Tanzania Group Safari: 5 Days Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro & Manyara
Travelers on this 5 day Tanzania group safari in Serengeti, Ngorongoro, and Lake Manyara experience a journey across Tanzania’s most celebrated wildlife destinations, which are rich in biodiversity. Unlike longer Tanzania group safaris, this 5-day itinerary is carefully structured to balance intensive wildlife encounters, scenic drives, cultural immersion, and midrange comfort.
Traveling in a group for this 5 day Northern Circuit safari in Tanzania ensures shared experiences, logistical efficiency, and safety. Also, it providing opportunities for travelers to connect over game drives, meals, and evening reflections at lodges in those Tanzania National Parks. This 5 day best of Tanzania safaris itinerary covers Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, and Lake Manyara, offering a comprehensive glimpse into East Africa’s natural wonders. With professional guides from Serengeti Masai Mara Experts, comfortable mid-range lodges, and efficient routing, it’s ideal for first-timers, friends, families, or solo travelers seeking social vibes without incurring private safari costs in Tanzania.
Why Choose This 5 Day Tanzania Group Safari?
- This 5 day group safari in Tanzania covers Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, and Lake Manyara in one trip. So, this promises travelers to see the diversity of Tanzania’s ecosystems. Hence, this offers travelers a high chance of observing the big five in Tanzania in their natural habitats.
- Also, adventure allows repeated sightings at different times of the day, including scenic features like arid plains, lush crater floors, volcanic formations, and alkaline lakes in a single safari.
- Depending on the season, travelers may also witness the wildebeest migration in Serengeti, including dramatic river crossings that usually occur from July to October in this group safari in Tanzania.
- This 5 days Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro group safari creates shared experiences that enhance social connections and memories. This comes alongside expert guide services that track wildlife, explain animal behavior, and narrate the ecological and cultural significance of each park.
- Cultural immersion is an added experience with encounters with Maasai communities along the routes you take. The five days are optimal for travelers with limited time, but still allow a deep wildlife experience. Hence, the 5-days group safari in Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, and Lake Manyara is cost-effective.
5 day Tanzania Group Safari Itinerary Summary
- Day 1 – Meet the group in Arusha for breakfast drive to Tarangire (about 2½ hours). Game drives and a picnic lunch with a view, then check into your tented lodge for dinner.
- Day 2 – Early morning game drive in Tarangire (great time for predators), then head to Lake Manyara (2–3 hours). Afternoon drive through the forest, a picnic lunch by the water, then relax at your lodge.
- Day 3 – Quick morning activity at Lake Manyara if you want, then drive up to Ngorongoro (3–4 hours). Lunch with an epic crater-rim view and Bush dinner at your rim lodge.
- Day 4 – Early breakfast, another crater game drive (second chance for anything you missed), then drive to central Serengeti (5 hours). Afternoon game drive in Serengeti, see the big cats, kopjes, and possibly migration herds. Bush dinner at camp.
- Day 5 – Morning game drive in the Seronera area (great for predators and open plains), picnic lunch in the bush, afternoon drive for your last sightings, and transfer to Arusha (6–7 hours) or straight to the airport.
In short, it’s a fast but full safari that gives you the classic highlights of Tanzania’s northern circuit. See elephants, tree lions, crater magic, and the endless Serengeti, all in a shared group with good guides, comfortable lodges, and plenty of shared excitement. Perfect if you want the best of Tanzania without spending weeks!
Inclusions (What’s Normally Covered)
- Pickup and drop-off in Arusha (hotel or airport)
- All transport in a shared 4×4 safari vehicle in Tanzania with a pop-up roof
- English-speaking driver/guide for the whole trip
- 4 nights accommodation (mid-range tented camps/lodges)
- All meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner), including picnic lunches
- All park entrance fees (Serengeti, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro) and crater descent fees
- Bottled water during game drive experiences
- All Tanzania government taxes and service charges
Exclusions (What You’ll Need to Cover)
- International flights to/from Tanzania
- Tanzania visa fees
- Travel insurance (highly recommended)
- Tips for your guide/driver and lodge staff
- Drinks (alcoholic beverages, extra sodas)
- Personal expenses
- Optional activities (hot-air balloon safari in Serengeti, village visits, etc.)
Things to Do
- Picnic Lunch
- Game drives
- Bush Dinner
Detailed Itinerary 5 days Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and Serengeti Group Safari in Tanzania
Day 1: Transfer from Arusha to Tarangire National Park.
Travelers will depart as a group from Arusha after breakfast at the Gran Melia hotel. The safari vehicles will then drive the travelers to Tarangire National Park. The trip to Tarangire takes up to 2 and a half hours and over 110 km. Drive through Arusha’s rural landscapes and explore Maasai villages and rolling hills. Enter Tarangire National Park and begin a game drive along the Tarangire River, observing endangered species such as Elephant herds.
Other animals in Tarangire you might see include giraffes browsing acacias, zebras grazing, wildebeests, impalas, warthogs, hyenas, and ostriches. The landscape of Tarangire has Baobab-studded plains, riverine forests, and small kopjes providing great points for predators to spot the prey. Enjoy a packed picnic lunch at a scenic viewpoint, and this could be near the Kopjes. Then, continue exploring Tarangire’s interior, looking for prides of lions resting under baobabs and leopards in trees.
In the evening, arrive at Sangaiwe Tented Lodge, an accommodation facility statically located in the open wilderness. Later, check in and put the luggage in your rooms and freshen up. Go for a main course meal, and here you can share the great moments that you will have seen on the first day with other travellers in your group.
Day 2: Morning game drive and a trip to Serengeti National Park from Tarangire
Breakfast is served as early as 8;00 am at the elevated wooden dining area of Sangaiwe Tented Lodge. Also, enjoy the verdant green views before you proceed for another morning game drive through Tarangire. So, see wild animals are usually active at this time as they hunt food sources during this time. Therefore, you are likely to see lions and cheetahs finalizing their hunt and zebras grazing in Tarangire. After the drive, check out of the Sangaiwe Tented Lodge with your group mates and have another game drive passing via Ngorongoro highlands. Later, enjoy the views of escarpments and Maasai farmlands on your trip to Serengeti National Park.
Observe the wildlife, including cheetahs hunting in tall grass, leopards resting in acacias, and lions on kopjes. Also, watch the wildebeests and zebras grazing, and luckily, you might spot jackals scavenging. Travelers will be driven to Zawadi Camp for a stay and enjoy a bush dinner.
Day 3: Full-Day Serengeti Safari Game Drives
On this day of the 5 days Tanzania group safari, breakfast at Zawadi camp will be served as early as 7:00 am. Later, embark on another morning game drive that emphasizes predator activity with your fellow travellers. So, your guide will locate the best Serengeti Safari Areas for lions hunting, cheetahs sprinting after gazelles, and leopards in trees. After, enjoy a picnic lunch in the middle of the day around the Seronera Valley in the Serengeti. Also, watch wild species and at a distance, like the buffaloes grazing, the giraffes wandering around.
Additionally, watch bird species in the Serengeti, including secretary birds, kori bustards, and marabou storks in proximity or even just flying over your head. After your meal, you can capture breathtaking pictures of the wide-angle plains, predator-prey interactions, and the nearby dramatic landscapes. After the numerous game drives, return to Zawadi Camp. As a group be served dinner at the restaurant of this camp. Also, have an evening reflection on wildlife sightings and experiences during the interactions.
Day 4: Transfer from Serengeti to Ngorongoro Crater
A bush breakfast is arranged for you in the middle of the wilderness. So, take both the delicious meal and the vibrant views from Mother Nature. After the morning meal, check out of the Zawadi camp and then board the safari vehicles to Ngorongoro. On the way, you might meet Maasai cattle herders leading their cattle through the grasslands. The trip from Serengeti to Ngorongoro is likely to take an estimated 5 hours, covering over 230km, passing through the rolling hills.
Continue to Ngorongoro and proceed towards the crater rim, where you will have a picnic lunch overlooking the Ngorongoro floor. In the afternoon, descend into the crater for wildlife viewing. In addition, see Black rhinos, though rare, elephants, buffalo, zebras, hippos, lions, hyenas, and the pink flamingos at the shorelines of Lake Magadi. Continue having numerous game drives through Ngorongoro and after transfer to Ngorongoro Rhino Lodge. So, this is where you will have dinner before going to your designated rooms.
Day 5: Ngorongoro to Lake Manyara and Return to Arusha
This being the last day of this group safari in Tanzania, travellers should enjoy every bit of it. As early as 7:30 am, breakfast is served at the dining lounge of the Ngorongoro Rhino Lodge. And then embark on another road to Lake Manyara National Park. The journey takes approximately 3 hours, covering over 150km. Note that there will be no stopover, and explore Lake Manyara’s unique habitats by passing through its groundwater forests. The latter harbour baboons, vervet monkeys, which you will see.
Also pass via open Lake Manyara shores, and see hippos, warthogs and even bird species like pelicans and flamingos converged. In the afternoon, have a picnic lunch at the lakeside viewpoint, with the opportunity to observe flamingos and other birds feeding nearby. After the afternoon meal, you will be driven to Arusha International Airport for your scheduled return flight. This marks the end of the 5 days Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro group safari in Tanzania.
Best and Worst Time for This 5 Day Tanzania Group Safari in Tarangire Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro
The best time for this affordable luxury Tanzania group safari is from June to early September. So, this is because Tanzania experiences its dry season and rainfall is minimal in these months., Also, vegetation is sparse, like in Ngorongoro, the grass is drier, therefore there more clear views of the crater floor and its dramatic landscape. Additionally, wildlife congregates near water sources like Lake Manyara, and in Tarangire, wild animals congregate around the Tarangire River.
Hence, they are easily sighted during this time when the dramatic crossings happen in the Serengeti. Lastly, the gravel roads connecting lodges and interior tracks in Tarangire, Serengeti, and Ngorongoro are fully navigable for 4×4 safari vehicles.
The worst time for this group safari is the long wet season from March to May. There are heavy rains during this period, which make dirt roads muddy and sometimes impassable. Particularly in Tarangire and parts of Serengeti, the safari vehicles usually get stuck. Also, rivers like the Tarangire and Mara River swell, and this makes accessibility to lodges hard.
