Theme: Culture, People and Real Life Photography tour.

Tribes: Chagga | Hudzabe | Maasai | Sonjo | Datoga | Mbulu | Wa Iraque.

Best Time: All Year Around

You Will Visit: Arusha | Materuni Village | West Kilimanjaro | Monduli Juu Village | Engaruka Village | Lake Natron | Mto wa Mbu  | Lake Eyasi |Ngorongoro Crater | Lake Manyara     

Safari Itinerary:

Arrival in Tanzania;

Our airport team will meet you at Kilimanjaro International Airport and transferred you to the delightful accommodation in Moshi town for the rest after a long international flight.

Day 1: Capture Materuni Waterfall and Chagga tribe cultural Photography:

Our culture and people photography tour starts at Materuni Village, upon arrival you will register at the village office any your trip can begin. First you will visit the waterfalls, which are around a 40 minutes’ walk away. On the way your guide will inform you about the culture of the Chagga, village life and explain the surrounding fauna and Flora. The views are truly breathtaking, and with some luck you will see the summit of Kilimanjaro if the weather will be good. When you reach the waterfall you will see they are more than 80 meters high. After having enjoyed the scenery you slowly return with your guide to Materuni village, where you will experience a traditional Chagga local lunch, you will also have opportunity to taste our local banana beer definitely not to be missed. Next will be the coffee experience are waiting for you. Here you will learn how coffee cultivated, dried, roasted and further processed. You will also be invited to help with grinding of the coffee, which is traditional accompanied by Chagga songs and dances. After all before you say goodbye you can buy a package of coffee to your home as the memory.

Day 2: Driving To West Kilimanjaro:

After breakfast, taking 3 hours drives to Western Kilimanjaro via Sanya Juu, arriving at the village around noon. Meet Maasai people on the deck of Kilimanjaro. After lunch, Visit the Village with the local market in there. Having shot of Maasai Family and warriors. After the tour you will drive to your lodge at west Kilimanjaro for dinner and overnight.

Day 3; West Kilimanjaro – Arusha

Early morning photography on the base of Kilimanjaro Mountain with Maasai, After breakfast, carry up our accessories and trek up on a small hill with our Maasai Crew. After lunch, we take a drive to Arusha for rest, dinner and overnight.

Day 4: Drive To Munduli Juu Villages:

Munduli is the district next to Arusha town, it will take us 1hr drive to reach there. We will make stops along the beautifully landscapes on the way, our main stop at interior Maasai village right from their Breakfast time, visiting the family in the village, meet the Maasai Warriors, dancing and their best time on when are slaughtering Goat and making Nyama Choma round the Fire. It’s completely natural to be with this community. In the Afternoon we will escort Masai Women with Donkeys on fetching water, and capture a lot of nature and landscapes.

Day 5: Drive to Lake Natron Village

After possible sunrise photography in the village, depart for Lake Natron with a stop at Engaruka Maasai Village for more portraits, more photography at Shimo La Mungu (small volcanic crater) then heading to the Lake Natron Village.

An adventurous route to a very special area: magic Lake Natron. Off the beaten track and away from the masses. The route takes you through the cultural home of the Maasai. On the way, you pass Engaruka, an archaeological site of a Stone-age settlement, as well as majestic Oldonyo Lengai, the only active volcano in the Great Rift Valley. After lunch, a Maasai guide will lead you along the ridges of the lake to the source of the Engaresero River. If rain has fallen up in the Rift Valley, water streams over the escarpment, forming waterfalls and streams of sparkling clear water which one can swim in. After this refreshing swim, we walk back to the Accommodation from which you can see the Ol Doinyo Lengai.

Day 6: Maasai Village full day:

Today’s Highlights:  The main focus today is to follow the activities of the Maasai people. Arrive when the Maasai are getting their cattle out for gazing, your personal Maasai guide is explaining the life, past and today’s life of the Tanzania Maasai, Men will join other warriors for grazing and will guide you along their paths and explain your typical medicinal plants, extraordinary trees, tracks and the local wildlife. In addition to that, the usage of local tools, hunting techniques and fire preparation is a part your unforgettable bush excursion.

Women will join other Maasai women for their daily activities including fetching water, building small house and later you will learn how the do milking from the cows.

During the sunset a group of Maasai men and woman gathering around for the traditional singing & dancing performances. This evening experience a traditional Maasai goat ceremony and join them dancing.

Day 7: Drive to Sonjo Village

The Sonjo people are a Bantu people and their primary way of life is based solely on herding and agriculture. They are known to use traditional irrigation systems when farming. The Sonjo people are said to have lived in northern Tanzania for centuries secluded within the Maasai territory. They are believed to have migrated to East Africa 400 years ago from Central Africa. The Sonjo tribe is known for their agricultural way of life which was believed to be the major reason their migration took place little by little over thousands of years in search of fertile and well-watered land to cultivate their crops.

Music plays a forestanding role in the Sonjo culture. Music shapes their entire way of life and is a widely practiced art in the entire community. It is used for several ritual purposes, rainmaking ceremonies, healing ceremonies, marriages, and other festive or civil events. After the tour we will drive back to our accommodation at Lake Natron for dinner and overnight.

Day 8: Drive To Karatu Via Mto Wa Mbu Village:

Depart from the village after breakfast for a transfer to Karatu small town, you will arrive in Karatu in the afternoon with a chance to take a walk in town for any possible lifestyle and street photography.

Day 9: Wildlife Safari in Ngorongoro Crater:

After breakfast, we will drive to Ngorongoro for the crater tour with picnic descent to the crater floor for the day tour. Some 20,000 mammals live in the area including about 20 black rhinoceros, making the crater the best place in Tanzania to see these amazing creatures. The crater floor also has one of the highest carnivore densities in the world. Lions, cheetahs, hyenas and jackals are commonly seen, while leopards, Serval and bat-eared foxes may be seen with some luck. We will leave the crater around 4pm after game viewing of African Big-five in one park and drive to the accommodation in Arusha for Dinner and overnight.

Wildlife Highlights: wildebeest, zebra, gazelle, black rhinoceros, lion, hartebeest, spotted hyena, hippopotamus, buffalo, elephant, mountain reedbuck, leopard, serval, ostrich, kori- bustard, papilio sjoestedti & many archeological and paleontological sites: Olduvai Gorge, Laetoli, Lake Ndutu.

Day 10: Visit Hadzabe People and  Datoga:

Early morning drives to Hadzabe Village. Hunting with Hadzabe people, visiting Datoga people and learning their lifestyle. Sunrise shoots with Hadza, Shoots in Hadza Village, families and when hunting, Sunset shoots with Hadza. Visiting them is like a movie, Hazabe is hunting and gathering, growing their families to be active in the jangle, Datogas are good farmers, they are growing onions, maize, and other crops. Overnight in the Village (FB)

Day 11:  Photography with Hadzabe – Drive to Mto Wa Mbu Village:

In the morning depart from the lodge, pass at Hadza village and leave with 3-4 Hadza warriors to a special location, in the area will leave the vehicle on the road way and take a walk for about 15 minutes in the bush. In the afternoon, will go for lunch and then depart for Mto wa Mbu Village for an evening walk in the Village, a chance at the local market and street photography.

Overnight in the Mto wa Mbu.

Day 12: Departure: Say goodbye to Africa, based on your flight details, we will have a goodbye lunch at our office and sit with our managers for your photography safari debriefing, then after we will drive you to Kilimanjaro International airport for your fight back home.

Please note: This 12 Days Culture and People Photography Safari itinerary is a general guide and can be customized according to your preferences.