Ngorongoro Crater, an extinct collapsed volcano, rising 7,500 feet at the rim with the floor being 2,000 feet below. This is all that remains of a once vast volcano that is a part of the Great Rift Valley, the longest continuous crack in the earth s crust. Ngorongoro s floor extends 102 square miles with alkaline Lake Magadi in the center. The crater is an island sanctuary, protected from the fluctuating weather conditions on the surrounding savanna. Stay on the craters rim for superb views from your quarters, where glass doors open to furnished verandas with breathtaking panoramas of Ngorongoro. The big five are here: lion, elephant, rhino, leopard and buffalo, plus many of the plains herbivores, such as wildebeest, Thomson s gazelle, zebra and reedbuck, along with thousands of flamingo.
