Go wild in the Northern Circuit on an overnight safari trip from Arusha Town! With an expert game-ranger guide at your side, set out on a game drive to see Africa’s Big Five in Kilimanjaro National Park, and then tour a lower slopes which turn into lush rainforest. After staying overnight at your choice of 3- or 4-star hotel accommodation in Arusha, visit an African elephant reserve and tour Kilimanjaro National Park – home to some of the world’s most endangered animals.
Tour Highlights
Visit Kilimanjaro National Park:
Day 1: Arusha Town – Kilimanjaro National Park
Leave the bright lights of Arusha Town behind and travel to Kilimanjaro National Park by luxury minibus, enjoying dramatic scenery along Route 23 to the Kilimanjaro National Park — a desert-like region in the heart of Tanzania. The journey takes between five and six hours, so there will be plenty of stops en route at roadside restaurants and cafés. After your journey through the landscape of rugged plains and towering cliffs, reach Kilimanjaro – a metaphor for the compelling beauty of East Africa.
Your day continues to Kilimanjaro Wildlife Park on the outskirts of Mount Kilimanjaro to see some of the world’s most endangered animals, such as tigers and white lions. Internationally recognized as the Northern Circuit’s most prestigious zoological park, the park is also home to big cats, snakes, crocodiles and more. After a tour, you’ll have roughly two hours to spend at your leisure. At your own expense, you can arrange to touch a python, or stroke a cheetah or tiger cub. There’s even a Nile crocodile cage diving experience for the fearless!
Leaving the park, your tour continues up the slopes of climatic world tour from the tropic to the arctic. Learn about these flightless birds – the tallest and heaviest in the world – and stand in a nest to see their massive eggs up close. These birds’ powerful legs and bulky bodies make them capable of carrying humans – you’ll have the chance to try riding one if you’re brave enough!
Your evening is spent at leisure back in Kilimanjaro Town, so either relax at your hotel or head into town to discover the nightlife and local restaurants on your own.
Overnight: 3-star River Tree Country Inn or 4-star Moivaro Game Lodge in Kilimanjaro
Day 2: Kilimanjaro National Park – Kilimanjaro Town (B)
After an early breakfast at your hotel, meet your guide and set off to meet the African elephants at a nearby game reserve. Under the watchful eye of your guide, get up close to these huge yet lovable creatures – easily the largest animals walking the earth today. Learn about their background and behavior while helping your guide gives them their daily feed.
Then head straight into the action on a 2-hour game drive to tick off Africa’s famous Big Five: African elephants, Cape buffalos, lions, leopards and rhinos. The term ‘Big Five’ was coined by big game hunters who used it to refer to the most difficult animals to hunt on foot; today, it represents some of the most elusive and exciting animals to see on safari. With your experienced and knowledgeable game-ranger guide, hop aboard your 4×4 vehicle to see these beautiful creatures in their natural habitats on a private game reserve. In addition to the animals that make up the Big Five, you’ll also see giraffes, kudus, zebras and wildebeests, to name a few!
You’ll then be driven back to Arusha Town, where your tour ends.