings. Even outside migration season, the region has exceptional concentrations of resident wildlife. Included activity: bush breakfast in the field.

Morning game drive exploring the Grumeti region further, then drive to the central Serengeti. The Seronera Valley is famous for leopard sightings along its river and kopje-dotted plains. Check in at your central Serengeti camp for lunch. Evening game drive at 4 p.m. Sundowner on the kopjes.

Full day in central Serengeti. The Seronera area has the highest predator density in the Serengeti ecosystem: lion, cheetah and leopard sightings are near-daily occurrences. Optional: hot air balloon safari at dawn over the endless plains.

After breakfast, drive east through the NCA conservation area with a brief stop at Olduvai Gorge museum. Arrive at the Ngorongoro crater rim by mid-afternoon. Check in and enjoy a short crater-rim drive before dinner overlooking the vast caldera below.

Descend into the crater with packed picnic lunches for a full day tour of the caldera floor. The 260 km² crater is home to an extraordinary concentration of wildlife including Africa's densest lion population and one of Tanzania's last stable black rhino populations. After the crater, drive to Lake Manyara and enjoy a short evening game drive en route to the lodge.

Pre-breakfast game drive along the lake shore: Lake Manyara is famous for its tree-climbing lions and enormous flocks of flamingo. Return for breakfast then drive to Tarangire National Park. Arrive with a game drive en route to the lodge. Evening game drive at 4 p.m.

Morning and afternoon game drives in Tarangire. The park hosts one of the largest elephant concentrations in Africa: herds of 200+ are common along the Tarangire River. Baobab trees, large lion prides, cheetah, wild dog and over 550 bird species make this a superb final wildlife destination.

Leisurely morning at the lodge or optional early nature walk. Drive to Arusha and transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your onward flight. End of services.