Experience the Best of Tanzania: Top 10 National Parks to Visit
It’s no secret that Tanzania offers some of the best wildlife-viewing experiences in East Africa, whether you’re a keen twitcher or looking to tick off the “Big Five”. But with so many wildlife parks in Tanzania to choose from, it can be difficult to know where to visit and what makes each unique.
In this guide, we’ll introduce 10 of the best national parks to visit in Tanzania, with info on the types of species and landscapes you can expect to encounter. We’ll cover those on the ever-popular Northern Circuit and the Southern Circuit, plus a couple of remote options if you want to get well off-the-beaten tourist track.
One of the most famous safari parks in Tanzania is the Serengeti, which encompasses more than 14,000 square kilometres of savannah, woodlands and riverine forests in the north of the country. It’s not only home to the “Big Five” but it provides a setting for the Great Wildebeest Migration, with huge herds of wildebeests and zebras followed by opportunistic predators.
Serengeti National Park was established in 1940 and is now designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It offers wildlife experiences like nowhere else, including the legendary crossing of the crocodile-infested Grumeti River.
In addition to hippos, Masai giraffes and impala, the park is home to vervet monkeys and black-and-white colobus. Black rhinos can be seen around the magnificent granite outcrops of the Moru Kopjes while more than 500 bird species (including Masai ostrich) have been recorded within the park’s boundaries.
Centred around the spectacular Ngorongoro Crater, this UNESCO World Heritage-listed conservation lies just to the southeast of the Serengeti. It’s named after a large volcanic caldera that provides a habitat for blue wildebeest, Grant’s zebras and gazelles, as well as a setting for the Great Wildebeest Migration.
While the Ngorongoro Highlands are particularly renowned as a birdwatching destination, you may also see huge concentrations of flamingos gathered in the shallow waters of Lake Magadi. For sightings of cheetahs and lions, head to the Ndutu Lake area, which offers some of the best wildlife viewing during the rainy season.
The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is also home to Masai pastoralists, many of whom were relocated here by the British colonial government when Serengeti National Park was established in 1959. In the north is Olduvai Gorge where Hominidae fossils dating back millions of years have been discovered and a must-visit for history buffs.
Named after the Tarangire River that flows through the park, this little-visited wildlife reserve forms part of Tanzania’s Northern Circuit. It encompasses granite ridges, lush river valleys and acacia woodlands, as well as a large number of distinctive baobab trees.
If you visit the park during the dry season, you can expect to see large herds of zebras, wildebeest and Cape buffalos, as well as waterbucks, giraffes and Grant’s gazelles. Vervet monkeys and olive baboons inhabit the woodlands while big cats such as lions, leopards and cheetahs are known to roam the park.
Tarangire National Park is a particularly rewarding destination for bird enthusiasts, with more than 550 species recorded here. While exploring the park, keep an eye out for its abundance of termite mounds, some of which become home to dwarf mongooses once abandoned.
Since being recognised by Ernest Hemingway as “the loveliest I had seen in Africa”, Lake Manyara National Park has seen a rise in popularity. It encompasses just 325 square kilometres (230 square kilometres of which is lake) and forms part of the much larger, UNESCO-listed Lake Manyara Biosphere Reserve.
Lake Manyara National Park boasts one of the highest biomass densities of large mammals in the world, with buffalos, zebras and Masai giraffes all recorded within its boundaries. During the wet season, thousands of flamingos wade along its lake shores and are among the 350 bird species that have been recorded here.
Lake Manyara also offers sightings of blue monkeys and baboons, as well as unique tree-climbing lions. It is believed that these big cats climb trees to protect themselves from insect bites, an irritation that comes with lazing around on the ground.
Ruaha is Tanzania’s largest national park and encompasses more than 20,000 square kilometres around the Great Ruaha River (after which the park is named). It was originally established by the German colonial authorities as the Saba Game Reserve in 1910 before the British changed its name to Rungwa Game Reserve in 1946.
Now known as Ruaha National Park, it encompasses dramatic escarpments and grassy plains dotted with baobabs, as well as the wetlands of the Usanga Game Reserve. It’s home to large numbers of lions, cheetahs and leopards, as well as one of East Africa’s densest concentrations of elephants. More than 570 bird species have been recorded within the park's boundaries, together with hippos, spotted hyenas and wild dogs.
Despite being Tanzania’s third-largest national park, Katavi is one of the country’s least visited. This is largely due to its remote location in the far west of the country, with only three permanent camps to stay at. It encompasses the snaking Katuma River and the seasonal floodplains of Lake Katavi and Lake Chada.
Katavi National Park is renowned for its large herds of Cape buffalos, zebras and giraffes, as well as being home to elephants and mud hole-dwelling hippopotami. Along the Katuma River, you can expect to see Nile crocodiles, with occasional sightings of big cats such as lions, leopards and cheetahs.
Previously known as the Selous Game Reserve, Nyerere National Park forms part of Tanzania’s Southern Circuit. It sprawls across 50,000 square kilometres of grasslands, savannahs, wetlands and Miombo woodlands along the banks of the Rufiji River.
Nyerere National Park was first designated as a protected area in 1896 when Tanzania was under German colonial rule and it was named after a famous big game hunter, Frederick Selous. Today it is UNESCO World Heritage-listed due to its wildlife diversity and abundance, as well as its pristine natural landscapes.
While game driving through Nyerere National Park, you can expect to see African bush elephants, African buffalos and Masai giraffes, as well as Plains zebras, hippopotami and south-central black rhinoceros. The park is also a Lion Conservation Unit due to the important role it plays in sustaining lion populations.
Established in 1964, Mikumi National Park is one of the most accessible parks in Tanzania due to its proximity to Dar es Salaam. It encompasses the three ridge-like peaks of Malundwe Mountain and some spectacular rock formations, as well as grasslands dotted with acacias, baobabs and tamarind trees. It’s for this reason that Mikumi National Park is sometimes compared to the Serengeti.
Aside from its populations of wildebeests, elephants, zebras and impalas, Mikumi National Park is home to a subspecies of giraffes that may be the link between Masai and reticulated giraffes. In the north of the park, there are two artificial pools where you can observe hippos surfacing, with these water sources also attracting some of Mikumi’s 400+ recorded bird species. Along the grassy floodplains of the Mkata River, you have a good chance of spotting elands and tree-climbing lions.
Encompassing 1,990 square kilometres on the edge of Mikumi National Park, Udzungwa Mountains is particularly renowned for its primate and bird species. It includes tropical rainforest, miombo woodlands and steppe where more than 400 bird species have been recorded. In addition, six primate species have been observed within the park’s boundaries, including the endemic Iringa red colobus and Sanje crested mangabey.
With no roads leading through the park, hiking is the most popular way to explore the Udzungwa Mountains. The trails range significantly in duration and difficulty from the one-hour Sonjo Trail, which leads to a picturesque cascade, to the multi-day Lumemo Trail. Extending for 65 kilometres, it follows the banks of the Lumemo River and offers the chance to observe elephants, buffalos and antelopes along the way. One of the most popular walks connects to the 170-metre-high Sanje Waterfalls and its plunge pools.
Backed by the volcanic peak of Mount Meru, Arusha National Park is a small but diverse safari destination near the town of Arusha. It’s a great option if you’re short on time or as an introduction to the Northern Circuit, but don’t expect the concentrations of big-game wildlife seen in Serengeti National Park or the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.
In addition to its volcanic slopes, Arusha National Park encompasses crater grasslands and shallow alkaline lakes that attract a diversity of wading birds. Highlights for twitchers include sightings of Narina and bar-tailed trogons, as well as a range of starling species.
Arusha National Park is also home to Cape buffalos, zebras, giraffes and elephants, as well as blue monkeys and black-and-white colobus. While leopards are known to reside within the park, although sightings are rare.
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