Day in the Life on Safari: What a Typical Day in the Serengeti Looks Like

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By the very nature of wild animals being wild, there truly is no typical day on safari. That being said, I thought it would be fun to share a day in my life while on safari so you can get a sense of what a typical day on safari might look like! I took a five-day point-to-point safari and this was day four of five of my journey.

A Day in the Life on Safari: Time 3:50 AM

My alarm goes off in the early morning at 3:50 AM, and I’m really not ready to be awake, but I’m fueled by the excitement that today is hot air balloon day! I make my cup of tea to get a little caffeine in my system, then I get dressed for the day. I know that it will be cool in the morning during the balloon flight, but that the day will quickly heat up and I won’t be back to Acacia Central Camp until closer to dinnertime. So layers it is!

Time: 4:30 AM (early morning)

One of the staff members knocks on the door of my tent to walk me to the parking area where my ride is waiting. My scheduled pickup time was 4:50 AM, so I’m really glad that I woke up what I thought was ridiculously early because I was ready to go.

Time: 5:15 AM

After driving for 45 minutes in the pitch black on the bumpy safari roads, we pick up a few passengers at another lodge.

Time: 6 AM

After another 45 minutes of driving, we arrive at the hot air balloon launch site in Central Serengeti. There are three balloons launching today and we’re directed to ours where our crew awaits us. We enjoy a light breakfast of hot tea and hot air balloon-shaped cookies in the darkness while we’re given our safety briefing. Thankfully the balloon company has set up bush toilets with a privacy screen and a wonderful view so that we can use the facilities before we launch.

Time: 6:45 AM

We’re the last balloon to launch, so we begin to load around 6:45 AM and launch around 7 AM for our flight over the Serengeti.

Time: Around 9 AM

We land in a grassy area near the other two balloons and are greeted with a champagne toast. After that, it’s a short walk to three large dining tables where we enjoy a full English breakfast prepared by the hot air balloon team. I’m seated near our pilot, who is Australian, and a lovely Hungarian couple who brought Palinka (a Hungarian hard apple liqueur) from home in a water bottle. They insist on sharing with me and our pilot and we end up sharing a toast in the middle of the Serengeti.

As I walk to a bush toilet with the best view of the Serengeti, I reflect on the trip and the morning so far and what an amazing experience it is. While in flight we saw diverse wildlife of the Serengeti, from herds of wildebeest to a pride of lions. In addition to the bush toilets, the balloon company has set it WiFi and a mobile gift shop, so I purchase a baseball cap as a memento of the morning and send off a few photos to friends back home.

Once everyone is done eating, shopping, and using the facilities, we’re loaded into the safari vehicles that had picked us up that morning.

Time: Around 11:30 am (mid morning)

I’m dropped off at Seronera, the park’s visitor information center area to meet my safari guide. I use their real bathrooms as it’s the last toilet I’ll see until we arrive back at Acacia Central Camp later that day.

My guide presents me with a choice: we could do a shorter afternoon game drive in the area because he knows I’ve had a long day already or we could head to Western Serengeti to see the Great Migration. Safari guides share information over the radio and there were thousands of wildebeest gathered as part of the Migration. The catch was that it was probably three hours of driving each way. Which really isn’t bad if you realize that you’ll be seeing animals along the way. Despite being exhausted, I choose the Great Migration as I know this annual wildlife movement is something not to be missed!

And I am not disappointed! The sheer volume of wildebeest we see moving across that section of the Serengeti is mind-boggling. We also see elephants and lions along the way, along with tons of zebras (those suckers are everywhere!) There are also fewer other safari vehicles out here than there are in Central Serengeti, so it’s nice to be away from the crowds. At some point, we stop and enjoy lunch before making the drive back to Acacia Central Camp.

Time: Around 5 PM

We arrive back at Acacia Central Camp and I head to my tent and have my first shower of the day and get dressed for dinner. My clean laundry was waiting for me when I got back and since I’m checking out and heading to Ngorongoro Crater early in the morning, I re-pack my bag and lay out my clothing for the following day.

Time: 7 PM

Dinner is served! I’m exhausted and eat fairly quickly as I’m looking forward to heading to bed. However, as I’m about to head back to my tent, the staff asks me to wait a few minutes. Shortly after they come in singing a local song and dancing in celebration of a guest’s birthday. It’s fun to watch and the entire dining room is treated to birthday cake, which is a nice way to end the meal. After finishing my cake, I head to my tent (accompanied on the walk by a staff member for safety) and after quickly brushing my teeth, I passed out before 9 PM.

Let’s Go on Safari!