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Itinerary

Day 1: Arusha
Upon arrival, we will be picked up from Kilimanjaro International airport, and transferred to Meru View Lodge for meet and greet. Overnight at Meru View Lodge.

Day 2: Arusha National Park and Mount Meru
We spend all day birding in Arusha National Park. As we tour the lake-studded landscape, we will encounter large concentrations of water birds which include highlights such as Southern Pochard, Black-necked Grebe and Macoa Duck with the grasslands around the lakes offering a good chance to see Pangani Longclaw and Trilling Cisticola. Mammals are here - Common Waterbuck, Maasai Bushbuck, Cape Buffalo and Hippopotamus. If there are rains, then helmeted terrapins scatter away from lakes and Common Platannas frogs fill every puddle and pool. The Ngurdoto crater supports beautiful stands of Loliondo, dramatic strangling figs line the road, and cliff faces, thickly covered in montane forest and clad with ferns and wild palms, are home to resident African Hobbies. From high viewpoints we watch buffalos and warthogs feeding in marshes below while the trees nearby abound with birds - Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Montane White-eye, White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher, Forest Batis, African Hill Babbler, Black-fronted Bush-shrike and a host of barbets. The forest is also a wonderful place to observe gaudy, colourful and exquisite butterflies. In the forest we might chance upon a Suni Antelope, or a Harvey’s Red Duiker, Gentle Monkey or the acrobatic Black-and-white Colobus. The endemic Meru Three-horned Chameleon is sometimes found. Overnight at Meru View Lodge.

Day 3: Lark Plains
After breakfast we drive around Mount Meru to Lark Plains, which are rich with grassland species and are the sites where the world's last 200 Pygmy Spike-heeled Larks exist. We will attempt to find this rarest of Tanzania's endemics. Overnight at Meru View Lodge.

Days 4: Maramboi
Today we drive to Maramboi Tented Camp for lunch overlooking Lake Manyara with birding en-route. In the afternoon we bird on foot along the lake shores, and at dusk search for nightjars. Overnight at Maramboi Tented Camp.

Days 5 & 6: Tarangire National Park
We have two full days exploring Tarangire National Park. This National Park and the adjoining conservation areas are famous for Baobab-dominated woodlands and the large elephant herds that roam them. During the dry season a migration of thousands of animals from all over the Maasai steppe are attracted to its waters. Wildebeest, Eland, Zebra, Oryx, Lesser and Greater Kudu, Steenbok, Impala, Lion, Leopard and even the rare African Wild Dog inhabit the park. Herds of Buffalo and Elephant walk amongst huge baobabs. In the hollow baobabs themselves, Mottled Spinetails nest and roost with various insectivorous bats. The Park offers easy viewing of the endemic Ashy Starling and Yellow-collared Lovebird while other specialties include Northern Pied Babbler, Magpie Shrike, Barefaced Go-away Bird, Pygmy Falcon, Orange-bellied Parrot, African Cuckoo and more. The river course might yield Saddle-billed Stork, Whiskered Tern and many other surprises, and great acacias that line the Silale Swamp are where African Rock Pythons occur. Overnight at Maramboi Tented Camp.

Days 7, 8 & 9: Serengeti National Park
Pushing northwards and westwards we drive through the Serengeti plains to our new base in the central wooded valleys. From Ikoma Bush Camp we explore the vast 15 000 km2 wilderness of the splendid Serengeti National Park, encountering teeming herds of wildebeest, zebra, gazelle, giraffe, Hartebeest, buffalo, elephant, Topi, Impala and their associated predators - Lions, Leopards, Hyenas and Cheetahs. Small mammals such as Pygmy and Banded Mongooses, Bush and Rock Hyraxes and a myriad of rodents are easy to see in the picnic points. Birds are party to this unique wilderness; six species of vultures that gather to kills as well as a stunning diversity of other raptors, mammal herds attract oxpeckers, Wattled Starlings and egrets, and avian goodies such as Grey-capped Social Weaver, Silverbird, Flappet Lark, Abyssinian Scimitarbill and hosts of bee-eaters, bush shrikes, starlings, woodpeckers, turacos, bustards, kingfishers and rollers. The Serengeti eco-system is a huge wilderness area and it is not all endless grasslands. Huge stands of woodlands cover the park; swaths of various acacia and species are dominant. Kopjes, rocky hill ranges, rivers, swamps and lakes create a myriad of microhabitats. This kind of richness is the reason that the Serengeti is still ‘’the’’ place to glimpse many fascinating, rarely seen species such as Honey Badger, Aardwolf, Side-striped Jackal, Pangolin and more. Blue-headed and Mwanza Flat-headed Agama lizards are a feature of the Kopjes and if lucky we might find the famous Pancake Tortoise amongst rock crevices. One morning we drive along the Grumeti River and its adjoining riverine forests where crocodiles bask on the river’s banks and giant Black-and-White Casqued Hornbills, colourful Black-headed Gonoleks, Eastern-Grey Plantain-eaters and the exceedingly rare Karamoja Apalis occur. Overnight at Ikoma Bush Camp in the central Serengeti.

Day 10 - 11: Ngorongoro Crater
After an early breakfast, we pass Olduvai Gorge and descend to Ngorongoro Crater, where diverse habitats offer great wildlife and birding experiences. Lions are common in the crater as are large clans of Spotted Hyenas, Cheetahs rear their cubs on higher ground, Leopards roam the river beds and forests, and herds of gazelle, buffalo, zebra and wildebeest abound. Reedbucks are possible. Elephant bulls roam the crater floor and Black Rhinoceros graze the grasslands. Birding is impressive with Rosy-breasted Longclaw and the Tanzanian endemic Rufous-tailed Weaver, pink masses of Flamingoes covering Lake Magadi and are prey to the ever-present golden jackals that haunt the lakeshores, Cape Teals gather in shallows, and Hildebrandt's Francolins dive off the road when closely approached while Speke's Weavers and Black Kites are common. In the Lodge gardens and along forest roads we look for Brown Parisoma, Oriole Finch, Abyssinian Crimsonwing, Golden-winged Sunbird, Brown-headed Apalis, Hunter’s Cisticola and with luck the rare local sub-species of the Brown-backed Woodpecker- endemic to the Ngorongoro highlands. Overnight at Ngorongo Crater.

Day 12: Pare Mountains
After breakfast we head first to woodlands south of the Pangan River, to search for the elusive Finfoot and may be a Golden Pipit before we proceed to the main road and drive under the shadow of the South Pare mountains while stopping en-route for interesting dry land species. We arrive at the Same Elephant Hills Motel for lunch, then drive up the Pare Mountains to reach the Chome Forest reserve where the endemic South Pare White-eye occurs. Other forest species include Sharpe's Starling and Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike. We may go out at night searching for nightjars.

Day 13: Arid Pare and to West Usambara
After breakfast we set out for Mkomazi game reserve. Nestling in the rain shadow of the Usambara and Pares, the dry, arid woodlands and savannahs of Mkomazi offer a wonderful range of typical arid Somali-Maasai biome species of northeast Africa. We then drive to Lushoto in West Usambara with birding stops en-route in the gorges leading to Lushoto to look for Cliff Chat and variety of swifts. We overnight in quaint Muller’s Lodge which offers great birding with home-made meals and colonial atmosphere accommodation. Overnight at Muller’s Mountain Lodge.

Day 14: Lushoto (West Usambara)
Today we visit Magamba Forest – the sawmill trail. The West Usambara Mountains support a species found nowhere else in the world, the Usambara Akalat; they are also home to the localized Usambara Weaver. Other rare forest gems include Oriole Finch, Spot-throat, Usambara (Mountain) Greenbul, (Usambara) Double-banded Sunbird, (Usambara) Olive Thrush, Fulleborn's Boubou, Red-capped Tailorbird, Starred Robin and many others. Overnight at Muller’s Mountain Lodge.

Days 15 - 16: Amani (East Usambara)
We depart early en-route to the East Usambara Mountains. Upon arrival we enjoy birding the lowland forests in and below the Sigi section of the Amani reserve which support a plethora of exciting forest birds - East Coast Akalat, Chestnut-fronted Helmet-shrike, Red-tailed Ant-thrush, Kretchmer's Longbill, Usambara Hyliota and the stunning Green-headed Oriole, all target birds on our list. We also look for the gracious Angola Pied Colobus monkeys leaping from tree to tree and by torchlight after dark might chance a rare glimpse of a gliding Derby's Anomaloure or one of many frogs and chameleons. Although the East Usumbaras are geographically very close to the West Usambara, the avifauna is dramatically different and these mountains are an incredibly exciting birding destination. This ancient arc of crystalline mountains is jam-packed with specialties such as Sharpe's Akalat, Cabanis Bunting, Southern Banded Snake-Eagle, Banded Green, Amani and Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbirds, Green Barbet, Fischer's Turaco, Vanga Flycatcher, White-breasted Alethe and the bizarre Long-billed Tailorbird, a relict species closely tied to Asia. Overnight at Amani Guest House-forest bungalows. Note: Accommodation is of very simple standard.

Day 17: Amani-Kilimanjaro
After breakfast, we drive to Kilimanjaro and arrive at Kia lodge for day use room and rest. In the evening, we short transfer to Kilimanjaro international airport and connect with our flights home.

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What to Expect

We often begin birding early in the morning, usually having breakfast before dawn. There will be a few optional nocturnal outings, to search for owls and nightjars. Days will usually start at first light to catch activity in the morning before the day warms up and activity slows down. Generally, the tour will proceed at a relaxed pace; occasionally, activities will involve some longer walks. In general, we keep to less traveled roads and fairly easy walking trails. Tanzania is a diverse country, and we visit montane forests, huge grasslands, arid plains, and expansive wetlands. Short heavy rainfalls can happen at any time, and occasionally humidity is an inconvenience. We stay in mostly good quality accommodations, often in excellent birding localities and frequently with a swimming pool. We may rest for a mid-day 'siesta' on some days. We lunch at a local restaurant or take a picnic lunch into the field. During leisurely dinners we discuss the day's activities and review the day's list of sightings, and make plans for the next day. There will be innumerably splendid photographic opportunities!

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