Ngorongoro in September

The dry season that started in May or June should continue into August, leaving parts of the crater floor looking like a dust bowl and the remaining grassland all parched and yellow. The low vegetation is great for spotting animals, with predators being at their most conspicuous, and wildlife tends to congregate close to the few remaining sources of drinking water. This is peak safari season in northern Tanzania - as is the case in August, the wildebeest migration will be concentrated around the Mara river in the northern Serengeti and there’s plenty of wildlife activity in Tarangire National Park - as well as popular for Zanzibar beach holidays, so things tend to be quite crowded. The crater rim is quite chilly in September (average daily maximum 21°C and nightly minimum 8°C) so bring plenty of warm clothing.

Our Recommended Itinerary

Spectacular July to September Wildebeest River Crossings (10 days)

day 1

Arrival in Arusha

at Arusha Coffee Lodge

day 2

Sabora Plains | Serengeti

at Singita Sabora

day 3

Sabora Plains | Grumeti River

at Singita Sabora

day 4

Enjoy lunch at Sasakwa

at Singita Sabora

day 5

Olakira Camp | Mara River

at Olakira Mobile Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

day 6

Olakira Camp | Mara River

at Olakira Mobile Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

day 7

Olakira Camp | Mara River

at Olakira Mobile Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

day 8

Rekero Camp | Masai Mara

at Rekero Mara Camp, Masai Mara, Kenya

day 9

Rekero Camp | Masai Mara

at Rekero Mara Camp, Masai Mara, Kenya

day 10

Rekero Camp | Masai Mara

at Rekero Mara Camp, Masai Mara, Kenya

day 11

End of Journey

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Ngorongoro in January

Credit: Kusini Camp Ngorongoro Crater has a temperate climate characterised by rather chilly nights throughout the year but January is one of the warmest months, with an average daily maximum of 23°C and average minimum of 10°C. January generally marks the end of the so-called short rains, so it shouldn’t be all that wet, but the landscape retains a lush green appearance and the air…

Lake Ndutu and the Serengeti plains

Ngorongoro Conservation Area is essentially an eastern extension of the vast Serengeti-Mara ecosystem - indeed, it formed part of the original Serengeti National Park as it was gazetted in 1951 but was split off shortly afterwards to appease Maasai protests against being evicted from their traditional grazing lands. Today, the southeast of the conservation area, around Oldupai Gorge,…

Wildlife in the Ngorongoro Crater

The game viewing centre piece of Ngorongoro Conservation Area is the grassy floor that stands at an altitude of 1,800m. The crater is dominated by a cover of open savannah that looks lush and green during the rainy season but is altogether dustier and more windswept during drier months. Important micro habitats within the crater floor include the fever-tree forest at Lerai, the shallow…

Solo travel to the Ngorongoro

Credit: Sanctuary Ngorongoro Crater Camp Very few people visit Ngorongoro solo. The main reason for this is presumably because a solo safari in northern Tanzania works out to be so much more expensive per person than it does for a couple or a small group. That said, if cost is not an obstacle, there is absolutely no reason why you couldn’t do a solo safari to Ngorongoro and elsewhere…

Ngorongoro travel tips

Ngorongoro Conservation Area can only realistically be explored in a solid 4x4. The 150km road from the northern Tanzanian ‘safari capital’ Arusha to Lodware Entrance Gate, the only access point along the eastern border, is now surfaced in its entirety, and can be covered in less than three hours. All roads within the conservation are unsurfaced, however, and most - including the…

Maasai visits

Ngorongoro Conservation Area is one of the last places in Africa where large herds of wildlife still roam alongside people. The people in question are the pastoralist Maasai, staunch traditionalists renowned for their ongoing adherence to a cattle-herding lifestyle and distinctive attire of toga-like red blankets, ochre-dyed hair and beaded jewellery. Several Maasai ‘cultural…

Popular Ngorongoro Crater Safaris

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