Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a protected area and a World Heritage Site located 180 km west of Arusha in the Crater Highlands area of Tanzania. Ngorongoro crater is the main feature Ngorongoro crater is the main feature, formed when a large volcano exploded and collapsed on itself two to three million years ago, is 610 metres (2,000 feet) deep and its floor covers 260 square kilometres (100 square miles).

The Crater contains a huge animal population throughout the year, with many impressive black-maned lion, buffalo, cheetah, leopard, elephant, black rhino, hippo, hyena, eland, zebra, gazelle, ostrich and wildebeest. The birdlife is prolific too, with flocks of flamingos on the Crater Lake. Maasai people are encountered in the highlands around the crater.

To the north-east of Ngorongoro is the beautiful but seldom visited Empakai Crater, with flamingos and additional birdlife but little big game. One can drive up to the outer rims of the crater, before taking a 45-minute walk down the path through the forested slopes to the crater floor. The views from the rim over the crater to Ol Donyo Lengai are thought to be some of the most remarkable in Africa – Mt.Kilimanjaro and Lake Natron can be seen on clear days.