Northern National Park & Reserves In Tanzania

Serengeti National Park

The Serengeti National Park — was established nearly a hundred years ago as a colonial game reserve, made a National Park in 1951, and later endorsed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. One of the last remaining areas of untouched wilderness, it lies securely in the Serengeti ecosystem, an area that stretches from the woodlands, lakes and grassy plains of Ndutu in southern Serengeti to the northern verdant river expanse till Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. This ecosystem covers 25,000 square kilometers, within which the Serengeti National Park consists of almost 15,000 square kilometers of protected ecological treasures, to be discovered on a BookmySafary.com dream safari vacation to Tanzania.

Any ecosystem is composed of interlinked and interdependent phenomena, including the topography, climate and situation, the wildlife and the effects of human usage. The climate of the Serengeti is defined by periods of rain and drought. The geography of the area ranges from apparently limitless grass plains in the south, fertilized by volcanic ash rich in life-giving phosphates, to wooded highlands in the east, crossed by rivers and studded with island outcrops or kopjes of eroded granite, home to hundreds of vulnerable inhabitants such as the rare black rhinoceros.

Across these vast plains range a fantastic cast of wild fauna including impressive numbers of hooved herbivores, predators and avi-fauna. Amongst them, the principal actors are blue wildebeest or gnu (a.k.a. white-bearded wildebeest), determining the nature of the ecosystem by their spectacular annual Great Migration, “The Greatest Show Of The Natural World”, during which they trek in circum-ambulation, in their millions, 3200 kilometers from northern Tanzania to south-western Kenya and back again, as the plains dry out seasonally, forcing them to seek fresh pastures. In turn, their odyssey affects other creatures. Lions, jackals, hyenas, leopards and cheetahs prey on the migrating and resident herds. Vultures subsist on the predators’ leavings.

The herds leave tons of dung which enriches the grasslands, providing food and nurseries for many varieties of dung beetles. Serengeti National Park is a wonderland in which to experience the interwoven miracles of life and death on a wondrous East African safari adventure.

Experience The Serengeti & Its Migration – A Paradise Worth Seeing.

There is still a place on Earth where life was as in the beginning; a place where life still scintillates. To the Maasai tribe, a pastoralist people in the Ngorongoro and Serengeti, this is the place where the land runs on forever, a land suspended in time, a last refuge of the largest concentration of wildlife remaining on earth; an endless array of grassy plains, woodlands and hills dotted with glorious animals of every type and size. Long ago, before the age of man, mountains to the east of this natural wildlife refuge spurted their fury, laying a long and thick blanket of volcanic ash. Entire mountain ranges were buried, leaving only the mountain summits as lone markers of an ancient world, long lost.

Over the course of four million years, ash turned to rich soil yielding vast grasslands, and today cradling some of the most important animal species on earth. Yet of this richly diverse habitat, one species stands out from all others, as it is the foundation of the wildlife ecosystem in the Serengeti. With herds reaching over one million, it is the wildebeest that affects many other species. Often called the Serengeti Clown, the wildebeests are magnificently endowed, ready for their endless search of rich grasslands and freshwater. Alongside this massive population of wildebeest, co-exist other herbivores, equally drawn by the rich and varied vegetation of the Serengeti. The Serengeti, ruled by simplest of life’s principles, where herbivores eat plant, and carnivores eat herbivores, thus resulting in the magnificently rich animal life diversification; a paradise, where lions and cheetah hunt with might and stealth, a great generosity offered by the enormous wildebeest herds, where nothing is left to waste here on the Serengeti plains.

The most traditionally popular activity on a photographic safari to Tanzania is the game viewing drive. With skilled, knowledgeable and enthusiastic BookmySafary.com guides, some in radio communication with trackers and other like-minded guides, you will be sure to see the most riveting events in your immediate environment. Your guides are proud of their ability to seek out the tracks and find the animals you most want to see. Your delight is their reward. In custom-designed open roof or side 4×4 vehicles, you will enjoy unimpeded panoramic views of the Great Migration of the wildebeests, zebras, gazelles and elands, or the Big Five, seeking out royal lion prides and pachyderms elephant herds on the plains, buffalo by the rivers, leopard in the woodlands and rhino around kopjes, shrublands and dense forests.

Other sights include giraffe, cheetah, hippopotamus and scores of smaller mammals, hyrax, small cats and scaly pangolin that curl into armored balls at any threat, together with hundreds of colorful and unusual birds, including beautiful crowned cranes, bizarre ostrich and colorful rollers, sunbirds and bee-eaters. Game-viewing trips can be taken for around or over three hours in the early morning and later in the afternoon, or even extended full days to include meals in the bush as picnic lunches and others times as proper bush meals where food is cooked on a designated site and refrigerated drinks are served in style on tables laid out conveniently close to your vehicle. If you park by a kopje, you may even be joined by curious monkeys or distant zebras sharing your shade.

Available activities vary with location, whether inside or outside the actual boundaries of the Serengeti National Park and its private reserves and concessions. Not all accommodation offers guided walks or night drives, but some do, dependent on their location and license to operate, and it may even be possible to pre-book an early morning hot air balloon trip to appreciate the vastness of the landscape and the unbelievable extent of the migrating and resident herds along with its stalking predators.

Sundowners on game drives and bush boma cooking around a campfire at your accommodation are offered on select East African tours of Tanzania while many accommodations have a mini-library, ethnic performances and the enlightening opportunity to inquire more about the Maasai people who are so intimately linked with the national park. Evening entertainments from nature talks to Maasai dances, day cultural visits may be available and sometimes special activities aimed at children, with bush skills workshops and even ceremonial visits to Maasai villages for blessings for honeymoon couples or to see the rites of passage for a young, handsome native warrior.

Ngorongoro Crater

The Ngorongoro Crater — Sited in the Great East African Rift Valley in northern Tanzania, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area includes the wondrous Ngorongoro Crater, home to the densest concentration of wild animals in Africa. Within 260 sq. kilometers (100 sq. miles) of varied micro-climates, over 30,000 mammals, half of them rangy wildebeests and well-rounded zebras, together with their many predators, lordly lions, swift cheetahs, stealthy leopards, opportunist jackals, and skulking hyenas, with a vast cast of smaller mammals and birds, form a compelling destination for wildlife safaris in Tanzania. The caldera of a two million year old collapsed volcano forms an unbroken, 2000 feet (600 meters) high rim around a natural amphitheater within which the high drama of predator and prey is enacted on a grand canvas.

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area is also part of the Serengeti ecosystem but was separated from the Serengeti National Park in 1959, intending to enable the harmonious co-existence of man and his wildlife neighbors. Around 8300 sq. kilometers (3200 sq. miles) of prairie, bush and highland forests, including three spectacular volcanic craters, became the focus of the Tanzanian government’s imaginative solution to the problem of reconciling the needs of indigenous pastoralist tribesmen with the conservation of the area’s rich wildlife and the prospect of much-needed income from tourism. In 1979, it was announced as a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is visited by enthusiastic adventurers on their BookmySafary.com photographic safaris every year.

It is possible to see all five of the star players of the “Out of Africa” action on a single day. Some scenes of the Oscar-winning film were actually shot here, where elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros, lion and leopard are close neighbors. On your extended Ngorongoro adventurous trip with BookmySafary.com, you may also visit other volcanoes: Empakai, with its central lake set like an emerald in a jade green bowl; and Olmoti, with breathtaking waterfalls cascading 500 feet down its forested escarpment. For the more intrepid traveler, “The Mountain of God”, Ol Doinyo Lengai, challenges ascent of its precipitous slopes where evidence of its 2007 eruption can clearly be seen. Adjacent Lake Natron, saturated with volcanic ash over many millennia, provides one of the last safe havens for breeding lesser flamingos, protected by their toxic moat.

Apart from ever-popular game-viewing Ngorongoro Crater floor safaris, the area offers unmatched historical and cultural riches. Prehistoric hominids emerged here, in the Olduvai Gorge, beginning the rise to today’s technological man. Proud, scarlet-clad Maasai pastoralists migrated to Tanzania in the 17th century, bringing their cattle with them. They live by and for their cattle, despising agriculture and hunting, and they have an impressive spiritual, artistic and cultural heritage which they are willing to share with visitors to their villages and bomas.

Ngorongoro safari experiences revolve simultaneously around unforgettable wildlife viewing opportunities and unique accommodations within a vast and varied ecosystem, rich with historical and cultural associations. Tanzania’s main attraction is its wilderness, populated with hundreds of thousands of assorted fauna, from the gigantic, lumbering elephant to its diminutive distant cousin, the cuddly hyrax, and from the haughty giraffe to the comical warthog. Many of the Ngorongoro lodgings afford close proximity to surrounding wildlife. Secretary birds stalk about coiffured lawns while nocturnal bush babies clamber in trees overhanging near the guest verandahs. Lions thunder in the expanse and hyenas laugh. Cicadas thrum. Crickets chirp. Tinker birds beat a rhythmic cadence. Night scented blossoms weight the air with swooning fragrance. You are part of a past time when campfires flicker, Maasai warriors chant, drum, leap and dance. Colonial standards of comfort, luxury, and service are available, as are authentic safari camping experiences, yet the modern world is not too far away. Comfortable and convenient custom-built game-spotting vehicles have sturdy four-wheel drive and are manned by knowledgeable, native BookmySafary.com guides, versed in the lore of their people and reverently enthused by their animal neighbors.

If dining outdoors, the on-board cold-boxes hold culinary delights and an international selection of drinks. Two-way radio contact ensures safety and up-to-the-minute reports on dynamic wildlife action. Pop-up roofs afford a platform to record your adventures on DSLR or bridge cameras and video recorders. Excursions to sites of historic and cultural interest could enrich every day of your authentic vacation in Tanzania.

Closest to the present are every-day social activities on farms and in towns and villages, such as tours of gardens and plantations, partaking in baking, harvesting, tree-planting, coffee roasting, pot and furniture making, grain pounding and sampling local beers.

You may visit schools, co-operative projects, rural businesses and craft centers or learn about and Maasai culture of Ngorongoro and Serengeti, joining in their celebrations, dancing and local ritual ceremonies. More active walking safaris can encompass bird-watching, visits to waterfalls and elephant caves, botanic tours, and even an energetic hike to the crater rim, when you may meet families of baboon ambling along the track, tails arched in greeting. But don’t get too close. They are formidable in defense of their families. Cycling Safaris are available to explore country lanes, or tackle a full-day mountain bike outing through the highlands to the glorious Rhotia Valley or around Gibbs Farm. You could take a day trip to Laetoli, where hominid footprints, over three million years old, can be seen in its sedimentary rocks, or visit Olduvai Gorge, site of the evolution of mankind, with its rustic museum where you can see the earliest tools, hardly credible as forerunners of today’s technology. If you prefer to relax, you can take a massage or a spa treatment, enjoy high tea in a beautiful garden, picnic at a site of outstanding verdant loveliness, enjoy sundowners overlooking forests and farms to distant volcanic escarpments and floors, tinted gold in the dying day, or yarn around a campfire under a glittering canopy of stars. These are superlative, discerning Ngorongoro experiences available with BookmySafary.com!

Tarangire National Park

Tarangire National Park in northern Tanzania is not as well branded as a safari holiday destination in Africa as Serengeti or the Ngorongoro Crater, but the tributaries and swamps of the Tarangire River provide permanent water sources when surrounding shallow lakes dry up, thus attracting a migratory movement of up to 250,000 mammals during the dry season from June to October with a more varied mix of ungulates. In particular, an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 of elephants are on the move, an epic event unrivalled in other areas. Hump-backed wildebeest, kongoni with long ears and short horns reminiscent of a samurai headdress, hulking buffalo, buxom zebra, delicate gazelles, watchful eland, ostrich outriders, fringe-eared oryx and an array of attendant predators move in and out of the park in different directions at different times.

Spectacular are the season density wildlife populations undoubtedly, but the most astonishing features of a nature tour of Tarangire Park are its giants. Thousands of elephant gather in central riverbeds and marshes, and giant baobab trees, medusa-headed monoliths often thousands of years old, colonize this Northern circuit. The park itself comprises of 2850 sq kilometers (1096 sq. miles) of acacia wooded grassland, fronting the Great African Rift Valley escarpment.

Set in an ecosystem ten times larger than Lake Manyara Park, consisting mainly of less rigidly restricted Conservation Areas, it is owned mainly by the Maasai people. Development is encouraged with a balance of eco-tourism and wildlife protection, whilst maintaining the cultural identity of indigenous populations. Large numbers of giraffe, lesser kudu, warthog, impala, waterbuck, and dik dik remain in the park all year round, with many predators, including the tree- climbing lion, cheetah and python which are usually seen lying in ambush for their prey along stout horizontal tree branches. Round-eared, white-tailed African wild dogs, once believed extinct in this area, also hunt the Southeast plains. Miniature termite mountains of red earth cement attract nocturnal ant-eating aardvark, and also pangolin that can roll itself into armored balls, as well as lively mongoose, cuddly hyrax and a plethora of brightly colored lizards, together with dueting red and yellow barbets, representatives of up to 550 bird species that make the Tarangire a bird-watcher’s Paradise.

Not least of the wonders of the area are thousands of insects that display themselves around night-time lanterns. Admittedly, it is commonsense to protect yourself against mosquitoes, but the wonderful shapes and markings of butterflies, beetles and moths more than compensate. Hauntingly ghost like silk moths, brilliantly marked green flatid bugs, and bizarre but beautiful oleander hawk moths, like camouflaged alien fighter planes, make the “magic” lantern a hypnotic nocturnal display on your safari in Tanzania with BookmySafary.com.

On a Tanzanian experiential vacation in Tarangire, you can interact with local communities, learning about cultural and historical traditions, helping with local schools and development projects, visiting towns, villages, farms and small industries. You can dance and sing with Maasai warriors, or trek with them through the bush to search out cave painting sites. Swim, or have a relaxing herbal massage. Set out on a bush walk. You can at a safe, non-intrusive distance, view giraffe, buffalo, elephant, zebra, impala and even lion and more, accompanied by a skilled, armed ranger and your walking guide. Bush walks can take couple hours, half a day or even couple of days if you are hardy enough to enjoy a fly-camping bush walk expedition. You can breakfast or picnic in the bush, enjoy bush sundowners or a romantic bush dinner of traditional Tanzanian dishes prepared in an outback kitchen.

Try an early morning take-off in a Tarangire hot-air balloon, floating soundlessly above the treetops for a unique perspective on herds of elephant, unmoved by your presence, and zebra, spooked by your looming shadow. Soar into the sunrise to see the Great Rift Valley highlands, pink in the morning light, or drift over jade swamps speckled with water-birds. The most popular tour activity in Tarangire is the game drive with your expert and experienced BookmySafary.com guide, in comfortable, custom-built 4WD vehicle, with all-round viewing – open sided or pop-up roof, two-way radio for current and reciprocal information on insider game tracks and sightings, and on-board refreshments.

You will see ungulates, rare as the Bohor reedbuck, or unusual as dry-land oryx, long-necked gerenuk and smaller rare mammals such as Banded mongoose and Cape hare, as well as lions, leopards, cheetahs, wildebeests, zebras to primates such monkeys and baboons. There are no rhinos in the Tarangire as they have been poached to extinction in this park few decades ago for their horns though you can see them in Ngorongoro Crater and with proper luck in Serengeti. Plans for reintroductions in Tarangire are unknown but would be welcomed by BookmySafary.com. Always let your guide go first into any new situation. A hollow baobab tree, such as the massive Poachers’ Hide, where primitive beekeepers kept their hives, yesteryear poachers hid and hunters sheltered before conservation was enforced, but today, may be the lair of a leopard, or at least a nocturnal Verreaux’s Eagle Owl with four-feet wing span, a light sleeper that wakens instantly to swoop in defiance at any intruder. Bat-eared foxes, hyena cubs and bats have all been encountered there.

Northern Tanzania birding is an immense pleasure in Tarangire, with five species of gigantic raptors, three kinds of vultures, outsize ostriches, ponderous Kori bustards, and tiny weavers, bee-eaters, sunbirds and kingfishers, some of the smallest, brightest, and most beautiful birds in the world. Outside the national park boundaries, night drives give opportunities to spot many nocturnal animals, particularly Small-eared galago, Senegal bushbaby and Crested porcupine, as well as common White-tailed mongoose and rarer civet. Some licenses have been issued for night drives from trusted camp sites within the park.

Lake Manyara National Park

Lake Manyara National Park — is one of the smallest safari parks in Tanzania, but encloses within its numerous micro-climates a diverse range of landscapes and animal populations which mirror those of many different parts of Tanzania in miniature. It is easily reached in 90 minutes from Arusha by road as a convenient stop-over between rival African wilderness destinations at Ngorongoro and Tarangire. Between the cliffs and the eponymous soda lake, which extends around 30 miles (50 kilometers) along the base of the 500 meter high East African Rift Valley escarpment, home to impudent rock-climbing klip-springer and diminutive dik-dik, there is a narrow belt of acacia woodland and area of grassland which changes seasonally from short, rich grazing lawns to golden, dry grass savannah.

When green, it is colonized by wildebeests, warthogs, Cape buffaloes and zebras, and when it is dry, ostrich, elephant and giraffe can be seen, the latter so dark in coloring as to look almost black in the distance. Blue and velvet monkeys, giraffe, and elephant feed in the acacia and mahogany woodlands but wander out to the saltlicks around the receding lake. Lions also sleep in the forks of the acacia trees, an unusual behavior prompted by their environment. Elephants, researched in the park by Ian Hamilton as part of the earliest conservation projects from 1975, are more numerous here too. They travel in extended families with dozens of grandmothers and mothers, co-operatively protecting their offspring, the smallest of which actually walk under their mothers’ bellies, safe from predators and for a quick feed.

An exploration tour of Manyara can be accomplished in a day, spotting hippos in the north and south of the lake, with hundreds of bird species, especially waders and migratory flamingos, on the shores, and thousands of ungulates and distinct primates in the woodlands: notably stately waterbuck, spiral-horned impala, black and white Colobus monkeys with their perpetually surprised white eyebrows; and numerous baboons, grooming each other by the roadside in affectionate family groups whilst aggressive sentinel males strut, tails raised high to “moon” showing shiny warning bum patches. In the groundwater forest, more fascinating birds, keening crowned eagles, squawking hornbills and clucking crested guinea fowl add to the shrilling cacophony of myriad stridulating insects.

The park is entered from the north, and prior to the gate arrival, you will pass through the rural market town of Mto wa Mbu, where remnants of dozens of indigenous Tanzanian tribes who have traded and warred in the area prior to the colonial era, including Maasai, Iraqw, Mgubwe, Chagga, Gorowa, Tatoga and Irangi, now live in harmony. These provide cultural and historical insights to enthusiastic BookmySafari.com tourists on their dream vacation in Tanzania, who will encounter a unique fusion of the four basic African language roots: Nilotic, Cushitic, Khoisan and Bantu, although Swahili and English are almost nationally and universally spoken and understood.

An adventurous Lake Manyara safari offers various activities to meet the interests of BookmySafary.com guests with differing objectives and levels of fitness. Young or very active visitors may enjoy mountain bike tours, long walking treks, fly camping and even abseiling from the red-brown rock walls of the escarpment. They may leap and dance with Maasai warriors at evening campfire performances. Others may prefer to exercise relaxed patience on bird-watching forays or gentle walks around Mto wa Mbu town, and attend lectures on local wildlife, culture and community projects in the area. On a full day or half day safari, there is always an opportunity to take game-spotting tours of Manyara in specially adapted people carriers with four-wheel drive, pop-up roof and comfortable window seats for all. On board coolers for refreshments and two-way radios to enable guides to keep in touch, ensure that you will not go hungry or thirsty, and you will be kept abreast of any unusual activity in Manyara Park.

You will certainly pass herds of ungulates grazing in the cool of the morning. You could catch predators carrying home the bodies of their overnight victims. You may be surprised to see a baboon trailing the corpse of a small duiker or a leopard hoisting its prey onto its larder in the fork of an acacia tree amidst traversing opportune hyenas. Before it gets too hot, wildlife mating rituals are performed with often stylized battles in which the contestants are rarely seriously hurt. In elegant neck-twining and synchronized walks, losing giraffes simply concede their superiority and walk away.

Handsome black ostrich males wait in lordly disdain whilst their dowdy hens indulge in wing-arching and charging to frighten off would-be rivals, and elephants engage in lots of roaring and ear-flapping, waving their trunks and wisely digging their tusks into the ground, rather than into each other. The flora has similarly adapted to survive. Giant baobab trees can withstand the depredations of elephants feeding on their bark. Valuable monolithic mahogany trees are similarly invulnerable.

Late afternoon and early evening safari drives follow hordes of mammals descending to drink before retiring for the night, trailed by hungry killers, such as lions, or even the African wild dogs have been seen in rarity, that also hunt in packs by distracting, separating out and heading off their prey, and may be foiled by the defensive tactics of determined buffalo males, forming sweeping ranks to contain and deter the marauders. Sundowner cocktails in the bush as the light turns amber and skies flame and die to black embers, lit by brightly scintillating stars, are followed on your drive back to the camp, catching the eyes of nocturnal porcupine, bush babies and even aardvark and bat-eared fox as your BookmySafary.com guide spots the sights you dreamed of when you planned to wondrously travel in Eastern Africa.

Kilimanjaro National Park

Kilimanjaro — the shining mountain, floats in a wreath of cloud above the vast South Amboseli plains – also part of Kilimanjaro National Park ecosystem. Although most beautifully distinct from Amboseli National Park in Kenya with the finest wildlife photo opportunities in the foreground, Mt. Kilimanjaro is actually in Tanzania because, when the boundary was drawn as a straight line between German and British Colonial Territories, Kilimanjaro was allocated to Germany, although this necessitated drawing a kink in the border. This was not, as popularly assumed, a whimsical gift from the English Queen Victoria to an indulged German nephew, but diplomatic compensation for the British claim to Mombasa. Although dense vegetation is sparse on the Amboseli plains both on the Tanzanian and Kenya border of the Kilimanjaro, with just primarily palm trees and acacias, the grass is richly nourishing due to volcanic ash. It is relished and sought after by herds of zebra, wildebeest, buffalo and elephant.

The arid Savannah stretch away above an underground water table supplied by the glaciers on Mount Kilimanjaro which, at 5895 meters, is the highest mountain in Africa, and also the tallest free-standing mountain in the entire world. In 1995, J M Grimshaw from Oxford University, N J Codeiro from Moshi, C A Foley from Princeton University explored the Kilimanjaro wilderness and wrote a journal called “The mammals of Kilimanjaro” that documented a staggering presence of 154 mammals species. Varied terrestrial fauna are present to be seen on your BookmySafary.com game driving tour of the western sector of Kilimanjaro National Park, including warthogs, hippos, impalas, dik-diks, zebras, elephants, buffaloes and giraffes as well as less common elands and gazelles. Cheetahs, lions and leopard are much in evidence as well as jackals, hyenas, monkeys, baboons, and mongooses. But the ecosystem is fragile and vulnerable to overgrazing.

Mount Kilimanjaro National Park provides an amazingly diverse series of habitats as it rises from the pastures and bushlands of the native Maasai people to the boundary of the 1668 sq. kilometer (641 sq. miles) national park at approximately altitude of 800 meters. Here, melt-water streams from the summit nourish a lush belt of tropical forest where some of the healthiest elephant herds in the entire continent roam at will, matriarchs with their attendant daughters, granddaughters and great-grandchildren, accompanied by enormous, lumbering tuskers over 50 years old, their heads dragged almost to the ground by massive ivory tusks.

You may be lucky enough to spot the endangered Abbott’s duiker among a supporting cast of antelopes and primates. With such a diversity of habitats, Birdlife International records 671 avian species in the area, including 13 classified at risk of extinction. It is a superlative destination for an East Africa birding trip especially during the wet season. Montane forest gives way to alpine meadows until at 4000 meters, the landscape changes to weird, towering stems of giant lobelias in a sea of soft heather. Above this haunting scenery, there are only mosses and lichens clinging to the rocks, before snowfields lead to three craters, Mawenzi and Shira, which are dormant, and Kibo, the summit, where gas fumaroles are intermittently active, although the last major eruption was almost 200,000 years ago. If you would like to challenge yourself to summit the highest peak in Africa, go on an Uhuru Trails climbing tour with BookmySafary.com.

Each camp offers it own specialized activities, bird-watching safaris, nature walks, game drives including off-road and night safaris and visits to native villages. There is even a chance to go on speciality trout fishing, and for really hardy BookmySafary.com adventurers, to hike on the slopes of Kilimanjaro. The mountain is readily accessible, but preparation is essential and an attempt on the summit is a thoughtful undertaking necessitating months of foresight and many days and nights of sheer endurance, not to be taken lightly but attainable. Before the West knew of Kilimanjaro, Wachagga natives of the region and Swahili Arab storytellers related tales of a ferocious giant atop the mighty white mountain that formed a landmark on the major slave routes.

This invisible being punished trespassers by mutilating their hands and feet and robbing them of feeling. Quite a graphic description of frost-bite, you will agree. Stick to the lower Kili slopes for fantastic bird and terrestrial game-spotting opportunities, or take a trip in South Amboseli in the western border of Kilimanjaro National Park for the best views of the elusive peak which reveals itself in the evening or early morning, floating on a sea of mist, a surreal multi-faceted diamond reflecting the sun.

Game drives in customized four wheel drive vehicles will permit you to visit a number of different terrains at different times. Early morning is best to visit the Amboseli – Western Kilimanjaro plains in search of elephant herds, whilst evening, after traditional sundowners in the bush, gives a privileged view of the nocturnal life of this amazing part of the natural world. Lovable, round-eyed bush babies cling to the stems of acacia trees. Aardvark and pangolin lurk around their bases, genet and mongoose hang out near conical red termite hills and leopard are elusively seen only when their green eyes reflect the glare of your headlights. Photography is also major lure for BookmySafary.com adventurers to the Kilimanjaro Amboseli plains.

The birds, the terrestrial fauna, the distinctive landscape and speckled floral life, all offer images to excite the visual artist especially when you have the wildlife in the foreground and the clear majestic mountain in the background. The fabulous Maasai people, hardy warriors, herders and craftsmen par excellence, own this territory and contribute to its protection and conservation in return for income and assistance in areas like education, health and cultural preservation. They welcome guests to their villages and share their customs and cultural heritage with enthusiastic visitors who travel in East Africa for tribal enlightenment. They are a fun-loving people, fond of music and dancing, ever ready to share their knowledge, language and their laughter, especially with children. They are a proud and beautiful tribe, unfailingly courteous, and must be treated with respect. Some still believe that taking their photograph will trap their spirit, so never attempt this without permission.

Arusha National Park

Arusha National Park — Situated in northern Tanzania in between Arusha and Moshi township is the little-known treasure of Arusha National Park. Covering approximately 552 sq. km (212 sq. miles), the park features a variety of ecosystems, such as grasslands, swamps, crater lakes, highland forest and much more, and the three largest landmarks in the park are Momela Lakes, Mount Meru and Ngurdoto Crater. As you travel through the Arusha wilderness during your exploratory tour, you may find yourself winding along a road that is shaded by a canopy of trees overhead. The dense forest begins to open up and before you lies a large grassland that is dotted with small lakes and surrounded by mountains. In the distance, you may see the majestic Kilimanjaro but an up, close and personal view of the rugged Meru mountain. The other prominent features of the park are Ngongongare Springs, Lokie Swamp, Senato Pools, Lake Jembamba and Lake Longil.

Some of the small pools are dry until the rains, at which time you may see waterfowl, as well as other animals coming to drink. Grazing herbivores are frequently seen at Lake Longil and the rich grasses make it a lovely place for a picnic. As you relax, you may even spot a fish eagle diving for Tilapia fish. The high forests of the mountains are home to black and white colobus, and on the open plains, you may see zebra, giraffe, warthog, bushbuck and other herbivores. These prey animals attract limited predators, and your guide may be able to help you spot these stealthy carnivores though the park is not predator concentrated.

With over 400 species of winged fauna, Arusha National Park is a bird lovers destination. High above you may see Augur Buzzard, African Crowned, Tawny and Snake Eagles, and both the forest trees and lakes are favored residences for pelicans, bee-eaters, flamingos hornbills, herons, ducks, waders and many others. Discover this and much more during your wildlife safari of this expanse of Africa with a game drive or canoe excursion. Game drives cover the greatest distances and allow you to observe the largest variety of wildlife and animal behavior. These unbelievable daily excursions show you the diversity of Arusha National Park, all while you travel in the comfort of a safari vehicle.

Your BookmySafary.com guide is an expert in all things and is delighted to share knowledge about the plants, animals, tracking techniques, conservation efforts and cultures around the park. Canoeing safaris are more leisurely experiences – a nature wander on water, taking you along the Momella Lakes to observe aquatic wildlife and other terrestrial fauna that graze along the shores. You have the opportunity to listen carefully to the sounds around you and you may even have some up-close and personal moments with the wildlife, all while your guide helps you maintain a safe distance. You can also add a few days to your stay in the park by climbing to the summit of Mount Meru or a simply just bush walk around the foothills.

With so much natural beauty surrounding you, the two most recommended activities in Arusha National Park are game drives and canoeing safaris. Each of these activities gives you a unique perspective of the park’s flora and fauna. If you are staying at Hatari Lodge, a walking safari activity is available with an experienced walking guide and an armed ranger. Optional trekking of Mount Meru is also a possibility. As you plan your safari vacation to Tanzania, you may imagine the thrill of being on a game drive, traveling in an open-roof 4×4 vehicle and seeing some of the unique mammals on the planet roam freely across the vast African plains.

Arusha National Park is a unique location to make your Tanzania safari dreams come true with its varied activities. The park has fewer visitors than the other national parks in Tanzania, yet offers diverse terrestrial, aquatic and avi fauna viewing opportunities with its multi-activity options, due in part to the three distinct ecosystems that are found within the park boundaries and beyond. Some of the most common animals are reedbuck and waterbuck near the water sources and bushbuck and duiker in the dense forests, but you may also see some of the most sought-after herbivores during your game drive, such as woodland elephants, buffalos, hippos, zebras, giraffes and several other grass and foliage eaters. Around Mount Meru foothills, you may find elusive a leopard and hyena, with few other small carnivores found in other areas of the park. Lions and rhinos do not exist in the park. Game drives are presented in the morning and afternoon or on a full day, and your BookmySafary.com guide uses his experience and vast knowledge to take you where you are most likely to see the speckled wildlife and its behaviors, and also natural attractions that you desire, such as Momella Lakes, Ngurdoto Crater, Mount Meru and many other breathtaking sites.

Your safari vehicle is equipped with a two-way radio system so that your guide may reciprocally share and receive real-time insider information with other preferred guides, such as specific behavior spotting, recent kills or births, footprints, sounds, larger groups of animals and more. Momella Lakes is a series of alkaline lakes that are fed by underground springs. While birdlife is in abundance at the lake, land animals do not drink from it due to its high pH waters. Canoeing along the Momella waters is a unique way to explore Arusha National Park during your active-adventure holiday with BookmySafary.com.

You may also notice that the water of the lakes varies due to the presence of certain algae. Canoeing on Momella Lakes is a favorite among birdwatchers. From October to April, your guide may point out some of the many migratory species that are present. Though, year-round resident avian life are always present, and you may find the lesser and greater flamingos color pinking the lake. Also, present are the little grebe (Dabchick), a muted brown species with a beautiful chestnut-red throat and dazzling orange eyes is commonly seen on the lakes. Other avi-fauna on the lakes are Crested Grebe, White-Eared Barbet, African Hoopoe Egyptian goose, African Crowned Eagles, Black Cuckoo-Shrike and many more (read more on best time to visit the Arusha park wilderness in Tanzania). While canoeing, you may also spot hippo, buffalo, bushbuck, waterbuck, zebra and giraffe close to the lake. Your guide has an intimate knowledge of the lakes and wildlife, and, during your canoeing tour of Arusha National Park, he will enlighten you about the flora, fauna and ecosystems in and around the lakes. While on your Arusha park canoeing safari, you always have spectacular views of Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro once it opens up, and very few experiences excite your spirit like being in the aquatic world and being so close to the many avian creatures. Your canoe chaperone provides you with the guidance and appropriate safety briefing but common sense and natural intuition should take precedence in a wild environment, and you should always avoid careless self-exploration.

Rubondo Island National Park

Rubondo Island National Park — Visit the only national park on Lake Victoria and the largest “island park in Africa” during your nature travels in northern Tanzania! Established in 1977, Rubondo Island National Park is located in the southwestern region of Lake Victoria – the largest in Africa, second largest lake in the world and the source of the Nile River. The park covers around 456 square kilometers (176 square miles) of land and water area, including 11 small islets, making it Tanzania’s only island park. The land mass of the park is primarily covered with dense forest, as well as savannah, open woodland, papyrus swamp and beautiful sandy beaches, and, of course, the beauty of Lake Victoria is ever-present while visiting the park.

Rubondo sees fewer visitors than the larger, more well-known parks in Tanzania, giving BookmySafary.com adventurers a private island destination for walking safaris, canoeing, fishing, birdwatching or just watching the distinct lake fauna from the shaded comfort of your hammock. The protected status of the park makes it a prime breeding ground for migratory birds and native fish like the Tilapia and Nile perch. 300 speckled species of birds are found on the island, such as African Grey parrots, heron, stork, spoonbill, malachite kingfisher, paradise flycatcher and many other avi-fauna.

Terrestrial fauna include semi-aquatic sitatunga and dappled bushbuck that are found in the swamps, as well as vervet monkey, genet cat, hippo and the largest prehistoric carnivore on the island — crocodile. Some animals that are found on the island were introduced for conservation reasons since 1966, such as a group of rescued chimpanzees. Other non-native animals include giraffe, elephant, black and white colobus, suni antelope and many others.

Discovering the pristine wilderness of Rubondo Island Park is unlike any other experience during your BookmySafary.com exploration safari in northern Tanzania. Life on the island is much more relaxed, a perfect way to unwind after the incredible heart-pounding excitement of game drives and mountain climbing in some of Tanzania’s other national parks. Observations of the lesser wildlife are the focus, making these moments much more spectacular. The peaceful setting at Rubondo Island, though, causes you to slow down and relish the smaller ecosystems, such as wild insects gathering nectar from wildflowers, spotted neck otter hunting for food and an African fish eagle soaring high overhead hunting for its next meal.

One of the most unique aspects of your adventurous tour of Rubondo Island National Park is the variety of activities by which you explore the land and water. A variety of walking safari is offered that range from general nature walks to more specialized walks, such as those for birding, chimpanzee viewing, hiking and even overnight treehouse stays in for dense forest. Short walks range from one to four hours and are excellent options for BookmySafary.com visitors of all ages.

Longer walks of four or more hours are also offered for those who may desire a more strenuous trek. During your walks, you are escorted by an experienced and knowledgeable guide who enlightens you about more than just the ecosystem and wildlife! You learn about traditional tracking and survival techniques, methods for navigating, dung identification, medicinal uses of plants, native peoples and their traditions and so much more! These walks are not only informative, but also fascinating as you see Africa in a very different way. In contrast to the vast Rubondo landscapes that are explored with game drives, safari walks offer a leisurely pace that allows you to see vibrant butterflies gathering nectar from wildflowers, study the intricate design of orchids, watch insects scurry along the dirt and much more. You will find a variety of plant species during your East African excursion at Rubondo Island Park, such as papyrus, tamarinds, wild palm, sycamore fig, trailing taproots and much more.

During your discerning Rubondo vacation in northern Tanzania, you may have the opportunity to observe some of the island’s highly elusive chimpanzees. These animals represent an interesting group as they are not native to the island, but are descendants of chimpanzees that were released by the Frankfurt Zoological Society after being rescued from zoos and circuses in Europe. The original chimpanzees were believed to be wild born and received no rehabilitation or pre-release training prior to their introduction on the island, and today this primate demonstrates many instinctual behaviors that have contributed to their survival on the island.

With more than 300 resident and migratory bird species in the park, Rubondo Island is a bird lovers’ paradise. Whether you seek birds of prey, songbirds, waders or any other type of avi-fauna, the island is sure to keep your interest as you locate and identify the various species during your birding walks. The proximity to Lake Victoria also offers a range of activities from your accommodation. Boating and canoe safaris take you out on the lake where you have a unique perspective of the waterfowl and other animals that graze near the water. Children must be at least five years old for the boating safaris. Fishing rods and boats are available should you choose to enjoy some fishing (catch and release if you prefer not to eat your fish) during your lake holiday in this distinct wilderness in Africa, a delightful activity for BookmySafary.com guests of all ages. A visit to a local village shows you how significant the lake is to the native peoples e.g. Sukuma tribe around Lake Victoria and Mwanza.

Lake Eyasi

Lake Eyasi — In the southwest corner of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area is the beautiful Lake Eyasi, a soda lake that is fed by the Sibiti and Baray Rivers. Visiting the Eyasi lake is a different type of safari experience from those that you may be familiar with from your other Tanzania wilderness excursions with BookmySafary.com. The region around Eyasi is the home of the Hadzabe and Datoga communities who continue their ancient lifestyle of hunting-gathering and pastoralism respectively. The pace and experiences are much more tranquil, giving you plenty of time to absorb the natural setting of the 405-square mile (1050 sq. km) lake that is situated at 3400 feet above sea level. Located in one of the oldest sections of the Eastern Rift Valley, Lake Eyasi is near many of the region’s off-beat landmarks, such as Oldeani Mountain on the northeast Ngorongoro part of the lake, the swampy valley of Yaeda to the southeast and Serengeti just north. In contrast to the savannah and arid plains of other parts of northern Tanzania, Lake Eyasi offers tall palm trees along its shores and a variety of avi-fauna, such as Fischer’s lovebird, flamingo, pelican, spurfowl, stork, barbet, weaver and many others.

BookmySafary.com Safaris guests primarily visit Lake Eyasi for its cultural experiences combined with a birding safari excursion in northern Tanzania, and many also prefer the relatively low number of tourists that visit this outback area. Your adventurous tour offers distinct activities to allow you to explore the environmental, cultural and historical treasures around the lake (read more on when is the best time to visit Eyasi). Walking safaris during your Lake Eyasi expedition trail gives you the relaxed pace you need to study the delicate flora and smaller denizens that are found near the lake. Your guide enlightens you about the plant and animal species that you encounter along the way, as well as tracking techniques, medicinal uses of plants, carcass identification, droppings and much more. If seeing hundreds of species of birds excites you, Lake Eyasi is a perfect destination for you. During your birding walks, your guide helps you locate and identify the feathered inhabitants which include flamingos, pelicans, spoonbills, weavers, spurfowls, storks, barbets, egrets and more. Ancient traditions, intricate crafts and beliefs are just some of the things you learn about during the cultural tours. Two tribes live in the region around the lake – Hadzabe Bushmen and Datoga. The Hadzabe are hunter-gatherers while the Datoga are pastoralists. Visits to the villages give you a personal, intimate look into the daily life of these peoples. You may be impromptu invited into their homes, learn about the family structures, participate in traditional dances, participate in bead making with the women, join the traditional small game hunting and gathering by the Hadzabe tribesmen, make bow and arrows and much more.

Lake Natron

Lake Natron — Located just seventy miles northwest of Arusha is the alkaline Lake Natron bordering Kenya. A small part of the lake is also accessible from the Shompole wilderness in southern Kenya. As you plan your Natron lake tour of northern Tanzania with BookmySafary.com, you may discover the great myth surrounding the lake — that it has the ability to turn animals into stone. Although the water of the lake does contain soda, magnesite and salt, the myth is untrue. Lake Natron is primarily fed by the southern Ewaso Nyiro River, as well as hot mineral springs. As the fresh water vaporizes, what remains is water with high concentrations of salt minerals. Special bacteria and blue-green algae thrive in the environment, producing an ideal breeding ground for avian life. The lake is, in fact, the primary breeding ground for lesser flamingo in East Africa, with more than two million individual birds flocking to the area every year with egg laying and hatching occurring between September and April, with an additional tens of thousands other waterfowl found near the lake, making Lake Natron a prime destination for bird lovers on an avian holiday in Africa. You may also spot the white-lipped tilapia that is endemic to the Great Rift lakes, as these fish are quite abundant, and the occasional giraffe or zebra. Since the lake is alkaline, the animals do not drink of it. Lake Natron also gives you a superb supplementary point for other destinations, such as the Ngorongoro Crater Highlands to the south and the Serengeti Plains to the west of the Natron. Ol Doinyo Lengai is a volcanic attraction here at Natron.

The scenery around Lake Natron is what attracts visitors to the region during their active-adventure travels in East Africa. The dramatic landscape is dotted with many of Tanzania’s most recognizable landmarks, such as Ol Doinyo Lengai and Gelai volcano, a 9652-foot peak located at the southeast edge of the lake. To the west is the site where a perfectly preserved hominid jaw and teeth, known as the “Peninj mandible” was found. Touring Lake Natron in expedition mode with BookmySafary.com encompasses a variety of activities, such as walking safaris, flamingo walks, volcano climbing and cultural tours. At Moivaro Lake Natron Tented Camp, walking safaris allow you to follow in the footsteps of the Maasai people, following paths to some of the most interesting localities, such as hot springs, waterfalls and much more. The camp also offers visits to a local Maasai village. In addition to these activities, the second camp — Ngare Sero Lake Natron Camp, also offers flamingo walks on the shores of the lake. You watch the splendor as these avi-fauna hunt for food and fill the skies with a spectacular display of pink and subtle black. While staying at this camp, you may also trek to the southern shores of the lake to see human footprints that date back 120,000 years, and the camp also offers trekking by camel, a very exciting adventure for your wilderness trip to Lake Natron.

Lake Victoria

Lake Victoria — The largest lake in Africa and the largest tropical lake in the world, offers you two thousand miles of beautiful coastline for your lake safari in northern Tanzania with BookmySafary.com. As also the second largest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Victoria has a surface area of over 26,000 square miles (68,000 sq. km), being almost 210 miles at its longest point, 150 miles at its widest point and up to 270 feet deep. The lake itself is home to several archipelagos shared between Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, and its marine waters and reefs are home to more than 500 species of fish. At an altitude of 3720 feet, Lake Victoria is situated in a shallow depression between the Western and Eastern Rift Valley and is fed by the great Nile River. One of the most stunning islands within the lake is Rubondo, the “largest island park in Africa”, with grassland, dense forest and striking sandy shores (read more on when is the best time to visit Lake Victoria in Tanzania). The coastline is diverse, ranging from 300-foot high cliffs and papyrus swamps at the delta of the Kagera River, outlet to the Victoria Nile and flat, barren shores with a channel to the Gulf of Kavirondo or Winam Gulf. Other gulfs in the area are the Speke Gulf at the southeast bend and the Emin Pasha Gulf curving in the southwest. During your cultural holidays in East Africa, you discover that Lake Victoria supports many industries for the local peoples, such as fishing and agriculture for coffee, maize, tea and cotton. The area also serves as an economic center supporting primarily telecommunications and transportation.

Your Lake Victoria travels of with BookmySafary.com gives you access to the town of Mwanza – the gateway to the west of Serengeti but also service you discover the beauty of the lake and interact with the local tribes and cultures e.g. Sukuma people. One of the finest Tanzanian aquatic destinations for Lake Victoria is Rubondo Island National Park. Here, you may partake of walking and boating safaris, bird watching, fishing, to name a few of the most popular activities. For these activities, you are escorted by a knowledgeable and experienced guide from Rubondo Island Camp who enlightens you about tracking and survival techniques, local history and traditions, footprint and carcass identification, animal droppings, medicinal uses of plants and much more. Walking safaris are an especially unique exploratory experience for your dream vacation in Tanzania, as you walk at a leisurely pace, able to study many of the smaller plants, animals and insects that might be missed with higher-paced activities. Most of the park is covered with dense jungle that provides shelter and food for the occasional bushbuck, elephant, varied primates, spotted neck otter, hippo, crocodile and many other fauna. The wildlife that dominates the park, though, is avi-fauna, such as African fish eagles and grey parrots, with fish species being the second most dominant animals, such as tilapia and Nile perch. Rubondo Island Camp offers a delightful sunset evening cruise on Lake Victoria, a relaxing and serene way to spend your end of day while intimately traveling in East Africa.

Northern National Park & Reserves In Tanzania

Northern National Parks & Game Reserves in Tanzania

Experience The Serengeti & Its Migration – A Paradise Worth Seeing.