Safari Extension

The Safari doesn’t stop as you leave the Serengeti National Park bound for Ngorongoro Crater. Ngorongoro is the largest intact caldera (collapsed volcano) in the world and has the highest concentration of animals in Africa. Maasai Warriors wear bright red shawls and stand out against the deep browns and earthly greens of the landscape. You may see young boys with their faces painted white wearing black shawls in groups of three or four walking the roadside having recently experienced a rite of passage. En route to Ngorongoro, stop at Olduvai Gorge and walk to the bottom where Mary Leaky discovered the remains of Australopithecus Homo Habilis and Homo Erectus. Contemplating the breath of time of mankind’s evolution is humbling, if not incomprehensible. As you walk down to the gorge floor, every step makes you feel like you are walking backward into primordial time. It is hard for us to appreciate time beyond two or three generations, much less the millions of years we are witnessing being unraveled before us as we walk down to the excavated bottom of Olduvai Gorge.

As you wind up to the crater rim lush green foliage is dusted with the same mist of the brick-red earth and contrasts with the white mist of the clouds that shroud the volcano. Maasai tend their herds. Villagers carry firewood or water on their heads, instinctively keeping an eye out for an elephant or other animals that could come out of the bush at any moment. Arriving at the crater rim you get out of the vehicle and look out over the expanse of the crater below. This is the largest collapsed caldera in the world. Spirits are lifted by the beauty and grandeur of this place. A moment frozen in time just before the exciting wildlife encounters that await you. The animals are only specks for now, nearly 2,000 feet below. The perspective is foreign and gives us a sense of timelessness.

Drive down the 1900-foot crater wall from the rim of this spectacular extinct volcano. Here you will find Africa’s largest permanent concentration of wildlife. Ngorongoro has been referred to as the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” It towers above the Northern Serengeti Plain and it is celebrated as containing some of the most magnificent scenery in the world. Ngorongoro’s 105-square-mile crater is the largest unbroken crater on Earth and is packed with just about every species of wildlife found in East Africa. It is possible that we will see the Big Five—all of them—in one day. Large plains game permanently inhabit the area and the scenery is sensational. Some 30,000 animals live in the crater and, because the grasses are short, game is easily spotted and can often be approached quite closely. It is also one of the few parks in Africa where rhinos are relatively easy to locate. Enjoy the awe-inspiring views from your lodge of the crater below (weather permitting), spying herds of buffaloes and wildebeests that look like ants from the distance.

Depart down the escarpment of the Great Rift Valley bound for Arusha and your onward flight. En route pass through Mto Wa Mbu, a thriving village that lies at the entrance to beautiful Lake Manyara. As we pass through different topographies and cultures there is a sense of distant recollection from our own distance past. You will take something very personal away from Africa but this incredibly magical place also keeps a piece of us. Africa has always been a journey of self-discovery.

The list is so long and the safari experience will be rich with wildlife and unexpected sightings. Ngorongoro Crater alone has 30,000 large mammals that live permanently on the 100 square mile crater floor. The Serengeti has the thickest density of any wildlife park in the world. But you will also be passing through quintessential Africa and witness so much more that can be put into words.

We are not selling a product. We are selling an experience. We want to be a source of inspiration for searching minds and we care a great deal about you. The Metamo experience is ultimately about transformation and we are asking you to step outside of your comfort zone to allow for the change of perspective that comes from travel to Africa. Our commitment is centered on making sure that you and your family and friends have the greatest and safest adventure possible. Many of our clients have said it is the first time in their adult life that they didn’t have to worry about a thing and could completely rejuvenate and expand their personal horizons.