The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is located in northern Tanzania, and forms part of the Serengeti ecosystem which also includes the Serengeti National Park and Maasai Mara National Reserve. “Ngorongoro” means “gift of life” in the local Maasai language.
One of the main attractions would have to be the Ngorongoro crater, one of the largest inactive and intact caldera craters in the world. Based on its dimension and research, thought to have been bigger and higher than Mount Kilimanjaro which is thew highest peak in Africa. The Ngorongoro crater was formed approximately three million years ago when the volcano exploded and collapsed on itself, now 610 Meters (200 Feet) deep and the base covers around 260 square kilometer (100 square miles). The Pliocene Ngorongoro Volcanic complex includes 8 extinct volcanoes, along with Olmoti and Empakaai craters forms part of the eastern Rift Valley.
Early hominid footprints dating back 3.6 million years have also been discovered through extensive archaeological research and excavation, this area also contains important paleontological records which gives us a better idea of human evolution. Throughout the area you will also come across livestock which belong to the semi-nomadic Maasai tribes, which graze the landscaped with the wild animals.