Serengeti National Park

Best Time To Visit Serengeti

In January and February (THE CALVING SEASON) the great herds are ensconced on the nutritious short-grass plains in the south and southeast of the ecosystem with their newly born more than 500,000 calves. The zebra and gazelle do not have a pronounced birth spike like the wildebeest and their birthing period is more spread out between the months of December and April.

In March and April, at the height of the green or emerald season, the great herds typically start to come together with their young calves usually in the vicinity of Naabi Hills on the southern plains where they reach their highest densities.

In April or May, the northward migration begins (this is called the Moru Crush when the migration exits the plains through a narrow valley at Moru Kopjes) with the wildebeest rut then taking place around May in the Seronera region of the central Serengeti.

May or June sees the first of the iconic river crossings when the herds make their way across the Grumeti River in the western Serengeti.

July to October sees the herds enter the far north of the ecosystem as they cross the Mara River in the northern Serengeti in what many safari stalwarts consider to be the holy grail of safari sightings. It certainly is a sight to behold: thousands of wildebeest plunging into crocodile-infested waters driven forward by instinct and an irresistible urge to access fresh grazing on the other side.

From October to November, the herds turn and move southward and into the central Serengeti once more. This is probably the most unpredictable time with huge columns of wildebeest veering off – often back into the western corridor – depending on wherever the first showers have fallen and fresh green grass is emerging.