Ang’ata Ngorongoro Camp

first into the crater in the morning

Ang’ata Ngorongoro Camp is located in the Ngorongoro Crater area of northern Tanzania.

Set on the better side of the crater for weather, this northern rim is much less prone to the heavy morning fogs that are such a feature of the southwestern side.

The camp itself is centred on an unusually simple tented mess, with modest lounge and dining areas.

Rooms

Guest accommodation at Ang’ata Ngorongoro Camp is in eight traditional tented rooms, each with a simple indoor bathroom.

Activities

Ang’ata Ngorongoro Camp provides the following guided activities, most of which are usually included in the price …

• Vehicle safari
• Walking safari
• Bush meals
• Mountain hiking
• Cultural interaction with local Maasai people

The Ngorongoro Crater tends to feature in almost all first time visits to the Serengeti region, but is often skipped in return visits due to the high traffic.

The usual stay duration is one night, occasionally two if guests want to explore the highlands more widely on foot.

Often we visit the crater when travelling by road between the Ngorongoro Karatu and Serengeti Southcentral areas, in which case trips may not include a night in this area at all.

Seasonality

The main factors which affect seasonality in Ngorongoro Crater are weather and visitor traffic. Wildlife movements are far less important than usual since most of the animals are resident in the crater year round.

The best months to visit from a weather perspective are generally considered to be Jun-Oct, although the early part of that season can be very cold at night.

Personally we find vehicle traffic to be the biggest single issue, so we prefer to visit during the quietest times of year, Mar-Apr and Nov-Dec. But even during the most busy periods it’s still possible to inject a fair amount of quality into a crater visit, we have our secret ways!

The bottom line is that you’re most likely to only be spending a half day inside the crater, so it’s arguably much more important to optimise your stay in Serengeti and live with whatever the crater throws at you.

Getting there

The vast majority of visitors to the Ngorongoro Crater arrive by guided overland safari, so they travel to their lodge and around the reserve in their private vehicle.

Around 20% of visitors to the Ngorongoro Crater arrive by light aircraft, almost always arriving into Manyara Airstrip, from where it is a 2-3 hour drive and staying at one of the high end properties on the Crater Rim. In this case they travel around the reserve with a vehicle and guide from their lodge.

major traffic issues demand very careful planning