Tanzania Rewilded

A new generation of wildebeest, seen on a luxury calving season safari
 
 
 Private luxury safari · 8 days
Tarangire
 
Serengeti
 
Ndutu
 
Ngorongoro Crater
 
Lake Manyara
Calving season

A New Generation

This luxury calving season safari follows the months, mid-December to April, when the wildebeest herds gather on the short-grass plains around Ndutu to give birth. This trip gives you three nights in a tented lodge right in the calving area, with Tarangire, the Central Serengeti, the Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara around it.

8days
7 nights
4
Parks
$3,845
From, per person
Plan this safari
Day by day ↓
Download PDF ↓
 ArushaDay 1
 TarangireDay 2
 SerengetiDay 3
 NdutuDays 4–6
 CraterDay 7
 ManyaraDay 8
Safari permit
TR · CV08L
Birth of a New Generation
 
Duration
8 days · 7 nights
Runs 15 December – 30 April
Start / finish
Kilimanjaro Airport
Ends in Arusha on Day 8
Best months
January – March
Calving usually peaks in February
Travel style
Private · Luxury
Boutique hotels, highland lodges & tented lodges
Group
1 – 6 guests
Your own 4×4 & guide, never shared
Pace
Moderate
Longest drive ≈ 4 hrs, with game en route

Why thisLuxury Calving Season Safari Works

For a few months each year, well over a million wildebeest spread out across the green plains of the southern Serengeti and Ndutu. The grass there is short and rich, and most of the calves are born within a few weeks of each other. Lions, cheetahs and hyenas follow the herds, so this is one of the best times of year to watch predators at work.

Most safaris pass through Ndutu in a day. This one stays three nights, at Lake Ndutu or Lake Masek, so you can be out at first light when the herds are moving and the cats are hunting. The rest of the week is built for comfort: good lodges, short drives where possible and the classic parks of the north on the way.

The route

Six Stops, Eight Days

About 900 km by road, out through the crater highlands to the Serengeti and back. Tap a stop to see where it sits on the map.

  1. 01

    Arusha

    Airport welcome and a first night at the foot of Mount Meru

    1 night
  2. 02

    Tarangire National Park

    Elephants and baobabs, then a highland lodge in Karatu

    Night in Karatu
  3. 03

    Central Serengeti

    A first night among the kopjes of Seronera

    1 night
  4. 04

    Ndutu & the southern plains

    Three nights in the calving grounds

    3 nights
  5. 05

    Ngorongoro Crater

    A crater game drive, then back to Karatu

    Night in Karatu
  6. 06

    Lake Manyara National Park

    A last game drive, then Arusha

    Day visit
Road ≈ 900 kmParks 4Ends Arusha
Day by day

The Journey

✦

This is how the trip usually runs. Your guide will adjust each day around the weather, the wildlife and what you most want to see.

Karibu
Day01
Arusha

First Night Under Mount Meru

Your guide meets you at Kilimanjaro International Airport, introduces the trip and drives you about an hour west to Arusha. In the green season the fields along the road are full of maize and sunflowers.

Your hotel sits on the edge of town at the foot of Mount Meru. The rest of the day is free to rest and unpack.

Good to know

Food and drinks on arrival day are at your own cost, so you can eat whenever your flight allows.

  • Transfer≈ 1 hr by road
  • OvernightGran Meliá Arusha or Katambuga House
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
Elephant country
Day02
Arusha → Tarangire National Park → Karatu

Green Season in Tarangire

After breakfast you drive about three hours to Tarangire National Park. In these months the park is green and the elephants spread out through the woodland rather than crowding the river, but there are still plenty to see, along with giraffes, impalas and the park’s huge baobab trees.

It is a good season for birds, with migrants from Europe and many local species in breeding colours. After a picnic lunch in the park you drive up the escarpment to your lodge in Karatu, in the hills below the crater.

Field note

Tarangire is one of the best parks in Tanzania for birds. Ask your guide to point out the yellow-collared lovebirds, which are found only in Tanzania.

  • Drive≈ 3 hrs to park · 2 hrs to Karatu
  • OvernightThe Retreat at Ngorongoro or Kitela Lodge
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
Kopje country
Day03
Karatu → Central Serengeti

West to Seronera

You climb over the Ngorongoro highlands, with views down into the crater from the rim road, then drop onto the plains. At this time of year the grass can be green from horizon to horizon, and you may pass the edges of the herds on the way. It is about four hours to the Central Serengeti, with game driving along the way.

The Seronera Valley has water all year, so its lions, leopards and cheetahs don’t need to follow the migration. You spend the afternoon looking for them around the kopjes and along the river before settling into camp.

  • Drive≈ 4 hrs, with game en route
  • OvernightSiringit Serengeti Camp or Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
A lion resting in the grass
Lions rest by day and hunt the herds at dusk
Day04
Central Serengeti → Ndutu

Down to the Calving Plains

After breakfast you head south for about three hours to Ndutu, where the Serengeti plains meet the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Lake Ndutu and Lake Masek sit in acacia woodland at the edge of the open grass, and this is where the herds come to calve.

In the afternoon you go out on your first drive in the area. Depending on the rain, the herds may be close to the lakes or spread out towards the Serengeti border. Your guide will ask other guides and rangers where they are. Elephants, giraffes and resident lion prides live in the woodland all year.

Honest note

The herds follow the rain, and the rain is never the same two years running. We plan these dates around where the calving usually happens, but no one can promise where the herds will be, or that you’ll see a birth.

  • Drive≈ 3 hrs, with game en route
  • OvernightLake Ndutu Luxury Tented Lodge or Lake Masek Tented Lodge
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
The calving grounds
Days05–06
Ndutu & the southern plains

Two Full Days With the Herds

These two days follow the rhythm of the plains. You leave camp at about 6 am, when the light is soft and the predators are still active, and search the grass around Lake Ndutu and Lake Masek. Many calves are born in the morning, and a newborn wildebeest can stand within minutes and run with its mother soon after.

You come back for a late breakfast, rest through the heat of the day and have lunch at the lodge. In the late afternoon you go out again across the plains, and end the day with a sundowner before dinner. Cheetahs hunt in the open here, and hyenas and jackals are never far from the herds.

Field note

Watch the ground as well as the herds. The marshes and short grass around Ndutu are also home to servals, bat-eared foxes and, after rain, great flocks of storks.

  • ActivityEarly morning and late afternoon game drives
  • OvernightLake Ndutu Luxury Tented Lodge or Lake Masek Tented Lodge
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
Into the caldera
Day07
Ndutu → Ngorongoro Crater → Karatu

The Crater on the Way Back

You leave Ndutu after breakfast and drive up to the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, then down the steep road to its floor. The crater is about 20 km across and has water all year, so its animals stay put: buffalo, zebras, hyenas, lions and a small number of black rhino, usually seen far out on the grass.

You have a picnic lunch at the hippo pool, then climb out in the afternoon and drive down to Karatu for the night, back at the same highland lodge as on Day 2.

  • Drive≈ 3 hrs Ndutu to Karatu, via the crater
  • ActivityCrater game drive, about 5 hrs
  • OvernightThe Retreat at Ngorongoro or Kitela Lodge
  • Meals
    BreakfastLunchDinner
Kilimanjaro above the savannah and acacia trees
Kilimanjaro, on the last road home
Day08
Karatu → Lake Manyara National Park → Arusha

Manyara, Then Home

Lake Manyara National Park is 30 minutes from Karatu, at the foot of the Rift Valley wall. You drive through a groundwater forest of fig and mahogany trees, busy with baboons and blue monkeys, and out onto the lake shore, where elephants, buffalo and hippos feed. In the wet months the lake often draws flamingos and pelicans.

After a picnic lunch you drive about three hours back to Arusha, where the tour ends. On a clear afternoon you may see Kilimanjaro to the east.

Good to know

The tour ends in Arusha in the late afternoon. If you want a night near the airport or a flight to Zanzibar, tell us and we’ll add it.

Where you sleep

Five Lodges, Seven Nights

A comfortable hotel to arrive in, a highland lodge near the crater either side of the plains, and three nights in a tented lodge in the middle of the calving area.

Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Lodge
Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Lodge

Southern Serengeti · Ndutu · 3 nights on this trip.

1night

Gran Meliá Arusha

Arusha · Foot of Mount Meru

A large, polished hotel set among coffee fields on the lower slopes of Mount Meru. It has a spa, a pool and several restaurants. Or Katambuga House, same standard.

PoolSpaMeru views
1night

The Retreat at Ngorongoro

Karatu · Crater highlands

A luxury lodge near the crater gate with large suites, highland views and a spa. It is placed for an early start into the crater. Or Kitela Lodge, same standard.

SuitesSpaHighland views
1night

Siringit Serengeti Camp

Central Serengeti · Seronera

A tented camp in the central Serengeti, within easy reach of the Seronera Valley’s resident lions and leopards. Or Kubu Kubu Tented Lodge, same standard.

Canvas suitesBush dinners
3nights

Lake Ndutu Luxury Tented Lodge

Southern Serengeti · Ndutu

Tents on the Ndutu plains, right where the herds gather to give birth between December and March. Or Lake Masek Tented Lodge, same standard.

Calving plainsTented
1night

The Retreat at Ngorongoro

Karatu · Crater highlands

A luxury lodge near the crater gate with large suites, highland views and a spa. It is placed for an early start into the crater. Or Kitela Lodge, same standard.

SuitesSpaHighland views

Lodges are shown “or similar”. If one is full we’ll swap in a lodge of the same standard in the same area, and you’ll approve it first.

Timing & price

When This Trip Runs

Only in calving season, from 15 December to 30 April. The herds usually settle on the southern plains from December, most calves are born in February, and by April the long rains begin and the herds start moving north. January to March is the most reliable window.

Where the herds are, month by month This itinerary: mid-December – April
MonthWhere the herds areWhat’s happeningThis trip
JanuarySouthNdutu plainsThe herds graze the short, rich grass of the southern plains.This trip
FebruarySouthNdutu plainsCalving season. Thousands of calves are born every day.This trip
MarchSouthNdutu plainsCalves grow stronger while lions and cheetahs hunt close by.This trip
AprilSouth → CentralMoru & SeroneraThe long rains start and the columns begin to move north.This trip
MayCentralSeroneraMating season. Long lines of wildebeest head west.—
JuneWestGrumeti RiverFirst river crossings, with big crocodiles in the Grumeti.—
JulyNorthKogatendeThe first Mara River crossings of the year.—
AugustNorthMara RiverPeak season. Crossings happen almost every day.—
SeptemberNorthMara River & LamaiHuge herds cross back and forth over the river.—
OctoberNorthLobo & MaraThe last crossings, then the herds turn south.—
NovemberCentralLobo → SeroneraThe short rains arrive and the herds stream south.—
DecemberSouthNdutu plainsThe herds are back on the green southern plains.This trip
Price per personYour groupOnly datesCalving season15 Dec – 30 Apr
1solo guest$6,498USD per person
2guests$4,463USD per person
3guests$4,027USD per person
4–6guests$3,845USD per person
 Check dates →
14%

Travel as a bigger group and save. A group of 4–6 pays up to 14% less each than two, because you share the vehicle and guide.

Prices are in US dollars, per person, sharing one private vehicle and guide. This itinerary runs only from 15 December to 30 April. For other months, ask us about our Mara River or year-round Serengeti safaris.

No surprises

What's Included

Included / 09

  • Private 4×4 Land Cruiser with pop-up roofCharging points, cool box and binoculars on board
  • Your own professional English-speaking safari guide
  • All park, crater and conservation fees on the route
  • Game drive inside the Ngorongoro Crater
  • Accommodation as listed, or similar, including camp concession fees
  • All meals as shown in the day-by-day
  • Drinking water, coffee and tea on safari
  • Airport transfers on arrival and departure
  • Drinks at your lodges and campsPremium wines and spirits may be extra

Not included / 07

  • International flights to Kilimanjaro (JRO)
  • Tanzania visaSee our visa guide
  • Travel insuranceRequired. See our insurance guide
  • Optional activities and sightseeing not on the itinerary
  • Tips for guides and lodge staff
  • Laundry, drinks not listed and personal items
  • Local and domestic flights
Good questions

Before You Book

There’s a good chance, especially from late January to early March, when thousands of calves are born each day. But births happen fast and often out of sight, and the herds move with the rain. Your guide will take you to where the herds are, but nobody can promise a birth on a given day.

Because the herds can be an hour’s drive from where they were the day before. Staying three nights in the area gives your guide time to find them, and lets you be out at dawn and dusk, when calving and hunting are most active, without a long drive in from another part of the park.

Some days, usually as short afternoon storms. The rain is what brings the herds, so it is part of the trip. December and April are wetter; January to March is often warm and dry between showers. Bring a light rain jacket.

Yes. The trip ends in Arusha, and the scheduled flight to Zanzibar takes about 1 hr 20 min. January and February are good beach months there. Tell us how many nights you’d like.

Add to your trip

Related Activities

Ideas that fit well with this safari. Ask us and we’ll add any of them to your plan.

Destination

Serengeti National Park

Big cats all year, and the migration for much of it.

Read more →
Up at dawn
Add-on

Hot-air balloon safari

An hour over the Serengeti at sunrise, with a bush breakfast after landing.

Read more →
Meet the people
Culture

Maasai & cultural visits

Spend time in a Maasai village or with the Hadzabe near Lake Eyasi.

Read more →
Beach

Zanzibar beach days

Finish with warm sea, white sand and Stone Town’s old streets.

Read more →
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Green plains,

New Lives

Calving-season lodges fill early. Send us your dates and we’ll reply within 24 hours with availability and a tailored quote.

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