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Location
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is located in the Ngorongoro district, west of the town of Arusha in northern Tanzania.
Size
The size of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area is 3202 square miles of which contains the 102 square mile Ngorongoro Crater.
History
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area was established in 1959 although the giant volcanic Ngorongoro Crater is recorded to have been formed approximately 2.5 million years ago. The conservation area is home to a wide range of wildlife, including the coveted “Big Five”.
Entrance Fees & Permits
Entry into the Ngorongoro Crater is USD70 per person in the high season, and USD 60 per person in low season. Vehicle permits are USD40 per vehicle covering a 24-hr period.
Hours of Operation
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is open between 6am and 6pm daily.
By Road
Arusha is the nearest town, approximately 110 miles away, a two-hour drive through the town of Karatu. Visitors would enter through the Lodare gate close to Karatu. Safari-goers in the Serengeti will be able to access the Ngorongoro Conservation Area through the Naabi Hill gate, travelling on gravel roads with eyes peeled for wildlife along the way.
By Air
The nearest airports to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area are Arusha International Airport and Kilimanjaro International Airport, from which guests would need to transfer by road. There are companies that offer chartered flights to an airstrip located at the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater.
Weather & Climate
The Ngorongoro Conservation Areas enjoys a mild temperature with short rains falling in October and November and the longer rains coming down between March and May. The temperature within the crater varies from mild in the daytime to chilly at night. The dry months of July and August are the most ideal time for game viewing in the crater.
Avoiding Crowds
Consider visiting the Ngorongoro crater outside of the peak season months of June to August when there will be less vehicles traversing the crater floor. Consider traveling in September or early October before the short rains fall, the climate will be dry and there will be more availability at hotels.
Value for Money
Most lodging is located either a short distance from the entry gate to Ngorongoro Crater with a few prestige options situated on the crater rim. Thus offering a variety of accommodation options that range in pricing from USD300 to approximately USD1000 per person sharing.
The further away one stays from the Ngorongoro Crater, the more affordable accommodations can be found. Day trips around the conservation area and Ngorongoro crater are an option, so staying in moderate accommodations allows for easy access to the wildlife wonders of the area.
Popular Wildlife Sightings in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Within the Ngorongoro conservation area there is a myriad of animals to be spotted with over 500 bird species recorded. In Lake Magadi the beautiful sight of pink flamingos paints the landscape and during the calving season between December and March, the wildebeest migrate south to the Ngorongoro conservation area.
The Terrain
The Ngorongoro conservation area comprises grasslands and open savannas, with woodlands forming near the forested banks of the Ngorongoro Crater. Popular parks and reserves that fall within the Ngorongoro conservation area include the Serengeti National Park and the Great Rift Valley.
Game Drives
Game drives in either open or enclosed 4×4 vehicles are the best way to experience the wildlife in the region.
Guided Walking Safaris
It is possible to enjoy walking safaris of varying lengths within the Ngorongoro conservation area with a qualified guide. The longer walks will take guests through the Great Rift Valley and Olkarrien Gorge
Most of the lodging situated in the Ngorongoro conservation area is set either within national parks or a short distance away from the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, with a few select lodges and camps set on the crater rim.
Ngorongoro Conservation Area Lodging – Distance from park entrance
| Lodge or Hotel | Distance to park entrance (in miles) |
| Ngorongoro Serena Lodge | 9.5 miles to Lodoare gate |
| 6.5 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| Lemala Ngorongoro | 15 miles to Lodoare gate |
| The Manor at Ngorongoro | 15.5 miles to Lodoare gate |
| Sanctuary Ngorongoro Crater Camp | 11 miles to Lodoare gate |
| Gibbs Farm | 10.5 miles to Lodoare gate |
| 17 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| Tortilis Ngorongoro | 35 miles to Lodoare gate |
| Ngorongoro Safari Lodge | 22 miles to Lodoare gate |
| 0.5 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 11.5 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 3.6 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 12 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 18.6 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 0.3 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 10 miles to Lodoare gate | |
| 18.5 miles to Lodoare gate |
Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge is one of Tanzania’s most important and frequently visited sites, a paleoanthropological area giving great insight into the evolution of man.
Serengeti National Park
The Serengeti National Park lies within the Ngorongoro conservation area, an expansive and incredible wildlife destination, home to a large number of animals and scenic beauty.
Lake Magadi
Witness wonderful birdlife and a plethora of flamingos on Lake Magadi, located within the Ngorongoro conservation area.
Ngorongoro Crater
Experience the wonder of a safari in this caldera. Teeming with wildlife and diverse landscape, it is a highlight on a northern circuit safari.
The best time to visit the Ngorongoro conservation area is between the dry months of June to August. Consider visiting during calving season between December and March when the bird life is prolific as well.
Pricing of a set safari in the Ngorongoro conservation area can cost between USD300 and approximately USD1000 per person sharing per night. Accommodation options range from classic tented accommodation to luxury lodges and larger group hotels.
Travel by road from Arusha or Moshi, a distance of 110 miles. Visitors who fly into Kilimanjaro Airport will transfer to the area via Arusha and the town of Karatu.
The Ngorongoro Crater, one of the world’s largest intact calderas, is a highlight of any visit to this region. Add in the famous Serengeti National Park and it is clear as to why the Ngorongoro conservation area is so special.
Witness the “Big Five”, a plethora of plains game and a myriad of birdlife in the area.
Entry to the Ngorongoro conservation area is between 6am and 6pm daily
Most definitely. There are permits to enter the park and guides will take visitors each day to the gates of the Ngorongoro Crater, with a long line of vehicles often forming. Pre-packaged lodge and camp stays should be booked well in advance as the area is very popular and books up fast.
Travel by enclosed 4×4 safari vehicle to the Ngorongoro conservation area and then, if your lodge or camp offers, enjoy an open 4×4 safari vehicle drive within the Ngorongoro Crater or Serengeti National Park.
Popular lodges can be found within the Serengeti National Park, however a key focus of the Ngorongoro conservation area is the Ngorongoro Crater, with lodges such as AndBeyond and Serena offering accommodation on the crater rim. Nearby camps of Lemala and Empakaai are close enough to enjoy a full day in the crater.
Visitors will dine at the restaurant situated at their specific lodge or camp.
Serengeti National Park
The Serengeti National Park is a scenic and hugely popular wildlife park and a highlight of a visit to the Ngorongoro conservation area.
Lake Magadi
Lake Magadi, located within the Ngorongoro conservation area, offers incredible birdlife and flamingo sightings.
Ngorongoro Crater
Witness wildlife at its best in this incredible region of the Ngorongoro conservation area.
Tanzania is alive with colorful wildlife herding in dense and unusual parks – we’ll explore two of these dynamic areas on this spirited Tanzania Safari. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is unique in the world of safaris – it’s the largest intact volcanic crater on Earth. We’ll travel down into this dense, self-contained world of active wildlife in our 4 x 4 Jeep.
The Serengeti. Ngorongoro Crater. Oldupai Gorge. The names are exotic, the locations even more so. This Tanzania Safari will bring you into the heart of the country – to immense savannahs heaving with wildebeests and big cats, and an ancient crater filled with Zebras, gazelles, cheetahs, and flamingoes.
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We’ll touch the origins of mankind at Oldupai Gorge, a millions-year-old record of humankind’s earliest inhabitants. And then, when you’ve explored the best of Tanzania from the ground, our safari will take you to the air with a flight over these same magnificent landscapes and a return to Arusha.
These are Tanzania’s finest parks and we give you a choice to begin this Africa safari adventure at either Lake Manyara or Tarangire National Parks. Manyara is a colorful jewel, filled with thousands of pink flamingoes settled on the shores of a cobalt blue lake. Tarangire is known for its elephants, lots of migrating wildlife, and few tourists. Take your pick of the parks.
Serengeti National Park is perhaps the most famous wildlife reserve in the world, with its horizons filled with wildebeests and zebras. The lion population here is the largest of any park in the region, if not all of Africa. But for sheer density of big cats, nothing beats the Ngorongoro Crater, the largest intact volcanic caldera on the planet.
We’ll visit these wild, colorful and memorable parks and all the wildlife that live upon these vital lands on this five-day Natural World Kenya Safaris exploration.
5 DAYS, 4 NIGHTS: NGORONGORO CRATER – NDUTU AREA -LAKE MANYARA PARK
We created this safari to bring you up close to the wonders of Tanzania… wonders like the Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera, and a wildlife universe unto itself, cut off from the rest of Africa.
The Ndutu Area is the engine of the Great Wildebeest Migration – it’s where the millions of wildebeests and other grazers settle for the calving season, from December through March, giving birth to up to half a million newborns every winter.
From Ngorongoro Crater to Enchanting Lake Manyara
Tour includes:5 DAYS, 4 NIGHTS: NDUTU AREA – NGORONGORO CRATER
This is where you’ll find astonishing and active wildlife – the Ndutu Area is one of the best spots to witness the drama of the Great Migration and Ngorongoro is unmatched for its density of animal life.
dutu pulsates with limitless numbers of wildebeests and zebras as these are the calving fields that ultimately populate the migration. From December through April, the fresh grasses of Ndutu attract millions of herding grazers to give birth to their young, as many as 8,000 a day!
Here the newborns take their first steps, issue their first cries and quickly learn and grow to keep up with the vast herds of wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles. Then, come spring, they move north toward still more fresh grasses in the unending cycles of the Great Migration.
Witness The Great Migration, Plus Incredible Ngorongoro
Tour includes:We designed this Total Tanzania Safari to show you the best of our beautiful country – its overflowing wildlife on boundless plains, across sterling lakes, and even down into lush, teeming crater floors. Serengeti National Park is home to more lions than any other spot in Africa – an astonishing range of animals populate its sweeping tracts stretching out to the horizon.
The Ngorongoro Crater is a world unto itself – over 25,000 animals dwell across this isolated volcano floor – lions, leopards, rhinos, baboons, even pink flamingoes thrive in these nether reaches. You’ll discover elephants, buffalo, lion, and leopard on our sojourn to Tarangire National Park, and small but exquisite Lake Manyara National Park always delights with its thousands of bright pink flamingoes filling its sparkling shores.
6 Day Tanzania safari visiting Lake Manyara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro.
Safari proceeds to Lake Manyara, the expansive Serengeti Reserve and the amazing Ngorongoro Crater.
The safari is starts and ends in Arusha visiting the best of Tanzania national parks.
Safari proceeds to Lake Manyara, the expansive Serengeti Reserve and the amazing Ngorongoro Crater.
7 DAYS, 6 NIGHTS: TARANGIRE PARK – NDUTU AREA – SERENGETI PARK – NGORONGORO CRATER
This specially designed tour will give you opportunities to see the birthing fields when up to 500,000 wildebeest newborns are dropped onto the vast fields of the Ndutu Area of the Serengeti.
On this tour we will explore Tarangire National Park, Ndutu Area, Serengeti National Park, and Ngorongoro Crater.
Witness the Awesome Cycles of The Great Migration
Tour includes:This is a combination of Wildlife and Cultural safari in Tanzania.
The 10 day tour visits the first class national parks in Tanzania, Arusha Naitional Park, Tarangire National Park, Lake Manayara, the world famous Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park.
An amazing 9 day (8 nights) safari exploring Kenya and Tanzania. 5 parks visited. Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Lake Victoria, Maasai Mara and Nairobi.
See 5 famous Parks & Reserves
An amazing two full week adventure – experience Kenya’s finest parks alongside Tanzania’s Serengeti. Tour includes Samburu, Ol Pejeta, Lake Naivasha, Masai Mara, Lake Victoria, Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Amboseli,
Two full weeks East Africa safari adventure
Located on the outskirts of Karatu, a quaint country town on the Great Escarpment, midway between Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Country Lodge is situated in the centre of Northern Tanzania’s green belt district and farming community.
Bougainvillea Safari Lodge is located on the outskirts of Karatu town about midway between Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater.
The Retreat, is stragetically located near the 8th wonder of the world, the world Famous Ngorongoro Crater. In close proximity also lies the Lake Manyara National park, Lake Eyasi; and The Endoro falls & elephant caves. Activities offered at the lodge range from Day trips to the national parks, walking safaris and mountain biking to Quad biking, cultural visits to the local Iraqw tribe and tree planting.
Hand plaited thatched roof tops, ample verandas and colonial interiors at Ngorongoro Farm House, a small and exclusive hotel built on a 500 acre coffee plantation, all of which has been designed to take you to the comfort and style of past times.
Facing the always magnificent sunsets to the west, and located at the highest point on Ngorongoro crater’s entire rim, Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge stands well over half a kilometer above the crater floor and offers unparalleled views across this enormous caldera.
This new property located on 15 acres of coffee farm sailing like an ark along with the primeval of the Ngorongoro Crater conservation area which is a world heritage site in volcanic high land of Tanzania.
On the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater within 10 minutes of drive down to the crater floor. Set under the Acacia Forest inside the Crater boundaries at 2600m altitude.
Nestled high above the plains into the Crater’s jagged rim, cloaked in river stone and indigenous vines, Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge is barely visible to the naked eye
Acacia Farm Lodge is a romantic Country Lodge nestled in an active mixed farm located high on the spectacular Great Rift’s escarpment area with a commanding panoramic views of the amazing Karatu farmlands and the nearby Ngorongoro forest area.
A 5 star colonial lodge situated on a picturesque hill with spectacular views onto Oldeani Mountain and the Ngorongoro Crater Rim. The lodge is elevated with 360 degree views that extend all the way to Lake Eyasi and Lake Manyara.
Kitela Lodge rises up on the hillside of a valley with beautiful views of a coffee plantation and a waterfall within the incredible highlands of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. It consists of 20 colonial style cottages surrounded by beautiful gardens, a coffee plantation and a working farm
The best time to go gorilla trekking in Uganda is during the dry season (December– February and June - August) when conditions are especially good for trekking to view mountain gorillas. Game drives in the national parks are also fruitful during this time.
Wear neutral colored, lightweight clothing on your Uganda safari. Dress in layers and bring a warm sweater for morning and nighttime game drives. For gorilla trekking, bring a waterproof rain jacket, hiking boots, long socks, hiking pants, bug repellant, and a daypack. A sunhat and gardening gloves are also a good idea; the jungle is dense and thick.
Natural World Kenya Safaris offers Gorilla Trekking Safaris in Uganda with basic accommodations starting at $96 per person, per day, plus the Uganda gorilla trekking permit which costs $700 per person per day (the permits are required, and those fees are non-negotiable.) Costs increase from there.
Natural World Safaris can provide basic, mid-range, and luxury trekking safaris and is eager to work with almost any budget.
Suggested tips range from $10 to $20 per person per day for a private guide and the same amount for your driver if that is a different person than your guide.
If you are on a guided safari or gorilla trek in Uganda, your chances of encountering problems are minimal. However, it is always a good idea to take precautions on your safari, particularly when traveling through urban areas or in regions close to the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The trek to spot gorillas can be strenuous. It could take anywhere from two to eight hours to find and observe the gorillas, depending on the time of year. Be prepared to hike for multiple hours through uneven terrain at high altitude. It is advisable to train before any gorilla trekking trip by walking uphill, or better yet, by taking day hikes.
When it comes to wildlife viewing, there are never any guarantees. There are no fences in the parks in Uganda and the gorillas are free to roam. However, our expert guides and gorilla trackers have years of experience taking guests to see these magnificent creatures. They know their favorite spots to congregate and work closely with park officials each day to provide the best possible chance of seeing gorillas in the wild.
Most mountain gorillas in Uganda live at between 4,900 to 7,500 feet. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, home to the country’s mountain gorillas, has a high point of 8,550ft.
The best time to go on a gorilla trek in Rwanda is during the dry season (June - September) when conditions are best for trekking to view the country’s highlight: the fascinating mountain gorillas.
Wear neutral colored, lightweight clothing on your Rwanda gorilla trek. Dress in layers and don’t forget a sweater for chilly morning and nighttime game drives. For gorilla trekking, bring a waterproof rain jacket, broken-in hiking boots, long socks, hiking pants, bug repellant, and a daypack. A sun visor and protective gloves – such as gardening gloves - are also useful.
Natural World Kenya Safaris offers Gorilla Trekking Safaris in Rwanda with basic accommodations starting at $720 per person, per day, plus the Rwanda gorilla trekking permit which costs $1,500 per person per day (the permits are required, and those fees are non-negotiable.) Costs increase from there.
Natural World Safaris can provide basic, mid-range, and luxury trekking safaris and is eager to work with almost any budget.
Suggested tips for your guide are $25 per person, per day for a private guide and the same amount for your driver if that is a different person than your guide.
Rwanda is one of the safest countries in Africa, particularly if you are on a guided safari or gorilla trek. Your chances of encountering problems are minimal. However, it is always a good idea to take precautions on your safari, particularly when traveling through urban areas. Cross-border travel into the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Burundi is not safe, however, so steer clear of this.
The trek to spot gorillas can be strenuous. It could take anywhere from two to eight hours to find and observe the gorillas, depending on the time of year. Be prepared to hike for multiple hours through uneven terrain at high altitude. It is advisable to train before any gorilla trekking trip by walking uphill, or better yet, by taking day hikes.
When it comes to wildlife viewing, there are never any guarantees. There are no fences in the parks in Rwanda and the gorillas are free to roam. However, our expert guides and gorilla trackers have years of experience taking guests to see these magnificent creatures. They know their favorite spots to congregate and work closely with park officials each day to provide the best possible chance of seeing gorillas in the wild.
Most mountain gorillas in Rwanda live at between 8,000 to 13,000 feet. Volcanoes National Park has a high point of 15,000ft.
Contact us for more information
For more information about our safari excursions, or to book your dream safari trip with Natural World Kenya Safaris, simply get in touch with our friendly travel advisors. Give us a call on +254 704 001 122 or leave your details on our contact us page, and we'll reply as quickly as possible.
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