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Tanzania's parks and circuits

From the Serengeti plains to the chimpanzee forests of Lake Tanganyika, choose the corner of Tanzania that suits your trip.

three circuits

One country, many wild places

Tanzania's parks fall into three broad circuits. The north is the classic safari country around Arusha, easy to reach and full of wildlife. The south is bigger and quieter, and the far west is remote and best for travellers with time. We are based in Arusha and know the northern parks well. We also arrange trips to the south and west, often combined with Zanzibar. Tell us what you want to see and we will suggest the right mix.

Thousands of wildebeest pouring down a riverbank and crossing the muddy Mara River in the northern Serengeti during the Great Migration

Endless plains

Serengeti National Park

Tanzania's great grassland: huge lion prides, leopards in the Seronera valley and the wildebeest migration moving through the year.

Best time: Year-round. December to July for the migration herds in the south and west; June to October for dry-season predator viewing

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View from the rim down into Ngorongoro Crater: a descent road winds across green slopes toward the crater floor and Lake Magadi, with the far crater wall under cloud

The great caldera

Ngorongoro Conservation Area

A collapsed volcano 600 metres deep, its crater floor home to black rhino, black-maned lion, flamingo and some 25,000 large animals.

Best time: Year-round. June to October is driest; November to May is greener, quieter and good for birds

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An elephant drinks at a waterhole in Tarangire National Park, with zebra and wildebeest grazing behind

Elephants and baobabs

Tarangire National Park

Baobab country: big elephant herds along the Tarangire River, lesser kudu and oryx in the bush, and close to 500 kinds of birds.

Best time: June to October, when wildlife gathers on the Tarangire River; November to May for birds and green landscapes

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Bare acacia trees standing in the shallow, calm water of Lake Manyara

Beneath the Rift wall

Lake Manyara National Park

A compact park under the Rift Valley wall: groundwater forest full of baboons and blue monkeys, elephants and a flamingo-edged soda lake.

Best time: June to October for easier game viewing; November to May for birds and flamingos

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Climbers with backpacks and trekking poles cross fresh snow high on Kilimanjaro under a deep blue sky

Roof of Africa

Kilimanjaro National Park

Africa's highest mountain at 5,895 m: a climb from rainforest through moorland and alpine desert to the glaciers of Uhuru Peak.

Best time: Mid-January to mid-March and late June to October are driest; April and May are the long rains

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Zebras grazing on a lush green glade below forested hills in Arusha National Park, Tanzania

Meru's foothills

Arusha National Park

The closest park to Arusha: Mount Meru, colobus monkeys, the flamingo-dotted Momella Lakes and walking safaris with an armed ranger.

Best time: Year-round. June – October is driest for walking and climbing; November – May is greener, with the best birding

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Hippos half submerged in a brown river below a steep, eroded sandy bank in Nyerere National Park

River wilderness

Nyerere National Park

Tanzania's largest park, the former northern Selous: boat safaris on the Rufiji River, walking safaris, elephant, lion and wild dog.

Best time: June – October, when game gathers at the river and lakes; many camps close in the long rains, around April and May

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A young lion lying on red earth among green leaves in Ruaha National Park

Baobab wilderness

Ruaha National Park

A remote southern wilderness on the Great Ruaha River: big elephant herds, large lion prides, greater and lesser kudu, and giant baobabs.

Best time: June – October for game at the rivers; January – April for green scenery and birds

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Two zebras on green grassland with scattered trees and forested hills behind, Mikumi National Park

Southern plains

Mikumi National Park

The easiest southern park to reach, a few hours from Dar es Salaam: open plains with elephant, giraffe, zebra, buffalo and lion.

Best time: June – October for game; November – May for green scenery and migrant birds

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A wild chimpanzee resting on the leafy forest floor

Chimpanzee forest

Gombe Stream National Park

Tanzania's smallest national park, on Lake Tanganyika, where Jane Goodall began studying chimpanzees in 1960. Trek to habituated chimps.

Best time: Year-round; June – October is driest, with firmer trails

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Dozens of hippos packed into a shrinking, muddy river pool in the dry season

Remote floodplains

Katavi National Park

A remote park in Tanzania's far west: huge buffalo herds, crowded hippo pools and lions on the Katuma floodplains, with few other visitors.

Best time: June – October, when game crowds the shrinking rivers; access is difficult in the rains

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A giraffe crosses a sandy track between dry grass and green bush in Saadani National Park

Bush meets beach

Saadani National Park

The Tanzanian park where the bush meets the Indian Ocean: game drives, boat trips on the Wami River and long, empty beaches.

Best time: June – February; the long rains around April and May make the roads hard going

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Flamingos wading in a shallow soda lake in northern Tanzania

Flamingo soda lake

Lake Natron

A red soda lake in the Rift Valley below Ol Doinyo Lengai, and the main breeding ground of East Africa's lesser flamingos.

Best time: June – October and December – March, the drier months; the middle of the day is very hot all year

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A wooden dhow with a raised cream sail pulled up on the white-sand beach at Matemwe, Zanzibar, turquoise water and a second sailing dhow on the horizon under a deep blue sky

Spice Island

Zanzibar

The Spice Island: white-sand beaches, coral reefs, spice farms and the old Swahili and Omani lanes of Stone Town.

Best time: June – October and December – February; the long rains fall around April and May

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A whale shark swimming through deep blue water

Whale shark waters

Mafia Island

A quiet island south of Zanzibar in Tanzania's first marine park: whale sharks from October to March, coral reefs and Swahili villages.

Best time: October – March for whale sharks and diving; June – October for dry weather; the long rains fall around April and May

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A wooden dhow at anchor with its sail furled on the blue Indian Ocean off the Tanzanian coast

The Green Island

Pemba Island

Zanzibar's greener, quieter sister island: clove farms, dhows, mangroves, the Ngezi forest and deep-water reefs for divers.

Best time: June – October and December – March; the long rains fall around April and May

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three circuits

Tanzania at a glance

Northern Circuit

The best-known safari route in Africa, starting from Arusha. It covers the Serengeti and the wildebeest migration, the Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire's elephants and baobabs, the forests and lakes of Lake Manyara and Arusha National Park, and Kilimanjaro itself. Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Arusha National Park, Kilimanjaro National Park.

Southern Circuit

Large, wild and far less busy. Nyerere National Park, once part of the Selous Game Reserve, offers boat safaris on the Rufiji River. Ruaha is rugged country with big lion prides, and Mikumi is the easiest to reach from Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar. Nyerere National Park, Ruaha National Park, Mikumi National Park.

Western Circuit

Remote parks for adventurous travellers. Gombe Stream, on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, is home to habituated chimpanzees. Katavi's floodplains draw huge herds of buffalo and hippo in the dry season, with very few other visitors. Gombe Stream National Park, Katavi National Park.

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