This is journey is designed for individuals looking for classic safari complemented with opportunities to visit local communities and learn about successful development projects. Your adventure will take you to some of Africa's premier game parks including Arusha, Serengeti, Tarangire and Ngorongoro national parks. Your journey will include visits to local villages to meet the village officials and learn more about typical village life. There will be opportunities to visit a primary school, a nursery school, and a health project. Accommodations include deluxe lodges constructed of local materials and in harmony with their environment. In the Serengeti and Tarangire parks you will stay in comfortable luxury tented camps, where you will be immersed in the sights and sounds of Africa. Food at all locations is well prepared and delicious.

DAY 1: USA - AMSTERDAM - ARUSHA
On arrival, you will be met at the airport by an Andean & Rainforest Expeditions representative and taken to the hotel. Overnight at the Kigongoni Lodge.

DAY 2: ARUSHA NATIONAL PARK
Morning game drive in Arusha National Park, a small but unique park on the outskirts of town. The park is famous for its finger lakes and mountain habitat. This will be the only location for seeing black and white colobus monkeys and the mountain turacos. Lunch at the lodge. Afternoon visit to the village of Usa River, to meet the village officials and learn more about typical village life, how it is managed and how a village relates to the central government. There will be opportunities to visit the primary school, a nursery school, the village dispensary and to see some of the projects being supported by donations. Overnight at the Manyara Serena Lodge. B,L,D

DAY 3-4: NGORONGORO CRATER
We will spend two days exploring the crater, leaving early in the morning. We will descend from the rim, at about 7,600 feet in elevation, to the floor of the crater some 2,000 feet below for the first game drive. This 102-square-mile crater is the world's largest, unflooded, unbroken caldera. Within its perimeter are thousands of wildebeest, many black rhino, cheetah, gazelle, giraffe, and a high density of lions, hyenas, and other predators. (Recommended reading: The Innocent Killers by Jane and Hugo Van Lawick-Goodall). Flamingos inhabit an alkaline lake in the center of the crater, and other bird life is abundant. We'll spend full days in the crater with picnic lunches, maximizing the time there, and returning as late as possible in order to get the last golden rays of light. Overnight at the Ngorongoro Serena Lodge. This newly built lodge is constructed of local stone, hidden within the forests of the west rim of the crater. It offers a stunning view of the crater, with close proximity to the access road for the descent. Overnights at the Ngorongoro Serena Lodge. B,PL,D

DAY 5-8: SERENGETI
From Ngorongoro we'll drive to the Serengeti, via Ol Karien Gorge, or Olduvai Gorge, the world-renowned site of discoveries of early hominids made by archaeologists Mary and Louis Leakey. The Serengeti is one of the most famous wildlife areas in the world. The park's 5,700 square miles are part of the 9,600-square-mile Mara-Serengeti ecosystem, home to incredible herds of wildebeest and other grazing animals. This vast area consists of treeless central plains, savannah dotted with acacias and granite outcroppings called kopjes, and riparian bush and forest in the north. Although there are never guarantees in the natural world, with any luck we will be able to see huge herds of wildebeest and other plains animals grazing on the savannah. The herds follow the rains and feed on the new grass, so what we will actually see depends upon the weather pattern.

On day 6 researchers from the Serengeti Lion Project will join you at your camp for dinner and a field lecture about their projects. Camping near the herds, away from the tourist lodges, will provide you with unforgettable memories. As you sit around the campfire at night, sounds of wildebeest, hyenas, and lions fill the air. Private luxury mobile camp. B,L,D

DAY 9: SERENGETI - KARATU
We will drive back to the Crater Highlands, stopping along the way to visit a Maasai village. In the afternoon we will have a late lunch and relax at the coffee, flower and cattle plantation, the Plantation Lodge. The inn is situated on an old coffee farm. It has beautiful gardens and exceptional rooms, with en-suite full bathrooms. You will immediately notice the care and attention that went into creating this lodge. Overnight at Plantation Lodge. B,L,D

DAY 10: TARANGIRE
Drive to Tarangire National Park, Tanzania's 4th largest park and considered the most scenic with its huge baobab trees and accacia-dotted hills. Stop along the way at Minjingu village to visit the Mwangaza Project, a medical project that identifies and treats orthopedic conditions in the Tarangire Conservation Area. This is an excellent example of an effective NGO working collaboratively with existing facilities in Tanzania. Children from the area are identified with orthopedic diseases and disabilities and families are counseled and treated by a combination of physicians from the United States and Arusha. Orthopedic surgeries are done at Selian Hospital in Arusha. The day is spent in the village. Arrive in Tarangire in the late afternoon. Kikoti tented camp. B,L,D

DAY 11-12: TARANGIRE
Tarangire is famous for its elephants, leopards, large lion prides, outstanding bird life, giraffes and the rock pythons that live along the large Silale Swamp. Game drives during the day and night drive on day 11. Kikoti tented camp. B,L,D

DAY 13: ARUSHA - AMSTERDAM
This morning we will drive back to Arusha. The remainder of the day will be free, We'll have a dayroom and farewell dinner before departing for the airport in the evening. Kigongoni Lodge. B,L,D

TRIP DIFFICULTY: Moderate activity is required.

INCLUDES: All hotel accommodations based on double occupancy, all park and camping fees and donations to Usa River Village, a contribution to the Serengeti Lion Project and a contribution to the Mwangaza Project. Meals as specified in the itinerary, B=Breakfast; L= Lunch; PL=Picnic Lunch; D=Dinner. English speaking guides. All transfers. Soft drinks and water in the luxury mobile camp.

NOT INCLUDED: International airfares, airport departure taxes or visa fees, excess baggage charges, tips and gratuities for driver guides and camp staff, additional nights during the trip due to flight cancellations, alcoholic beverages or bottled water, snacks, insurance of any kind, laundry, phone calls, radio calls or messages, and items of personal nature.