Ngorongoro Highlands Trek, Tanzania | The Bucket List Company

There’s a heck of a lot going on in the glorious Ngorongoro Highlands Trek. The best way to see it all? On foot, for sure.

Lofty volcanoes looming out of vast grassy plains, dense forests rich bursting with strange plantlife and crazy creatures, culture and craters like you’ve never seen before; this totally epic trek in Tanzania has it all.

You’ll set out from Nainokanoka Village. Spend seven days exploring the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, immersing yourself in ecosystems and environments like no other.

Home to 25,000 wild animals, including the endangered black rhino and the densest concentration of lions in the entire world, Ngorongoro offers a unique opportunity to see some of the most incredible creatures on earth.

And the Ngorongoro Crater itself? At more than 20km wide and 600m deep, it’s the biggest unbroken caldera you will ever see.

So if you want to head to Tanzania and Kilimanjaro isn’t on your list. Maybe the Ngorongoro Highlands Trek could be for you?

“Simba, it is time.”

…Said no-one ever in Ngorongoro. That’s because the Lion King was set in Serengeti National Park, which gets a whole lot more press for Tanzania than Ngorongoro.

Of course, we appreciate everything Mufasa did, we really do, but if you want to see more diverse scenery than anywhere else in East Africa? The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is surely it.

With mountain forests, woodlands, grasslands, lakes, swamps and two major rivers – not to mention a handful of critically endangered animals and four of the Big Five – Ngorongoro is unique in its ability to set your heart racing.

(The trekking helps, sure.)

You’ll be tying your laces and warming your calves as your trek through rich landscapes and rugged highlands on this 54km journey to the edge of the Great Rift Valley.

Hope you’re ready for some tongue twisters too because you’ll be getting your mouth around plenty of fabulous names in Ngorongoro. Case in point.

Ngorongoro itself means “gift of life” and was the name that the Maasai tribe gave to this amazing place way back when. During the trek, you’ll get to experience first-hand how this incredible indigenous people lives and get a glimpse of the rich, authentic social side of East Africa.

You’ll tick tons of stuff off your Bucket List as you trek from Nainokanoka across the Ebulbul depression, past Bulati up to the Ngorongoro Crater itself and eventually down to the base of Ol Doinyo Lengai.

Going from temperate grasslands to the montane forest zone and camping right on crater rims, you’ll experience Africa up close and personal, and etch this incredible place in your memory for the rest of your life.

It might sound epic and a touch OTT but, well, that’s exactly what this place is like.

Find out more about this trip

On your trek through Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Highlands, you’ll soak up the finest blend of culture, landscapes and wildlife the world has to offer. It’s pretty special.

Saturated with utterly amazing natural phenomena, this 54km journey will take you through the handsome highlands to the edge of the Great Rift Valley. From there, you’ll descend to the base of the escarpment wall right at the foot of Mount Old Doinyo Lengai – or the “Mountain of God” as the Maasai call it.

This active volcano is just as epic as it sounds.

With the help of your guides, you’ll eventually make your way to the shores of the beautiful alkaline Lake Natron, which serves as the breeding ground for the Lesser Flamingo.

Do the whole thing on foot and you’ll drink in this deluge of nature’s finest feats and experience the Ngorongoro National Park the very best way you can. Just make sure your walking boots are up to scratch!

Once we’ve finally reached Lake Natron, you might want to spend your final full day bathing in the sun (and the glory of your 54km achievement). But why not add on a safari to the end of your adventure?

Home to nearly 400 species, it’s common to see elephants, buffalo, giraffes, zebras, waterbucks, warthogs, impalas and wildebeest in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. And if you’re really lucky? You even might spot a leopard or a tree climbing lion among the broken forests and escarpment.

This place really does have everything.

So if you want to soak up countless ecosystems, incredible creatures and unrivalled natural phenomena…

If you want to bypass the busier destinations and drink in some of Tanzania’s best kept secrets…

And if you want to feel a huge sense of achievement knowing your own legs have carried you 54km to do it…

A trek to the Ngorongoro Crater has your name on it.

Check out the itinerary, chuck any questions you have in our direction, book your spot and get ready to tick an incredible experience off your Bucket List.

If you don’t do it now, will you ever?