Trip Snapshot

Karatu Because of its location near the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and on the way to the Serengeti, Karatu is a popular stopping-off point for visitors. The relatively high altitude of the town means that it has a pleasantly mild climate. Visiting the local market and some of the unique local tribes, including the Hadzabe, one of the last functioning hunter-gather tribes in Africa, provide interesting cultural experiences to complement the natural beauty of the surrounding area. Lake Natron Lake Natron is a saline lake located in Northern Tanzania, close to the Kenyan border, in Tanzania's Great Rift Valley. Lake Natron is a fascinating, almost surreal location. Due to salt-loving microorganisms that live in the alkali salt crust of the lake's surface, the lake is often red or pink in colour. The lake is also the only breeding site for 2.5 million lesser flamingoes, because the caustic environment is a barrier against predators trying to reach the flamingoes' nests. The lake also supports a vast population of Spirulina, a blue-green algae with red pigments, on which the large population of Lesser Flamingoes feed on. Though you may see some wildlife, really visit this area for its remoteness and scenery. That said, the lake itself is home to a fascinating eco-system which thrives in this harsh environment. The lake is full of millions of Cyanobacteria - a salt loving micro organism which create their own food through photosynthesis. As the lake increases in salinity, so does the population of bacteria. Serengeti National Park The acacia-dotted plains of Serengeti are home to one of the greatest spectacles of the natural world, the Great Migration. Thousands of wildebeests and zebras move across the plains on their annual migration between the Serengeti in Tanzania and the Masai Mara in Kenya. Serengeti is also home to one of Africa’s largest populations of lions as well as many more of Africa’s most evocative wildlife!