The Ngorongoro Crater, at 2,286 m. above sea level, is the largest unbroken caldera in the world. Surrounded by very steep walls rising 610 metres from the crater floor, this natural amphitheatre measures 19.2 km in diameter and 304 sq km in area. It is home to up to 30,000 animals, almost half being wildebeest and zebra. Buffalo, elephant, hippo, hyena, jackal, lion, ostrich, serval, warthog, bushbuck, eland, hartebeest, reedbuck, waterbuck and huge herds of both Thomson’s and Grant’s gazelle are easily seen on the crater floor. Thanks to ant-poaching patrols, the crater is now one of the few places in East Africa where   visitors can be certain of seeing black rhino. There number is now approaching 20. Leopard may occasionally be spotted in the  rees of the surrounding forest while cheetah are present but rarely seen. Large herds of giraffe live on the rim of the crater and will be seen on the drive to Olduvai Gorge and the Serengeti. Countless flamingo form a pink blanket over the soda lakes while more than 100 species of birds not found in the Serengeti have been spotted.

The crater, which has been declared a World heritage site, lies within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, which covers more  Than 8,000 sq km. It is bounded by Lake Eysai in the southwest and the Gol Mountains in the north. Roughly in the centre is the Olbalal Swamp and the arid Olduvai Gorge.