Serengeti Safari PackagesSerengeti Safari With Hot Air Balloon: 3 Days from Arusha
This Serengeti safari with hot air balloon is a 3-day camping trip from Arusha run by Season Master Adventures, listed on GetYourGuide at $900 per person. It covers Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater in a 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof, sleeping two nights in tents at public campsites. The balloon flight over the Serengeti is optional and happens on the morning of day 2, followed by a bush breakfast with champagne. All national park fees, full-board meals and a safari chef are included. This page sets out what the price covers, the day-by-day route and who should book a different listing from the full range of Serengeti safari packages. Compare it with the other Serengeti safari packages compared.
About This Tour
Season Master Adventures runs this 3-day camping safari for a small group of no more than 7 participants. Day 1 is the long drive from Arusha through Mto wa Mbu and into the Serengeti via Naabi Hill Gate, with an afternoon game drive before the night at Tumbili public campsite. Day 2 starts with the optional balloon flight and a bush breakfast, then a morning game drive and the move south to Simba public campsite in Ngorongoro. Day 3 descends to the Ngorongoro crater floor for a Big Five game drive and returns to your Arusha hotel in the late afternoon.
The listing is new with 4 reviews and a 4.7 score. It follows the same camps and route as the operator's other 3-day safari, which runs the same trip in a group of up to 12 and has 70 reviews. The balloon safari is an option and the listing does not show its price, so ask before booking.
$900 per person, including all national park fees, full-board meals, camping equipment, a safari chef, a driver-guide and a safari certificate
3 days, with pickup in Arusha and return in the late afternoon on day 3
Pickup at your Arusha hotel. Free pickup covers hotels in Arusha city centre, and a private transfer costs extra for hotels farther out
2 nights in tents with sleeping mattresses: Tumbili public campsite in the Serengeti, then Simba public campsite in Ngorongoro
The optional balloon safari, whose price the listing does not show, travel insurance, tips for the driver-guide and chef, and the private transfer if your hotel is outside the free pickup area
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure for a full refund, with reserve now and pay later
Check Dates and Availability
Starting times are shown once you pick a date on the listing. Cancellation stays free until 24 hours before departure.
Quick answer Balloon safari price and inclusions
This 3-day camping safari costs $900 per person and includes all national park fees, 2 tented nights, full board and a chef. The hot air balloon flight is optional and the listing does not show its price, so ask the operator before booking.
Key takeaways
- See what the $900 covers and what you pay on top in What the Price Actually Covers.
- Follow the full route in The Route Day by Day, from Arusha to the crater floor and back.
- The Serengeti Balloon Safari books the flight on its own at $599 per person with 3,650 reviews.
- Prefer a proven version of the same trip? The 3-Day Serengeti Big Five Safari runs the same camps with 70 reviews.
What the Price Actually Covers
The $900 from-price is per person and covers the road trip, the camps and the park fees. Two costs are named as excluded and one is left vague, so read this before you book.
In the Price
The listing includes pickup and drop-off at your Arusha hotel, transport in a 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof, all national park fees, a professional safari driver-guide, full-board meals with bottled drinking water, 2 nights in tents with sleeping mattresses, camping equipment such as tables, chairs and cooking gear, the services of a safari chef, safari certificates and all activities in the itinerary. If you select the balloon option, the hot air balloon experience with its bush breakfast is added. That is a strong inclusion list for a 3-day camping safari at this price.
The honest catch is the balloon. The listing marks it as optional but never shows what it costs, so you cannot judge the total until you ask. Get the balloon price in writing before you book, then compare it with booking the flight separately through the Serengeti Balloon Safari listing, which shows $599 per person for a shared flight with a champagne toast and bush breakfast.
| Line | In the price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Base price | $900 per person | From-price on GetYourGuide |
| Park fees | Yes, all national park fees | Stated as included |
| Balloon flight | Only if the option is selected | Price not shown on the page, ask first |
| Meals | Full board and bottled drinking water | Balloon option adds a bush breakfast with champagne |
| Nights | 2 tented nights with mattresses | Tumbili then Simba public campsites |
| Tips | No | Excluded, for driver-guide and chef |
| Travel insurance | No | Excluded and highly recommended |
| Private transfer | No | Extra cost if your hotel is outside central Arusha |
Sources: Wikipedia, Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority tariffs
A hot air balloon over the Serengeti at first light. Photo: Eric Kilby, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Route Day by Day
The itinerary runs Arusha to the Serengeti, an optional balloon morning, then the Ngorongoro crater floor and back. The jeep legs listed on the page are 1.5 hours, 1.5 hours, 3 hours, 1.5 hours and 3 hours in that order, with game drives and stops between them.
All Three Days
Day 1 departs Arusha early and drives through the Great Rift Valley and the Ngorongoro Highlands, with a picnic lunch stop in Mto wa Mbu. After entering Serengeti National Park via Naabi Hill Gate there is an afternoon game drive, then dinner and the night at Tumbili public campsite. Day 2 can start before dawn with the optional balloon flight over the Serengeti plains, followed by a bush breakfast, then a morning game drive.
After lunch the trip drives out of the Serengeti to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and sleeps at Simba public campsite. Day 3 descends into the Ngorongoro Crater for a Big Five game drive with a picnic lunch on the floor, then ascends and returns to your Arusha hotel in the late afternoon.
| Day | Route | Night at |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arusha to Mto wa Mbu, then Naabi Hill Gate and an afternoon game drive in Serengeti National Park | Tumbili public campsite, Serengeti |
| Day 2 | Optional balloon flight and bush breakfast, morning game drive, then the drive to Ngorongoro Conservation Area | Simba public campsite, Ngorongoro |
| Day 3 | Ngorongoro Crater game drive, then the return drive to Arusha | Not applicable, drop-off at your Arusha hotel |
Hot Air Balloon Safari Over the Serengeti - Is It Worth It?!: Tanzania
A traveller's account of a Serengeti balloon flight and whether it is worth it. Third-party video by Wanderfully You. This site did not shoot it and has no relationship with the creator.
Who This Trip Rules Out
This is a public-campsite trip with long drive days and an unpriced balloon option. Some travellers should pick a different listing.
Check These Limits First
Camping comfort is the first filter. Both nights are in tents with sleeping mattresses at public campsites, so there is no lodge or fixed-tent comfort here. If you want beds, the 4-Day Serengeti Mid-Range Safari sleeps 3 nights in lodges and camps from $1,750 per person. Drive time is the second: day 1 is the full road haul from Arusha to the Serengeti, and the listing's own jeep legs add up to long hours in the car. The Serengeti Fly-In Safari flies you in on day 1 from $2,750.77 per person.
Review history is the third. This listing has 4 reviews and a 4.7 score, which is a thin record for a 3-day trip at $900. The same operator runs the identical route and camps as the 3-Day Serengeti Big Five Safari in a group of up to 12, with 70 reviews and a 4.8 score at the same $900. The fourth is the balloon itself. Its price is not shown, and no minimum age, weight limit or health restriction is stated for it on this listing. The standalone Serengeti Balloon Safari states a minimum age of 7 and books the flight separately, which is the cleaner way to price it. If a balloon is the whole point of the trip and you want it built into the itinerary with lodges, the 7-Day Luxury Serengeti Safari includes a Serengeti balloon flight and bush breakfast on day 4.
A cheetah in the Serengeti grass. Photo: Giles Laurent, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Season, Fees and Paperwork
What the weather, the fees and the migration are doing around your dates. All of it comes from published sources, not from the operator.
Best Months
SafariBookings puts high season in the Serengeti from July to March, with the dry season June to October and the wet season November to May and the heaviest rain in March and April. Daytime highs average about 27 °C with chilly nights, and the listing asks you to bring warm clothing. The migration moves with the rain: more than 1.5 million wildebeest, roughly 250,000 zebras and hundreds of thousands of gazelles follow an 800 km loop through the ecosystem, so where the herds are depends on when you travel.
Check the Great Migration guide for where the herds are on your dates.
- High season: July to March (SafariBookings)
- Dry season: June to October, wet season November to May
- Wildebeest numbers: more than 1.5 million, on an 800 km loop that moves with the rain
- Seronera in January: about 28 °C max, 15 °C min, 8 hours of sun
Fees and Paperwork
Park fees are included on this tour, which matters because they are not small. The 2023/24 TANAPA tariff sets the Serengeti conservation fee for non-East African adults aged 16 and over at $70 per day in peak season and $60 in low season, and the tariff defines peak as 16 May to 14 March. Children aged 5 to 15 pay $20 per day and under-5s are free.
On entry, SafariFind lists a single-entry tourist visa at $50 valid up to 90 days, while Duma Explorer says US passport holders pay $100 for a multiple-entry visa with no cheaper single-entry option for them. The listing recommends travel insurance that you buy yourself. Pack warm clothing for cold nights, a camera, sunscreen, insect repellent and binoculars as the listing asks, in khaki and green tones, and skip white and bright colours.
- Serengeti conservation fee: $70 per adult per day peak, $60 low, VAT exclusive, 2023/24 tariff
- Children 5 to 15: $20 per day, under 5 free
- Visa: $50 single entry per SafariFind, $100 multiple entry for US passport holders per Duma Explorer
- Bring warm layers, sunscreen, insect repellent, binoculars and a camera
Guides to Read Next
For the deeper background, the guide to the best time to visit Serengeti walks through the months in detail, and the safari packing list covers what to bring for camping nights on the crater rim.
Itinerary in Steps
The listing's own day numbers and phases, with the jeep legs it publishes.
-
Early morning, day 1
Pickup in Arusha
The driver collects you at your hotel. Free pickup covers Arusha city centre hotels, and a private transfer costs extra if you stay farther out. The 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser has a pop-up roof.
-
Day 1
Into the park
Drive through the Great Rift Valley and the Ngorongoro Highlands, stop in Mto wa Mbu for a picnic lunch, then enter Serengeti National Park via Naabi Hill Gate.
-
Day 1, afternoon
First game drive
An afternoon game drive across the Serengeti plains in search of lions, elephants and giraffes, then dinner at camp.
-
Night 1
Tumbili public campsite
Sleep in a tent with a sleeping mattress in the Serengeti. Meals are breakfast, lunch and dinner with bottled drinking water.
-
Dawn, day 2
Optional balloon flight
If you selected the option, the hot air balloon lifts off over the Serengeti plains at sunrise, followed by a bush breakfast with champagne. The balloon price is not shown on the listing, so confirm it before booking.
-
Day 2, afternoon
Move to Ngorongoro
After a morning game drive and lunch, leave the Serengeti and drive to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area for the night at Simba public campsite.
-
Day 3, then late afternoon return
Crater floor and back to Arusha
Descend into the Ngorongoro Crater, 610 m deep with a 260 km² floor, for a Big Five game drive and a picnic lunch, then ascend and return to your Arusha hotel in the late afternoon.
Pros and Cons
What this listing does well and where it asks you to take a risk.
What we genuinely like
- All national park fees are included, so the headline price covers entry to the Serengeti and the crater
- A safari chef and full board are in the price
- The group is capped at 7 participants, smaller than the operator's 12-person version of the same route
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure and reserve now, pay later
- Optional dawn balloon flight on day 2 with a champagne bush breakfast
The honest downsides
- The balloon price is not shown anywhere on the listing, so the total cost is unknown until you ask
- Only 4 reviews back the 4.7 score, a short record for a trip at this price
- Two nights at public campsites in tents with mattresses, so no lodge comfort
- Day 1 is a long road day from Arusha to the Serengeti, and tips and travel insurance are extra
Who it's NOT for: Not for travellers who want lodge beds, a balloon with a published price, or a listing with a long review history on the same itinerary.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a hot air balloon safari cost in Tanzania?
The standalone Serengeti Balloon Safari charges $599 per person for a shared dawn flight of about 1 hour with a champagne toast and bush breakfast, and it excludes park admission. This 3-day listing has an optional balloon but does not show its price, so ask the operator and compare.
What is included in the $900 price?
The $900 per person covers hotel pickup and drop-off in Arusha, the 4x4 Land Cruiser, all national park fees, full board with bottled water, two tented nights, camping gear, a safari chef, a driver-guide and a safari certificate, as set out in What the Price Actually Covers.
When does the balloon flight happen on this tour?
The balloon is optional and happens on the morning of day 2 over the Serengeti plains, followed by a bush breakfast, before the day's game drive and the drive south to Simba public campsite in Ngorongoro.
Is this a good choice if the balloon is the main reason I am travelling?
Not at its listed price alone, because the balloon cost is missing from the page. Compare the total with the 7-Day Luxury Serengeti Safari, which includes a Serengeti balloon flight and bush breakfast in a 7-day lodge itinerary.
How does this compare with the operator's other 3-day safari?
It uses the same camps and route as the 3-Day Serengeti Big Five Safari at the same $900 starting price, with the group limit cut from 12 to 7. The other listing has 70 reviews against 4 here.
What should I pack for the camping nights?
The listing asks for warm clothing, a camera, sunscreen, insect repellent and binoculars, and bans drones, littering, feeding and touching animals. The safari packing list explains what else to bring for camping nights.
Can I cancel if my plans change?
Yes, the listing allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure for a full refund, and reserve now and pay later keeps your spot unpaid until then. Check the current terms on the listing before you book.
Prices, availability and terms are set by the operator and confirmed at checkout.
We may earn a commission if you book through one of our links, at no extra cost to you. Full affiliate disclosure