Tanzania is blessed with a diverse range of natural and cultural resources that make it an ideal destination for ecotourism. Ecotourism is a type of tourism that focuses on responsible travel practices and promotes the conservation of natural and cultural heritage. Tanzania’s ecotourism offerings include national parks, game reserves, community-based tourism initiatives and cultural experiences that showcase the unique way of life of various indigenous communities. These offerings provide travelers with the opportunity to connect with nature, learn about different cultures and contribute to the conservation of the environment and local communities. Below is how we spent our 12 days Tanzania trip.

This Tanzania tour was the best one for observing Tanzania National Game Parks with endless wild game and beautiful landscape. On arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, we were picked by a professional driver/guide - Omega from Ecotours Tanzania and transferred to accommodation in the midst of a coffee plantation. After lunch, we visited the Maasai market and also the Tanzanite Museum for some souvenirs of the glittering kind. We bought some souvenirs from the lodge made by a group of people with disabilities called Shanga Shangaa. We enjoyed the tranquility of the gardens and coffee plantation. Our sleepover and dinner on that day was on Arusha Coffee Lodge.

After a beautiful night at Kibo Palace Hotel - Arusha, we embarked on our journey to Lake Manyara National Game Park, the place known for tree climbing lions. We spent almost 2 hours on the way. We drove through Mto Wa Mbu/Maasai Boma where we got a chance to see the Maasai performing their traditional dances and along the way, we stopped by for shopping fruits and souvenirs.

Lake Manyara National Game Park is home to a diverse ecosystem which contains a range of habitats, including a soda lake, acacia woodland, equatorial forest, several types of Savannah and even mountain slopes.

Lake Manyara National Game Park is a home to about 400 bird species and it is a paradise for bird enthusiasts. The park also contains water buffaloes, zebras, antelopes, wildebeests, and the world’s largest concentration of baboons. On arrival in the park, checked in Lake Manyara tree lodge for lunch and spent the rest of the hours at relaxation at the lodge.

The following day, we had a full day of game drive in the park. Manyara National Game Park offers some of the best game viewing in the world. We saw a lot of Africa’s most well-known animals such as monkeys, elephants, giraffes, cheetahs, antelopes, gazelles, baboons, hyenas and leopards with the tree-climbing lions a particular treat. This park is also a bird-watchers’ paradise since it has a huge variety of birds. We spotted a lot of bird species such as Crowned Plover, Grey Crowned Crane, Fischer's Sparrow Lark, Two-banded courser, Black-faced Sand grouse, Silvery-cheeked Horn bill, Narina Trogon, Crowned Horn bill, Schalow's Turaco, Emerald Cuckoo, Crowned Eagle, ground dwelling Crested Guinea fowl and many more. We had our lunch at Msasa Picnic site while having spectacular views of the Lake Manyara. In the evening, we returned to the lodge for dinner and sleepovers.

On the 2nd day after breakfast, we left the Lake Manyara Tortilis Camp and drive via Ngorongoro crater and headed towards the Serengeti National Game Park leaving the highlands behind. We descended into the heart of wild Africa, the Serengeti National Game Park with its endless plains rolling into the distance as far as the eye can see. We had an en-route visit to the Olduvai Gorge and experienced a lot about the man cradle. We headed to the central park area known as the Seronera area one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park featuring the Seronera River which provides a valuable water source to this area and therefore attracts wildlife well representative of most of the Serengeti’s species. We had our lunch, dinner and the following day’s breakfast at Serengeti Tortilis Tented Camp.

On the 3rd day, we spent a full day exploring the vast Serengeti plains. After an early morning breakfast, we went for an early morning game drive. At sunrise, we encountered some animals grazing in the beautiful light of sunrise and the guide told us that the predators were still busy hunting before retiring to rest for the day. Sunrise on the Serengeti is something that should not be missed and extraordinary photographic opportunities abound at this magical time of day.

On this day, we also witnessed the great migration and river crossing of the wildebeests accompanied with other animals.  We had our picnic lunch near the Serengeti hippo pool which enjoying a beautiful scenery.  After lunch, we continued with a game drive where we spotted wildlife animals such as Cheetah, Lions, Leopards, Buffaloes, African elephants, Rhinoceros and many more animals. In the evening, we met our driver and returned to the lodge for dinner and sleepovers.

On the 4^th day, we kicked off the day with a once in a lifetime experience of soaring above the Serengeti in an air balloon. Took in the awe-inspiring views from above as we witnessed the Serengeti’s wildlife from a bird’s eye perspective. After landing, we celebrated this activity with a champagne breakfast amidst nature. Returned to the lodge for relaxation and lunch. After lunch, we went for a birding safari. The Serengeti National Game Park is a home to about 500 recorded species of birds. 100 of them are permanent residents of the park while 11 are endemic. There are also migratory birds that visit the park between November and April. Therefore, this Tanzania tour can be combined with the southern, western circuit or Zanzibar or may be to the other East African regions.

They come all the way from Europe and North Africa. On this birding safari, we saw a variety of bird species such as the great African Ostrich, vultures, Black-headed Heron, D’Arnaud’s barbet, Dark Chanting Goshawk, Decken-Toko Tockus, Grey-breasted spur fowl, Grey-headed sparrow, Purple Grenadier, Red-backed scrub, Rufous-tailed weaver, Secretary birds, the Kori bustard, Variable Sun bird, White-bellied go-away bird, White-crowned shrike, Yellow-throated sand grouse among others.

On the 5^th day after having a beautiful experience in the beautiful Serengeti National Game Park, started the journey to the picturesque Ngorongoro Crater and on arrival, we just checked in at Ngorongoro Crater lodge for lunch and refreshments. In the afternoon, we went for a Maasai cultural walk and learnt about the local customs, traditional plant uses and ancient stories of the tribal people that call this region home.

The 6^th day was for a game drive and also a Maasai cultural walk in the Maasai areas. Game drives are the key to safari’s success in the Ngorongoro Crater allowing tourists to spend a full day reveling in the extraordinary wildlife found in the region as we did. Walks and hikes are a great way to vary a tourist’s experience and explore the spectacular scenery. While a Maasai cultural walk will introduce a visitor to the local customs, traditional plant uses and ancient stories of the tribal people who stay within this region.

The 7^th day, we had a morning game drive around the crater where we spotted lions, buffaloes, black rhinos, elephants, leopards, elands, wildebeests, zebras, gazelles, hippos and many other animals. In the afternoon, we had lunch and later transferred to Kilimanjaro International Airport for a flight to Dar es salaam. On arrival, we checked in at Coral Beach Hotel Dar Es Salaam for dinner and sleepovers.

The 8^th day after having our breakfast at the hotel, we embarked on our journey to Mikumi National Park with an en-route stopover at the local market to experience Tanzanian culture and savor authentic flavors. Upon arrival, we checked in at Mikumi Wildlife Camp for lunch and refreshments. After lunch, we went for an afternoon game drive in the park.

The park is endowed with spectacular concentration of wildlife which are rarely seen in other parks like magnificent Sable antelope, African hunting dog, blue wildebeest, Lichtenstein's hartebeest and others. The gentle foothills and vast miombo woodland savanna in the southern parts of the park are quite spectacular.

Some of the wildlife animals we spotted on this game drive include; elephant, giraffe, buffalo, Burchell's zebra, sable, eland, Liechtenstein's hartebeest, lion, leopard, spotted hyena, cheetah, jackal and many more. At the end of the day, we returned to our accommodation for dinner and night sleepovers.

On the 9^th day, we spent the morning hours at relaxation at the camp. In the afternoon after having our lunch, we went for a guided bush walk that was led by knowledgeable guide who gave us detailed information about everything we came across. On this walk, we discovered some animals such as elephants, buffaloes, hippos, lions, leopards, hyenas among others. After having a short game drive, we headed to Ruaha National Park and upon arrival, we checked in at Kwihala Camp for dinner and sleepovers.

On our last day early in the morning, we went for a morning game drive in Ruaha National Park where we spotted elephants, zebras, lions, giraffes, hunting dogs, ostriches, greater and lesser kudu, grants gazelles, striped hyena, sable and roan antelopes, crocodile and hippos mainly in Ruaha River. After a morning game drive, we returned to the camp for a heavy breakfast and after checked out the camp, met the driver for a transfer to Dar Es Salaam to catch up with our flight back home and that was the end of our 12 days trip in Tanzania and we really had good moments with the Nature Adventure African Safari team.