Tanzania

The country has a huge diversity of altitudes and therefore habitats too, and a number of game reserves and parks protect these areas. Recent years have seen the development of conservancies with private operators in partnership with tribal communities which have been very successful for both sides of the table. The southern reserves are quite different and more easily accessed via Dar by light aircraft. The Selous Game Reserve in the south is one of the largest game reserves in the world, and consists of 50,000 sq. km of savanna woodlands and criss-crossed by rivers and is another World Heritage Site. A massive wilderness area with incredible wildlife presence, it has several major rivers, with the Rufiji attracting the most attention with several lodges along it’s course. The few lodges in the south offer to many a far more authentic safari experience, as it is harder to access, and therefore has less appeal to busy package-driven travelers. The Ruaha National Park (8010sq miles/21 000 sq km) lies west of the Selous, and is a good foil to the lushness of that park. The Ruaha is dry and more typically ‘African’. A feature here are the massive forests of baobabs and large prides of lion which regularly take down buffalo. Leopard, painted dog, lesser kudu and giraffe.

There are a number of great luxury safari camps in Tanzania, from high-end to rustic and mobiles! The Ruaha is a wonderful park and well worth a visit…with more than 3 nights at each camp. Truly a luxury safari experience! Here one can walk or drive across vast spaces, where the chances of meeting another vehicle are slim….you are truly waaay off the normal safari-path. This is also a historical battlefield area, around the Rufiji and Beho beho!

There are several parks in the north, which offer great dry season wildlife, namely Tarangire, Lake Manyara and Arusha Naional Parks. A number of great luxury safari camps are available in and near these. The Ngorongoro and Serengeti are part of these northern parks, and all are part of Northern circuit parks!

The northern circuit is the most popular one traveled by the majority of visitors to Tanzania, and therefore slightly easier to access too.

After arriving in Arusha, the nearest reserves are Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and then the Serengeti.

Tarangire is a lovely park, known for the prevalence of baobabs and big elephant bulls. There is good game to be seen here in the dry and end of wet season, but it’s not a great wet season destination. It’s also busy at times due to it’s access from Arusha by road. Some nice camps in the area.

Lake Manyara is a personal favourite, as long as one is staying at the far end of the park. Good diversity of wildlife and birds too.

Ngorongoro Crater National Park needs little introduction as a bucket list destination. However, it is best in the wet season, when it is far less crowded and far more pleasant. In the dry season, it is disappointing due to crowds of vehicles to be seen in the crater itself.

The Serengeti National Park is huge. It is 8500 sq miles and encompasses a considerable diversity of habitats. The game is variable with some areas proving ‘richer’ than others, and of course predators are territorial so reasonably predictable. But the large herbivores do move with the seasons, and especially the Migration herds.

The Migration moves between the Serengeti Ecosystem in the south, and the Masai Mara in the north, but the eco-system is contiguous so the animals are driven by the rains between the two areas. It is important to note that this migration is a perpetual movement of herds, and not a great single mass movement with a start and a finish!

Apart from these famous parks, another area is far west on Lake Tanganyika, where the Chimpanzees at Mahale and Gombe are found.

Zanzibar Island is a well known luxury safari destination in Tanzania, just a short flight or boat trip from Dar. The ‘spice island’ has a number of historical sights, and some great island ‘hotels’ too! Tanzania warrants a safari in it’s own right, but is commonly combined with Kenya and Rwanda.