This world-famous national park, notable for its million-strong migratory herds of wildebeest and zebra, is the linchpin of the popular northern safari circuit. Covering an area of almost 15,000 square kilometers, the Serengeti’s reputation is well earned! It is so vast that any sense of overcrowding in this popular park is restricted to the Seronera area in the southeast.

The northern and western Serengeti have more of a wilderness feel, with surprisingly little tourist traffic around, except when the migration passes through them. Numerous lodges and campsites are dotted around the park.

This relatively narrow arm of the Serengeti stretches from the shores of Lake Victoria, and is generally flatter than the more northerly parts of the park, but moister and more densely vegetated than the southern plains. The dominant geographic feature of this part is a pair of rivers, the Grumeti and Mbalageti. The wildebeest crossing of the Grumeti River is one of the most dramatic sequences in the annual wildebeest migration.

The Northern area is wildly beautiful, and refreshingly untrammeled compared to Seronera. It is still possible to do an entire game drive without seeing another vehicle in this part of the Serengeti. The North is characterized by green, rolling hills capped by some spectacular granite outcroppings. Dense acacia woodland is interspersed with tracts of more open grassland.

The short-grass plains here might be termed the ‘classic’ Serengeti: a vast open expanse teeming with all manner of wildlife. The main focal point of the region is the park headquarters at Seronera, which is also the site of the oldest lodge in the Serengeti. Facilities at the center include a site museum, picnic area and a small coffee/gift shop.
The southern plains are interspersed with clusters of small hills, known as kopjes. Another striking feature is the paucity of trees, which flourish only at the sides of kopjes and along the belts following the Mbalageti and Seronera rivers. Seronera can be more crowded during peak season, with comparatively high levels of vehicular traffic. The roads around the area tend to be busiest during the peak hours of 07:30-10.00 and 14.00-16:30. Game drives are permitted from 06:00 onwards.