Ngorongoro Crater

Ngorogoro crater is a gorgeous park with a unique feel all of its own due to its higher altitude and location at the bottom of a crater (technically a caldera - collapsed volcano). There were lots of wildlife everywhere in a relatively concentrated area. We saw a few lions, lots of buffalo, hippos, wildebeasts, zebras and birds. The downside is the park was much more crowded with safari vehicles than any other park we visited. There were at least 30 jeeps watching the lions we saw with us which is nothing like the relative privacy we experienced in the Serengheti or Tarangire where there were rarely more than 3 or 4 jeeps around at any time and often we were the only jeep viewing animals we came across.

A bit too commercial with too many safari tour vehicles.

Ngorongoro is fantastically concentrated, but doesn't have the vast space of the Serengeti

Stunning place, lots of sightings!

Saw black rhinos and beautiful birds, great!

Male lions, Rhino's, Hyenas Galore!

The drive to the crater is beautiful. Once inside, its not a scenic, but the wildlife is plenteous! I've been on a few safaris', and have never had male & female lions (hyenas, etc) walk up to our safari vehicles as they do in Ngorongoro. We could practically pet the lions! They look soo peaceful! If we hadn't seen a kill the day earlier, the lions' beautiful expressions and calm demeanor would have lulled us into a sense of naitivity!

Summer months are good - as the animals have to return to the parks and conservation areas for water (because the rainy season has ended). Weather is also stellar.

Picking a good tour operator is important. Ngorongoro crater is pretty open, so its easier to see safari vehicles conglomerate together. But if you're in the other parks, an experienced safari driver is highly recommended. Within 3 hours of one park, by God's grace (and we attribute this to prayer!), we say 2 sets of lions eating zebra, wiildebeast, and saw a lionness kill another wildebeast! We met a group that evening that didn't see any lions! We highly recommend Kilidove Tours. His team is not only highly knowledgeable (and they teach you their wisdom!), the owner grew up as an orphan and supports 4 - 5 orphans in their schooling! So you're not only getting the best tour company, but supporting a great organization. Its important, and you'll see this, that the operator understands the animals habits and how to maximize your photography experience.

A truly magical experience, taking me hundreds of years back in time!

Ngorongoro crater is a truly special and unique place. I arrived at Ngorongoro close to sunset, pitched the tent and rested for the exciting day to come. 

On waking up early the next morning, the whole place was covered in fog. The slow descend from the 2100m peak to the bottom set the pace followed by an increase in my heart beat from emotions and expectations. As the 4WD went down and the mist slowly faded away, a feeling of time travel to the past filled the atmosphere.

Surprisingly, the first animals spotted were cows, taken care by Maasai farmers. As explained by our guide, they manage to live in harmony with the predators in the crater (apparently the Maasai rub the bodies of the cattle with a smelly protective herb in order to keep lions away.) What a surprise to witness cows and wild predators living so close to each other.

As the vehicle drove along the caldera roads, wildlife popped up like popcorns. In fact, this place has one of the highest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. 

Roaming along we came across ostriches, buffalos, wildebeests, zebras, elephants and many different birds. These are cool animals for first time safaris but the interesting game was yet to come. 

Lions were resting on the road and along the side of the road like true kings. Probably their last moments in the open before going away to rest for the day.

Lions are nocturnal and sleep up to 20 hours a day. One can tell they are nocturnal because the area below their eyes is white, just like leopards, to reflect moonlight. Cheetahs, on the other hand, hunt during the day and have black stripes to aid their vision.

We saw a lioness guiding her 4 cubs to safety in the tall grass before leaving for a hunt. It was impossible to tell where the cubs were just moments after their mother left them. We didn't follow the hunt and continued roaming in this nostalgic and amazing reserve until after lunch.

A truly magical time travelling experience, the ancient caldera definitely lives up to its name.

A must see.

The park is so big that it is hard to see a fraction of it in 1 day. The animals are scattered around in the wild and their is not enough dirt roads to see them all.

Lots of wildlife - but passive experience

We did the Northern Circuit, including Ngorongoro in December of 2017. The amount of wildlife seen was mind boggling. However, sitting in the car for 12+ hours per day started to get boring and the experience felt passive. Next time I would like to mix up the experience with fewer days of driving and include more culture or walking activities.