Destinations





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ARUSHA NATIONAL PARK

Arusha national park is one of the smallest national parks in the country. Situated in the northern circuit’s Arusha region it is one of the easily accessible national parks of Tanzania.
The national park covers up the foothill of Mt. Meru which is the second-highest peak of Tanzania after Kilimanjaro. The mountain is also the 5th highest peak in Africa.
Arusha covers up 552 sq km of land. Due to its small size, it is mostly combined with an itinerary of Serengeti, Ngorongoro, and other northern national parks. The Arusha national park was established in 1960 and lies just about 25km from Arusha City.
Everyone who visits the park gets Goosebumps witnessing the scenery and untamed game view in the park. The Arusha National Park has some capturing points inside it. It holds Meru Crater in the west, alkaline Momella Lakes in the north-east, and the Ngurdoto Crater in the south-east.
The Arusha national park creating a beautiful backdrop with Mt. Meru offers various Tanzania Safari activities to explore too. It offers a great opportunity to take canoeing safari in the Momella Lake inside the park. You can also take a walking safari as comparatively there are fewer predators spotted. However, you can spot a great number of plain games including; Giraffe, Cape buffalo, zebra, warthog, the black-and-white colobus monkey, the blue monkey, flamingo, elephant, bushbuck and many more.
A national park is also a great place for witnessing a variety of birdlife. You can spot more than 400 bird species inside the park. The lake shorelines of Momella offer a great view of the birders. Here are some of the notable birds;

NGORONGORO CRATER

Ngorongoro Conservation Area is a well-known national park in Northern circuit Tanzania. Known as the source of life, the conservation area is the only place where human and wildlife resides together. Ngorongoro has probably the highest amount of animal concentration per square kilometers in the whole continent. The area is a notable natural reserve area. The Ngorongoro conservation area is one of the volcanic peaks out of many in Tanzania. It is believed by the nature experts and geologists that the peak was once the highest even more than Kilimanjaro. After a huge volcanic explosion, there was a big carter created in the region and the height degraded. The conservation area was named after this caldera. The caldera is called Ngorongoro, hence the place got its name as Ngorongoro Conservation Area. The conservation area is managed by the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority. Established in 1959 the area covers up 8,292 km2. The national park welcomes 500,000 visitors every year which is 60% of the total visitors coming to the country. The conservation area is a World Heritage Site protected under UNESCO. Located 180 km west to Arusha the place is easily accessible from the Arusha city by road. The origin of the name of the area is interesting. The name was given by the Maasai pastoralist that doesn’t have any particular meaning. It is sound produced by the bell of their cattle. The conservation area carries 8 volcanoes. The carter area is bordered by Gregory Rift and Lake Eyasi in the east and south-west respectively. While visiting the Ngorongoro conservation area visitors can explore Masai Bomas that are the traditional villages of the Masai tribal community. Exploring the culture, history, and just sitting beside them listening to their lion hunting stories can be a truly an amazing feeling. The carter of the conservation area is the largest unbroken caldera in the world. The caldera was created about 2 to 3 million years ago. It is 610m deep and covers 260 square kilometers of land. Due to the stunning caldera, it is listed in the list of 7th natural wonders of Africa. Out of 25,000 large animals are living in the Ngorongoro conservation area, the best attractions are the black rhinos. The conservation area, however, attracts tourists for its large concentration of animals. The area is great for spotting big five.

SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK

In the Maasai language, Serengeti means “wide open space.” This vast park must be seen to be believed, both for the landscape and for the world’s largest migrations of mammals. The Serengeti is located in northern Tanzania, lying adjacent to the smaller Maasai Mara Reserve in southern Kenya. The border between the Serengeti and the Maasai Mara is closed to tourist traffic, but wildlife flows across freely. Serengeti National Park is a 6-8 hour drive from Arusha, much of it along poor dirt roads. Most people choose to break the journey with a night at either Ngorongoro Crater or Lake Manyara. Flying to the Serengeti from Arusha may also be arranged via scheduled light aircraft or private charter. Although one could easily spend weeks exploring the vast Serengeti, safaris in the Park are commonly 4-8 days in length.

MIKUMI NATIONAL PARK

Established in 1964 Mikumi national park is another notable national park of Southern Circuit of Tanzania. The closest city to the national park is Dar es Salaam. You can reach to Mikumi from Dar es Salaam directly through Morogoro. It will take you almost 4 hours of drive. You can also reach the place from Arusha or Selous. The national park is adjacent to the Selous Game reserve in the south hence both the reserved places share the same eco-system. The vegetation of the Mikumi National Park is dominated mostly by grassy plains covered with baobab and black hardwood trees. Covering 3,230 km² it is the 4th largest national park in the country. Due to its vegetation and size, the national park mostly gets compared with Serengeti plains. The Mikumi National park is bordered by the Udzungwa Mountains and the Uluguru Mountains as well Malundwe Mountain which connects with Uluguru. The national park offers an exclusive visiting feel as it accepts very fewer visitors every year. For those who are looking for a Tanzania safari Tours in less crowded areas, Mikumi can be the best option for them. The national park is also is an important research region that is dedicated to studying the behavior of primates and especially the yellow baboons. The Mikumi national park also offers a great chance to meet various animal species. Out of which few mostly spotted are; wildebeest, zebra, lion, elephant, impala, hippos, giraffe, warthog, bison, wildebeest, waterbuck and eland.

TARANGIRE NATIONAL PARK.

Just an hour’s drive from Arusha, Tarangire National Park has 2600sq/km of pristine savanna wilderness. The park is particularly famous for its elephant population, numbering in the thousands. The Tarangire River, which runs through the Park, is the only source of water for wildlife in the ecosystem during the dry season and thousands of animals are attracted in. Although elephant viewing in Tarangire is excellent year round, a dry season visit can be an event of a lifetime.

SELOUS GAME RESERVE

The game reserve is the largest in Tanzania. It is the UNESCO world heritage protected site due to its diversity and stunning natural essence. The Selous game reserve covers up 50,000 square kilometers. The game reserve got its name after the famous game hunter, Frederick Selous. He is a famous big game hunter and an early conservationist who died in 1917. The area was declared as a game reserve by German Governor of Tanganyika Hermann von Wissmann in 1896. Selous Game reserve offers unique and diverse vegetation of lakes, streams, and Borassus palms. The dry season of the country offers a grassland, acacia savannah, wetlands, and extensive Miombo woodlands vegetations. The Rufiji River flowing in the heart of the Selous area is the prime water source of the region. In the dry season, the river bed offers an iconic opportunity to spot a great amount of animal drinking water from the River. Many swamps and lakes can be spotted inside the Selous national park. The water bodies offer a decent opportunity to spot some playing hippos in the mud. Travelers also can spot crocodiles near the swamps and lakes. The Selous game reserve area is mostly untouched and provides a serene atmosphere. You can take the opportunity of guided walk, and boat safaris inside the national park. Lions also can be found on the shores of small lakes inside the park. The game reserve area also offers a decent number of accommodations ranging from mid-range to extravagance lodges. The Selous national park offers a great animal concentration including; bush elephant, black rhino, East African wild dog, Cape buffaloes, Masai giraffe, Plains zebra, Nile crocodile, and more.

LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK.

Lake Manyara National park is located 125 km west of Arusha town, nestling by the wall of the Great Rift Valley. The Park was gazette as a National park in 1960 and was declared as Man and Biosphere Reserve in 1981. Lake Manyara National Park delivered its name from a plant called Euphorbia tirucalli, known as Emanyara in Maasai language. The Maasai are using this plant to protect their bomas (hedge).Lake Manyara National Park is one of the oldest and most popular sanctuaries in East Africa. The park has a large variety of habitats, making it possible to support a wealth of wildlife in its small area. The park consists of 330 km2 of arid land, forest, and a soda-lake which covers as much as 200 km2 of land during the wet season but is nearly nonexistent during the dry season. The main habitats include the shallow soda lake, the ground water forest, open grassland, acacia woodland and the rift wall.

KILIMANJARO NATIONAL PARK

Snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest point on the African continent, the world’s largest free-standing mountain and one of the largest volcanoes. At 5895m, the views from Uhuru Peak are spectacular. There’s no special equipment or expertise required to ascend Mt. Kili, however it is challenging and a good level of fitness is required. There are several routes to the summit (varying in difficulty). The Marangu Route is the most frequented on Mt Kili, taking 5-6 days, with accommodation in huts, whilst the Machame Route, requires 6-7 days, involves camping and is tougher, with steeper trails and longer distances covered.[...]

ZANZIBAR ISLAND

With pristine white sand beaches and the azure Indian Ocean, Zanzibar is a little slice of paradise, and has many stunning beach resorts including Kiwengwa on the east and Nungwi in the north. It also offers some of the best diving in the world, with lush coral reefs and a diverse range of sea life including dolphins, turtles, whale shark and manta-rays. Zanzibar has a fascinating history as it was the centre of the slave and spice trades in the 1800s and UNESCO-listed Stone Town with its labyrinth of narrow streets, ancient buildings and bustling bazaars, is at its cultural heart. Known as ‘The Spice Island’, no visit to Zanzibar would be complete without a visit to the spice plantations, where you can delight your senses.…