Luxury Tanzania: Fly-in Safari of the Northern Circuit

After a relaxed breakfast you transfer to the airstrip for a scenic light-aircraft flight to Tarangire, gaining your first breathtaking view of Tanzania from the air. You are met on the airstrip and driven to your exclusive tented camp, superbly set amid the baobabs and overlooking the plains, in time for a gourmet lunch. In the afternoon you set out on a private game drive through this most atmospheric of parks, a rolling landscape of golden grassland studded with ancient, swollen baobabs and threaded by the Tarangire River. You seek out the park's famous elephant herds, some of the largest in Tanzania, along with lion, giraffe, zebra and abundant birdlife, at your own unhurried pace. At golden hour you pause for a private sundowner in a spectacular setting. This evening, dine beneath the stars at your luxury camp. Rest well in beautiful Tarangire.

Today you have a full, unhurried day to savour Tarangire from your exclusive camp, entirely at your own pace. In the cool of the morning you set out on a private game drive to find the great elephant herds among the giant baobabs, along with lions resting in the shade, leopards, giraffes and the elegant fringe-eared oryx, your expert guide reading the bush brilliantly and lingering wherever the wildlife leads. You might enjoy a gourmet bush breakfast in a beautiful setting, or a guided walking safari that reveals the smaller wonders of the wilderness on foot. You return to camp during the heat of the day for a leisurely lunch, a rest, the pool or a spa treatment, then head out again for a golden-hour drive and private sundowners as the sky blazes over the plains. This evening, savour candlelit dining under the stars. Rest well in Tarangire.

This morning, after breakfast, you fly onwards to the Serengeti, soaring over the Rift Valley and the vast plains before landing deep in the park, where you are met and driven to your exquisite tented camp, perhaps a suite with a private plunge pool overlooking the endless grassland. The Serengeti, a vast ocean of golden savannah dotted with acacias and granite kopjes, offers some of the finest wildlife viewing on earth. After a gourmet lunch you set out on a private afternoon game drive, seeking out lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants and, in season, the vast herds of the Great Migration, at your own unhurried pace. At golden hour you pause for a private sundowner in a spectacular setting, the plains stretching to the horizon. This evening, dine beneath a canopy of brilliant stars, pampered by impeccable service. Rest well in the heart of the Serengeti.

Today holds one of the great experiences of any safari. Before dawn you rise and drift silently up into the lightening sky in a hot-air balloon, floating over the endless Serengeti plains as the sun rises, elephants, giraffes and great herds moving far below, the light turning from rose to gold, an unforgettable, magical experience. After landing you are treated to a full champagne breakfast laid out in the bush, a table set with linen and crystal amid the wilderness. You continue with a private game drive, savouring the wildlife in the soft morning light. The rest of the day is yours to enjoy at leisure, with further private game drives or relaxation at your luxurious camp, the pool and the spa. At golden hour, private sundowners crown the day. This evening, savour gourmet dining under the stars. Rest well in the beautiful Serengeti.

You have a full, unhurried day to explore the Serengeti in supreme comfort, entirely at your own pace. At dawn, when the predators are active, you set out on a private game drive to seek lion prides on their kills, cheetahs hunting on the open plains, and leopards draped in the riverine trees, and in season to follow the vast migrating herds and their crocodile-lined river crossings, your expert guide going wherever the wildlife leads. You might enjoy a gourmet bush breakfast or picnic lunch in a spectacular setting, or a guided walking safari with an armed ranger. You return to your exclusive camp during the heat of the day for leisurely dining, the pool, a spa treatment or simply to relax on your private deck overlooking the plains. In the late afternoon you head out again, ending with private sundowners as the sky blazes. This evening, savour dining under the stars. Rest well in the Serengeti.

This morning, after a final Serengeti game drive and breakfast, you fly towards the Ngorongoro region, perhaps with a scenic transfer past Olduvai Gorge, the celebrated Cradle of Mankind, before arriving at a luxurious lodge perched on the very rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, one of the most spectacular hotel settings on earth. Vast windows and terraces gaze out over the immense caldera far below, and every comfort awaits, from elegant suites to gourmet dining and warm, personal service. After a leisurely lunch you might explore the beautiful highlands, relax and take in the extraordinary panorama, or enjoy the lodge's indulgent pleasures as the afternoon light plays across the crater floor. As the cool highland evening falls, you dine in refined comfort overlooking the caldera, the anticipation of tomorrow's descent building. Rest well on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, in supreme style.

Today you descend into the Ngorongoro Crater, the world's largest intact volcanic caldera and one of the great wonders of Africa, for a private day among its extraordinary wildlife. You wind down onto the crater floor, entering a vast natural amphitheatre teeming with one of the densest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. With your private vehicle and expert guide you explore its grassland, swamp, soda lake and forest, seeing all of the Big Five, with an excellent chance of the rare black rhino, alongside great lion prides, tusker elephants, buffalo, hippos, flamingos and countless plains game, all beneath the towering rim. You enjoy a gourmet picnic in a beautiful spot amid the wildlife before climbing back to your luxurious rim lodge. As the afternoon light softens over the caldera, you relax and savour this sublime place. This evening, enjoy a final gourmet dinner overlooking the crater. Rest well above one of the world's greatest wonders.

After a final leisurely morning on the Ngorongoro Crater rim, perhaps a last gaze over the caldera or a highland walk, you fly or drive back towards Arusha and Kilimanjaro International Airport for your onward international departure, your journey seamlessly arranged to the last. You leave having experienced the ultimate Tanzanian safari, soaring between the baobabs of Tarangire, the endless plains of the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater, staying in the most exclusive camps and lodges in Africa, and enjoying private game drives, a dawn balloon flight, guided walks, sundowners and dining under the stars, all with impeccable, personal service. The images stay vivid long after you land, the balloon over golden plains, the suite above the Serengeti, and the vast crater teeming with life. Tanzania offers the greatest wildlife with the finest hospitality, and you depart already dreaming of a return to this peerless land.