Ngongoro includes a complex of natural sites located near the Great African Rift in north-eastern Tanzania, near the border with Kenya.

Once a part of a huge Serengeti reserve, now a huge crater in Tanzania on the edge of the savannah, created as a result of the collapse of a large volcano, is an independent natural landmark and is called the Ngorongoro Conservation Area .This giant tropical park is listed in the UNESCO "Natural World Heritage" due to the unique habitat .Imprisoned in the picturesque natural cage of the crater, the animal world of Ngorongoro is diverse and surprising .In addition to the caldera, the territory includes the Olduvai gorge, plateaus, mountains, high-mountain forests and lakes .

How to get here

To Arusha by plane, train or bus. From Arusha - on light-engine aircraft (travel time 1 hour). Or by car - travel time is 4 hours, 180 km.

Directly on the territory of Ngorongoro there are two landing sites: on the south-eastern edge of the crater near Serena and Crater Logde and near the Serengeti National Park at Ndutu Lodge.

For entering Ngorongoro you have to pay $ 200 from the car, plus $ 50 for each person. If you exceed the 6-hour stay in the park, you will have to pay the cost of one more day when leaving.

Behavior rules

The entrance to the Ngorongoro Reservation is through a high stone arch, framed by shops and cash desks. Here it is worth taking care of brazen baboons, unceremoniously stealing handbags and food. Moreover, it is strictly forbidden to feed monkeys in the reserve. Also, you can not leave cars in national parks, you can do this only strictly in certain places and on viewing platforms. To reach the bottom of the caldera and to admire the herds of the most diverse animals, it is necessary to drive along the crest about 25 kilometers.

Entertainment, excursions and attractions Ngorongoro

The Ngorongoro Crater is the main object located in the south-eastern part of the territory. The diameter of the crater reaches 21 km. Also interesting are the Olmoti and Empakaai craters, the Olduvai gorge, the Serengeti and Salé plateaus, Ndutu lake and Masek.

In addition to the Empakaya crater, filled with water, pink from flamingo flocks, there is also the active volcano Aldonio-Lenga. Lake Magami also became home to a huge population of flamingos and a bathing place for elephants, buffaloes and hippos. Among the stones you can find dikdiks, on the plain - wildebeest, zebras and gazelles, foxes, two kinds of jackals, reed goats, large antelopes, in the forests there are impala, congonies and Bush Boki, wild boar, lions, hyenas, cheetahs and leopards.

Another feature of the park is the ubiquitous Masai. It was thanks to the efforts of this warlike tribe, the ancient inhabitants of this region, that Ngorongoro became an independent protected area. Having become an integral part of the crater's heritage, the Masai enthusiastically accepted the responsibilities of entrepreneurs, launching a noisy trade in national ornaments, handicrafts with tourists.

The Olduvai Gorge

To visit the place where such relics as prehistoric elephants, giant sheep and ostriches were found, it is worth to go to the Olduvai gorge, which is located in the Ngorongoro protected area, 180 km from the Ngorongoro National Park. In the same place there is a rock of Nazar Rock 100-meter height on which traces of stay of the person in prehistoric period are found out. Ancient drawings belong to the ancestors of the present Maasai.

As a result of archaeological excavations in the Olduvai gorge, the area was recognized as the "cradle" of human civilization.

Best friends, Ngorongoro

Big-eared foxes, Ngorongoro

Leopard, Ngorongoro

Flock of hyenas, Ngorongoro

Flock of impal, Ngorongoro