What it is
A caldera roughly 19km across with walls around 600m high, inside a conservation area where Maasai still graze cattle. You drop in on a steep track at dawn and climb out on another.
Why go
Everything is in one bowl: lion, elephant, buffalo, flamingo on the soda lake, and one of the better chances in East Africa of seeing a black rhino, usually at distance across the grass.
When to go
Any dry month, at first light. Understand what you are buying: the floor is small, the vehicle rules funnel everyone to the same places, and at a good sighting in August you may be one of twenty cars. One descent is enough for most people — it is a half-day, not a stay. The rim sits high, is cold and is often inside cloud, so pack a fleece.
Most people stay 1-2 nights.
