Top 5 Ngorongoro Day Trips: See Tanzania’s Wildlife Wonders

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania, Africa is really like your very special spot. It’s almost that magical combination of super dramatic landscapes and incredible wildlife encounters makes it a must-see, specifically. The crater, it’s often called ‘Africa’s Garden of Eden,’ holds such great densities of animals. Because of this, a day trip to Ngorongoro is one of those experiences people always seem to remember.

1. Ngorongoro Crater Descent: A Day Among the Animals

Alright, if you’re thinking about doing just one thing in Ngorongoro, well, actually, it has to be the crater descent. I mean, in fact, this is probably what you imagined when you thought about an African safari. You will descend almost two thousand feet to the floor of the crater where a crazy amount of wildlife hangs out, and it really teems. It’s very likely that you’ll spot lions, elephants, rhinos (if you’re a bit lucky), wildebeest, zebras, and a huge number of bird species, so, too it’s almost like seeing a natural documentary unfold right in front of your eyes. Typically, that descent gets pretty bumpy, so be very sure you’ve got a great jeep. Keep in mind it is likely very cold first thing in the morning! A light jacket might be very helpful. A good tour, that might be this, very frequently includes a lunch enjoyed right in the crater at a designated picnic spot, giving you more time to take in those spectacular views and animal action.

The actual trip involves a long ride, but a bunch of tour companies include this with ease. So, what is great, is that many of them depart from nearby towns such as Arusha and Karatu, too it’s almost a sure thing that means it can be incorporated as part of a longer safari. It typically has that one thing a traveler seems to really want, because, in that case, it means the descent and your wildlife viewing is something you aren’t forgetting! Many times, honestly, that wildlife just ignores the vehicles as you creep closer to grab those pics.

2. Empakaai Crater Hike: Hiking around Pink Flamingos

Now, if you enjoy the sound of taking hikes instead of jeeps, this is really for you! Not quite as heavily visited as the primary Ngorongoro Crater, you find that Empakaai offers its own kinda spectacular view of that East African geology. It’s very worth going, specifically. The crater itself is that beautiful home to a large soda lake. And that almost for sure means thousands and thousands of bright pink flamingos feeding in it. Hiking the trails on that outside wall allows that view of this lake while maybe catching glimpses of wildlife along that route like colorful birds, monkeys, and bushbuck.

But just because it involves a hike, really, doesn’t mean it’s going to be a Sunday stroll, basically. So, very possibly make that arrangement with that tour company to include local guides for a more very helpful and enjoyable trip! Often they come from that Maasai tribes and just are fountains of very insightful cultural info. It’s a much quieter experience in some respects in comparison with its neighbor in Ngorongoro, and still can lead into seeing an utterly huge number of birds. Just you’ll possibly have better binoculars with ya! I mean, honestly, I bet I spend close to two full hours trying to take better photos of distant birds, but whatever. Really I enjoyed it.

3. Lake Natron Excursion: See Something Super Unreal!

Okay, now this one’s different and special. North of Ngorongoro, very actually Lake Natron offers you just a totally otherworldly landscape. Often it’s got a stark, very arid beauty. You’ve likely noticed those surreal photos on that web, and yet those reds and pinks aren’t just photo magic! Anyway, what makes this trip so special is how isolated the location really tends to be. And still, the lake hosts huge flocks of flamingos, it’s just rather they are framed by harsh volcanic landscapes.

Trips very often include the hike to Lake Natron’s waterfalls, a quick swim in some natural pools, and also that very sight of fossilized footprints of ancient hominids. Local Maasai communities live nearby. Tours can lead to those interactions for tourists to observe and know those traditional lifestyles as well as some of the real hardships, too it’s almost hard to believe for a tourist to absorb all that so quickly! But seriously, actually, it makes an absolutely full day excursion from that Ngorongoro Area. Do think of wearing really strong footwear, carrying loads of water, and wearing sunscreen too it’s almost easy to wind up so dried out and burned. Anyway, what are holidays for, right?!

4. Olduvai Gorge Museum & Shifting Sands: Go Back In Time

Okay, so you could visit not only wildlife, really. Why don’t you go further back to understand people a lot better! It tends to be history instead of wildlife? So, basically, just think about visiting Olduvai Gorge. I mean, in that case, actually, it is one of that more vital paleoanthropological spots across this Earth. Anyway, in short it is very key, for you to check out what that little museum has inside of it! Often there you’ll explore a wide selection of fossils discovered nearby – this all might assist in teaching us things we don’t yet fully understand!

While you go over that wide expanse of plains in that Ngorongoro Area, the trip there often has just one very neat extra experience which could be Shifting Sands. Okay, you see a dune with a unique crescent shape which just keeps shifting slowly due to high winds even with its seemingly large size. As I was saying, the museum doesn’t keep a long visit going, but that combined package might deliver just some other thing instead of animals, I am saying. Just kinda maybe have expectations in check since Shifting Sands might look kinda like…well, desert sands and that dune shape! That doesn’t stop them local folk from charging money and setting up displays!

5. Maasai Cultural Visit: Connecting with Tanzania

Often it’s great, and fun, but to visit that animals in that areas that sometimes are named after local folk there is very much connection you just might skip or overlook, mostly. Now that option for some kind of cultural immersion by hanging around with them tribes. Tanzania’s known very possibly across our planet and still they keep a nomadic tribal lifestyle. It might lead to new insights!

During the arranged and very ethically minded experience it provides some new, good things for both a visitor plus a community. And honestly it can make trips across that area very full and satisfying! I mean honestly what seems to very really strike any tourist happens at traditional songs and dance, that are honestly just fun, right?! Okay a bit maybe from being yanked to start doing them jumps!