We may go to a group activity that would take us from Dar es Salaam to Zanzibar to Mombasa, and are considering going on an individual tour to Ngorongoro Crater beforehand.
Two questions:
1) How does Ngorongoro compare with other game parks in eastern and soutern Africa, in terms of scenery and wildlife? I did visit a few parks in Kenya 30 years ago, when I was working in Abidjan, and my wife and I both visited several parks in South Africa, Swaziland and Zambia a few years ago while I was working in Mozambique, so we've seen lots of African wildlife, but have heard that Ngorongoro is unique.
2) Which airlines fly between Dar es Salaam and Arusha? Most of the tours we've looked at start and end in Arusha. We could fly from Nairobi but would want to fly to Dar afterwards. I have found references to flights on Precision Air and Zanzibar air, but I couldn't find flights on their Web sites. Thanks!
manneca
Sep 22, 11, 2:51 pm
Ngororgoro crater is different because it is a crater and all the wildlife are contained in it. At least that's the explanation I got. So, the guides know where the animals hang out and there really isn't a lot of space for them to go elsewhere.
I went a long time ago and things have probably changed.
YVR Cockroach
Sep 22, 11, 3:10 pm
Actually, it's a caldera if you want to get technical. A lot of the animals who dwell in there don't migrate and are in year-round though some wildebeest and zebras do migrate in. Nothing but bull elephants in the caldera as the females and young are up in the rim. Think of it almost as a giant fish bowl/terrarium with a little hole on the side.
You pretty much get all the big animals (elephants, gazelles, wildebeest, giraffes, zebras, rhinos (black, IIRC), lions, buffalo, leopards, even hippos (ancestors of which would have had to make a trek up)).
No flights to Arusha proper (it's a small light a/c field at least when I flew there). Looks for flights from JRO (Kilimanjaro) which can and does handle widebody a/c. It's about 15-20 Km out of Arusha.
johan rebel
Sep 22, 11, 3:13 pm
The crater (which is not a crater, but that's a different story) is pretty cool, but somewhat overrated in my opinion. It is not really that small, the reason the guides find the animals quite easily is more a result of the huge number of vehicles driving around.
There are no animals in the crater that you won't see elsewhere, and some (e.g. leopard) that you are less likely to see there.
I wouldn't go just to the crater and back again, but as part of an itinerary including Lake Manyara (stay in the reserve, not up on the escarpment!) and the Serengeti it is worth a stopover. Make sure you are first vehicle at the descent road gate, i.e. be there at 6 a.m.
Johan
SafariCraig
Sep 22, 11, 4:28 pm
Sounds like a cruise itinerary as all the places mentioned, Dar, Zanzibar and Mombasa, are popular ports of call on the East African coast for the cruise lines. I do not recommend this trip if you are going to consider this a safari. You will feel short changed if you ever go to a different iconic wildlife area in Africa. Here is some info on flights between Dar and JRO (Kilimanjaro Int’l Airport):
From JRO a flight to the Manyara airstrip is the best access point for the Ngorongoro Crater. There is an airstrip on the crater rim but because the weather is so unpredictable and visibility usually pretty terrible, Manyara is the airstrip used 99.9% of the time to fly into the area.
It’s a short flight from JRO to Manyara, less than an hour with possibly some stops en route, as generally all the scheduled flights in East Africa make stops en route to pick up and drop off other passengers. This is a great advantage, in my opinion, as this means the pilots never climb to a very high altitude (the aircraft are many times unpressurized Cessna Caravan 12 seaters or similar). This means the transfer flights essentially become wonderful scenic flights offering an incredible bird’s eye view of the amazing East African landscape below.
You can stay on the Crater rim and there are many fantastic properties there. Or you can stay a bit outside of the Conservancy in the Karatu area.
Thoughts on some of the properties in the area:
-Gibb’s Farm in Karatu - really is awesome and so peaceful away from the hustle and bustle of the crater rim. Great organic food served and they have very much embraced the farm to table movement in their cuisine!
-The Manor at Ngorongoro in Karatu - is stunning. Used to be Kifaru. It is now owned by Elewana, which is the higher end brand (Arusha Coffee Lodge is in that portfolio) that Sopa launched a few years ago when they bought the old Halcyon properties in TZ. They’ve put big money into that property. It’s small, the grounds are lovely, it backs right up to the conservation area, like Gibbs, although the road to get there is a bit hectic. But really a lovely little property that I would recommend.
-Plantation Lodge in Karatu - A bit tired.
-Sopa Lodge on the crater rim - just not my style. Tired and stuck in a time capsule from the 70s/80s.
-Serena Lodge on the crater rim - awesome views. Rooms quite nice and main areas totally palatable and tasteful for such a big property.
-Lemala Camp on the crater rim - Favorite because the tents are really great and it’s an intimate camp with only about 9 tents! It’s got the best access into the crater hands down (their own road into the crater that sits right at the entrance of the camp) and with Ngorongoro being perhaps one of the absolute most crowded game-viewing spots in Africa that is a huge selling point. Lemala clients can get down into the crater and actually enjoy a pretty exclusive Ngorongoro game-viewing experience before most people are still headed to the main gate and access point.
All this in mind, I feel strongly that if you are only going to go to one park or reserve in East Africa, it should be the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. the Mara is simply hands down the best year-round game-viewing in East Africa! I do not recommend you go to the Nogongoro and consider that you have been on safari.
I also STRONGLY encourage you NOT to purchase this trip onboard a cruise ship. You will find the price greatly inflated if you did any comparitive shopping around at all. It behoves you as a consumer to get quotes and check web site prices.
Craig Beal - owner - Travel Beyond
SoCal
Sep 23, 11, 8:48 am
Sounds like a cruise itinerary as all the places mentioned, Dar, Zanzibar and Mombasa, are popular ports of call on the East African coast for the cruise lines. I do not recommend this trip if you are going to consider this a safari. You will feel short changed if you ever go to a different iconic wildlife area in Africa. Here is some info on flights between Dar and JRO (Kilimanjaro Int’l Airport):
All this in mind, I feel strongly that if you are only going to go to one park or reserve in East Africa, it should be the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. the Mara is simply hands down the best year-round game-viewing in East Africa! I do not recommend you go to the Nogongoro and consider that you have been on safari.
I also STRONGLY encourage you NOT to purchase this trip onboard a cruise ship. You will find the price greatly inflated if you did any comparitive shopping around at all. It behoves you as a consumer to get quotes and check web site prices.
Craig Beal - owner - Travel Beyond
Thanks for all the info. No,it's not a cruise. There's a big gathering of many Hash House Harrier groups (aka drinking group with a running problem) in Mombasa, including an optional trip beforehand going from Dar to Zanzibar to Pemba to Mombasa. We were thinking of going to Ngorongoro before meeting the group in Dar. I did visit Masai Mara, but that was nearly 30 years ago (at that time, the border with Tanzania was closed). My wife has not been. Would like to get views of Mt. Kiliminnjaro and Mt. Kenya. We shall see.
SafariCraig
Sep 23, 11, 8:57 am
Although Kilimanjaro is in Tanzania it is best viewed from Kenya. Any of the camps in the Amboseli area have views of Kili. It’s a pretty big mountain!
Tortilis is a nice tented camp and Tawi Lodge is also nice. Ol Donyo in the Great Plains portfolio in the Chyulu Hills area is a great high-end option or Campi Ya Kanzi.
Craig Beal - owner - Travel Beyond
Meneer Guggenheimer
Sep 30, 11, 5:39 am
Two questions:
1) How does Ngorongoro compare with other game parks in eastern and soutern Africa, in terms of scenery and wildlife? I did visit a few parks in Kenya 30 years ago, when I was working in Abidjan, and my wife and I both visited several parks in South Africa, Swaziland and Zambia a few years ago while I was working in Mozambique, so we've seen lots of African wildlife, but have heard that Ngorongoro is unique.
It is Unique. It is the biggest east african zoo where the fences are 800meter high mountain walls.
It is very reachable from Arusha (3 / 4 hours) even in a day trip but I would recommend to do an overnight tour. If you do not mind camping or staying over a cheap local (but clean hotel) it is affordable. Also, you pay for 24 hours so you could do an afternoon and morning. Fees are 60 U$ per pax and a $200 car fee. But the crater is a thing to be seen once in your live.
ALSO YOU WILL NEED 4x4 to go into the crater!
(I can get you into contact with a safe and reliable driver who can take you on safari)
2) Which airlines fly between Dar es Salaam and Arusha? Most of the tours we've looked at start and end in Arusha. We could fly from Nairobi but would want to fly to Dar afterwards. I have found references to flights on Precision Air and Zanzibar air, but I couldn't find flights on their Web sites. Thanks!
Try to fly to Arusha Airport and NOT to JRO. Arusha airport is on the right side of town and you are on your way out direct. Precession and numerous smaller once are flying in and out.
JRO will add at least 1,5 hours drive depending on traffic as you will have to cross Arusha which can be very time consuming.