Northern or Southern Circuit? How to Choose Your First Tanzania Safari

Almost every traveller who writes to us asks the same thing: should I start with the Serengeti, or go south? There’s no wrong answer, but there is a right answer for you.

The Northern Circuit is the Tanzania of postcards. It has the Serengeti plains, Ngorongoro Crater, and the Great Migration. The roads are good, the lodges are plentiful, and the sightings are reliable. It’s also where most visitors go, so at popular sightings you’ll often share the view with other vehicles.

The Southern Circuit trades some of that polish for space. In Nyerere you’ll glide along the Rufiji River in a boat, with hippos grunting beside you and not a single other vehicle in sight. In Ruaha, baobabs stand over a rugged landscape known for its lions. Most of the south is reached by light aircraft, which is exactly why it stays quiet.

Here is how we’d put it simply. Choose the north if the Migration is the dream, if you want maximum wildlife density in a short time, or if you prefer a well-worn route. Choose the south if you value solitude, if you want to get out of the vehicle on a walking or boat safari, or if you’ve already done a classic safari and want something different.

Many guests eventually do both, north first and then south on a return trip. Others flip it and start in the south, and find that the quiet teaches them to see the bush properly. If you have ten days or more, the two can also be linked in a single journey, though it makes for an active itinerary with several flights.

Not sure? Tell us what your ideal safari morning looks like, and we’ll point you in the right direction.