03°10'S 35°35'E
Ngorongoro Conservation Area
A collapsed volcano two million years old, holding the densest big-game arena on the planet.
AREA8,292 KM²
ELEVATION1,020–3,648 M
BEST TIMEYear-round; clearest mornings June–October
COORDINATES03°10'S 35°35'E
THE FIELD NOTE
The crater is a geological accident that turned out to be the best wildlife real estate in Africa: a 600-metre-deep caldera with permanent water, where some 25,000 large mammals live out their lives on a floor you can cross in an hour. Everyone descends at dawn. We make sure our vehicle is near the front of that queue, because the difference between the crater at six and at ten is the difference between a private estate and a car park.
WHO LIVES HERE
Black rhinoLion (large prides)Spotted hyenaElephant bullsFlamingoBuffalo
WHAT YOU DO HERE
- —Dawn descent to the crater floor, six unhurried hours
- —Crater-rim walks where the mist allows
- —Maasai cultural visits arranged with families our guides know
- —Olduvai Gorge and the Laetoli footprints en route
POSTCARDS
The place in pictures.
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NEARBY COUNTRY
