Tanzania Photo Safari:
Wildebeest Birthing Season
Dates: February 20 - March 4, 2028
Fee: $10,995 (includes lodging and ground transportation)
Deposit: $1,500 (balance due by July 2027)
Limit: 8-9 participants (spouses or non-photographers are welcome)
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Location
Tanzania, Africa
Fee
$10,995
Dates
Feb. 20 - March 4, 2028
Fitness Level
Easy
An Exceptional Time for Wildlife Photography
A photo safari in East Africa is often described as a once-in-a-lifetime experience and February in northern Tanzania can be an especially extraordinary time to be there.
This safari has been designed around Tanzania's premier wildlife and photographic locations during the February calving season. We will explore the legendary Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, and Ndutu, within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, spending multiple days in locations where we have excellent opportunities to experience and photograph wildlife at its most active.
February is a particularly exciting time in this ecosystem. The annual wildebeest migration follows the rains and availability of fresh, nutrient-rich grasses. During this period, enormous herds gather across the Southern Serengeti and Ndutu plains, where hundreds of thousands of wildebeest calves are born over a relatively short period.
The abundance of newborn animals creates a remarkable concentration of life and predators are never far away. Lions, cheetahs, leopards, hyenas and other predators take advantage of this seasonal abundance, creating exciting opportunities for behavioral photography. We will also be watching for young predators, as many species time their breeding cycles to coincide with the abundance of prey.
Of course, wildlife never follows a script. We cannot guarantee any particular sighting or behavior, but our itinerary, experienced guides, and generous time in the field are designed to give us the best possible opportunity to witness and photograph these remarkable events as they unfold naturally.
Your Photography Experience
Nikhil will work closely with a team of knowledgeable and experienced local driver-guides throughout the safari. Their understanding of the terrain, wildlife behavior, and seasonal movements will be an important part of our experience in the field.
We will travel in our own private 4x4 Land Cruisers, used for both game drives and transfers between locations. Each vehicle will accommodate a maximum of three photographers, with each photographer having an entire row of seating to themselves.
This arrangement is particularly valuable on a photo safari. Having a full row allows you to settle comfortably into your preferred position, keep camera bodies and lenses readily accessible, and move between shooting positions without having to work around a crowded vehicle.
With only three photographers per vehicle, we can also be more responsive when an opportunity develops. Whether repositioning for better light, finding a cleaner background, or simply waiting for interesting behavior to unfold, we have the space and flexibility to make the most of each encounter.
Our driver-guides understand that this is a photographic safari, not simply a wildlife-viewing trip. We will take the time needed to work with the light, composition, background, and most importantly, the behavior of the animals.
Location Details
Ngorongoro Crater
The Ngorongoro Crater is the world's largest inactive, intact, and unfilled volcanic caldera. Its dramatic walls surround a 260-square-kilometer wildlife-rich floor that supports an extraordinary concentration of animals. We can expect opportunities to photograph lion, elephant, buffalo, cheetah, zebra, wildebeest, hippo, and numerous antelope species, with the possibility of seeing the increasingly rare black rhino.
The combination of abundant wildlife and spectacular scenery makes the crater an exceptional photographic environment, and our two full days will allow us to explore at a relaxed pace.
Ndutu
Ndutu is likely to be one of the highlights of the safari. The area is famous for the annual wildebeest migration and, in February, the spectacular calving season.
The short-grass plains provide highly nutritious grazing, attracting enormous herds and hundreds of thousands of newborn calves. The concentration of prey also attracts predators, making this an exceptional time for wildlife photography. We will be looking for newborn animals, predator activity, family groups, and natural behaviors. With luck, we may even witness a wildebeest giving birth...an extraordinary encounter that cannot be planned or guaranteed.
Serengeti
Few wildlife destinations are as iconic as the Serengeti. Its vast plains support an incredible diversity of wildlife and form the stage for the world's largest terrestrial mammal migration. The Serengeti is particularly renowned for its lions, cheetahs, and leopards, but we will also encounter elephants, buffalo, giraffes, hippos, hyenas, gazelles, zebras, wildebeest, and abundant birdlife.
Our location will put us close to wildlife while providing opportunities to photograph both intimate animal portraits and expansive environmental images. The beautiful early-morning and evening light should provide especially rewarding photographic conditions.
More Than a Wildlife Safari
Although wildlife is at the heart of our journey, this safari is also an opportunity to experience the landscapes, people, cultures, and rhythms of Tanzania. From the dramatic rim of Ngorongoro Crater to the vast plains of Ndutu and Serengeti, the scenery will continually change. We will also have opportunities to visit a Maasai community, learn about local coffee production, and explore the fascinating history of Olduvai Gorge.
Most importantly, we have built the itinerary to give us time to wait for the right light, watch an animal's behavior unfold, return to a productive location, and occasionally put the cameras down and simply appreciate where we are. The goal is to return home with more than photographs. We hope to return with memories of extraordinary encounters, remarkable landscapes, and the experience of seeing Tanzania at one of the most exciting times of the year.
Tanzania Photo Safari Itinerary
The itinerary below is designed to give you a clear sense of the logistics, travel days, and approximate timing of the safari. More detailed information about each location, along with the photographic opportunities we hope to encounter, can be found in the preceding section.
While we have a planned schedule, wildlife always has the final say! Our days will be structured around maximizing our time in the field when conditions and sightings are most promising. When logistically possible, we will take a break during the heat of the afternoon. Temperatures can reach approximately 85°F, and wildlife activity often slows during these hours. This gives us an opportunity to return to camp, enjoy lunch, download and review images, and recharge before heading back out.
That said, we will always remain flexible. If an exceptional sighting develops, we may stay out longer, leave camp earlier, or adjust our plans to take advantage of the photographic opportunities in front of us. On safari, some of the most memorable moments are the ones that cannot be scheduled.
Day 1 (February 20) - Arrival in Arusha
Welcome to Tanzania!
After arriving at Kilimanjaro International Airport in the evening, you will be met and transferred to Arusha. This first night is intentionally easy, giving us a chance to settle in, enjoy our first evening in Tanzania, and prepare for the adventure ahead.
Overnight: Arusha
Day 2 (February 21) - Arusha National Park
Today gives us a chance to recover from the journey while beginning to ease into the rhythm of an African safari.
After lunch, we will head into Arusha National Park for our first afternoon game drive. This is our opportunity to get our cameras working, start looking for wildlife, and experience our first taste of Tanzania's landscapes and wildlife.
We will return to Arusha for dinner and a relaxing evening.
Overnight: Arusha
Day 3 (February 22) Arusha to Lake Manyara
After breakfast, we will begin our journey toward the Lake Manyara area. Once we arrive at our lodge, we will settle in and enjoy lunch before heading out for an afternoon safari in Lake Manyara National Park.
Lake Manyara offers a wonderful change of scenery, with a mix of forest, open plains, wetlands, and lake habitat. It is also an excellent place to begin building our wildlife portfolio, with opportunities for mammals, colorful birds, and interesting environmental images. After our afternoon in the park, we will return to the lodge for dinner and an evening of rest.
Overnight: Lodge near Lake Manyara
Day 4 (February 23) - Lake Manyara to Ngorongoro Crater
We will begin the day with a morning game drive in Lake Manyara before continuing toward the Ngorongoro Highlands.
Along the way, we will have the opportunity to visit a local coffee maker and learn how coffee is produced, from the initial preparation through the finished product. You'll even have a chance to participate in the process, making this a wonderful opportunity for a cultural experience and photography.
We will then continue toward the Ngorongoro Crater, stopping at a Maasai village along the way. This visit provides an opportunity to learn more about local traditions and daily life while experiencing a very different side of Tanzania beyond its wildlife. By evening, we will arrive at our special lodge on the crater rim, where we can enjoy the spectacular setting and prepare for two full days exploring the crater.
Overnight: Lodge at Ngorongoro Crater
Days 5-6 (February 24-25) - Ngorongoro Crater
These are two full days dedicated to one of Tanzania's most remarkable wildlife destinations: Ngorongoro Crater.
We will descend into the crater each morning and spend the day photographing its remarkable concentration of wildlife. The crater's varied habitats create opportunities for a wide range of species and photographic situations, from intimate animal portraits to sweeping landscape images.
We will carry picnic lunches with us so that we can make the most of our time in the crater rather than interrupting the day with a return to the lodge. We will head back in the afternoon and enjoy dinner at the lodge.
With two full days in the crater, we will have the flexibility to follow the wildlife and spend time with particularly productive sightings rather than rushing from one location to another.
Overnight: Lodge near Ngorongoro Crater
Day 7 (February 26) - Ngorongoro Crater to Ndutu
After breakfast, we will leave the Ngorongoro area and make our way toward Ndutu, where we will spend the next four nights.
En route, we will stop at Olduvai Gorge for a short tour of this historically significant area. The gorge provides an interesting connection to the deep human history of the region and adds an important cultural and geological dimension to our safari.
We will then continue into the Ndutu area and settle into our lodge, ready for several days focused heavily on wildlife and photography.
Overnight: Lodge in Ndutu
Days 8-10 (February 27-March 1) - Ndutu
These three days are among the most exciting of the safari from a photographic perspective.
The Ndutu area is renowned for the annual wildebeest migration, and we can expect to encounter large concentrations of wildebeest across the landscape. This is also an important calving period, making the area particularly interesting for observing behavior and capturing intimate wildlife stories.
We will keep a close eye out for newborn calves and the interactions that inevitably follow. If conditions are right and luck is on our side, we may even have the extraordinary opportunity to witness and photograph a wildebeest giving birth.
Beyond the migration itself, we will remain alert for predators and the many other species that are drawn to this abundance of life. These days will be flexible and driven largely by what the wildlife is doing.
Overnight: Lodge in Ndutu
Day 11 (March 2) - Ndutu to the Serengeti
After a morning game drive, we will leave Ndutu and continue into the Serengeti.
We will carry a picnic lunch with us, allowing us to make the most of our time in the field as soon as we enter the park. Rather than treating this as simply a transfer day, we will take our time and photograph along the way, watching the landscape and wildlife change as we make our way deeper into the Serengeti.
Our goal is to arrive at camp around sunset, giving us the opportunity to settle in and enjoy our new surroundings.
We have selected a remote camp as our base for the next two nights, positioning us in an area where we hope to be close to productive wildlife activity and away from some of the busier safari routes.
Overnight: Serengeti camp
Day 12 (March 3) - Serengeti
Our final full day in the Serengeti begins with an early sunrise game drive.
The morning light can be spectacular, and we will be out early looking for opportunities with big cats, hippos, and the many other species that inhabit this part of the Serengeti. Birdlife will also be an important part of the day, providing opportunities for both larger environmental compositions and detailed bird photography.
One of our hoped-for encounters is the elusive leopard. Sightings are never guaranteed, but the possibility of finding one is part of what makes these days so exciting.
We will return to camp for lunch and an afternoon break before heading back into the field around 4:00 p.m. The afternoon drive will once again be guided by the wildlife, light, and photographic opportunities we encounter.
Overnight: Serengeti camp
Day 13 (March 4) - Serengeti to Arusha and departure
Our final morning begins with one last sunrise game drive in the Serengeti. This is our last opportunity to capture those beautiful early-morning moments before we make our way to the airstrip.
We will board our charter flight back to Arusha, where we will have time for lunch and some shopping. A day room will be available to us, giving everyone a comfortable place to freshen up, organize luggage, and repack camera equipment before the journey home.
Later in the day, we will transfer to Kilimanjaro International Airport for our evening flights out of Tanzania.
And, hopefully, we will leave Tanzania with full memory cards, plenty of stories, and photographs that bring the experience back to life long after we return home.
Itinerary Includes:
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All lodging (based on double occupancy; single supplement is $950*)
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Ground transportation and air transfer from Serengeti to Arusha
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Services of experienced guides and drivers
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Water during game drives
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All meals at the lodges/camps
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All necessary permits and park fees
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All in the field instruction
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Comprehensive and detailed information packet including logistics details, packing and equipment lists, and more
Itinerary Does Not Include:
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Airfare to Tanzania
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Visa
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Travel insurance (insuremytrip.com)
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Extra activities not specified in the itinerary
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Any drinks with meals (Please note: to purchase and consume alcohol, you need to be 21 years or older)
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Tips for guides/drivers and lodge/camp staff
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Incidentals