Tanzania National Parks & Game Reserves

Serengeti:
The Serengeti National Park lies in Northern Tanzania and covers an area of about 14,760 square kilometres. It was first established in the 1920's and was made a National Park in 1951. It is renown throughout the world as an area of great wildlife viewing. It is particulary famous for the huge herds of wildebeest and zebra that migrate. Every year following the rains in search of new grass. The word Serengeti comes from the Masai language and means endless plains. The park lies on a high plateau between the Norongoro Highlands to the east and Lake Victoria to the west. To the north lies Kenya and the Masai Mara Game Reserve, which forms the northern part of the Serengeti ecosystem.
Ngorongoro Crater:
Ngorongoro comes from a Masai word, llkorongoro which was the name given to the age group of Masai warriors who wrested the highlands from the datong, their previous occupants. The datong had in turn taken them from their predecessors the Hadzabe (bushmen/hunter-gatherers). The name llkorongoro echoed the sound of the battle bells the Masai warriors wore when they first occupied the highlands in the year 1800.
This sound "koh-rohngoroh" struck terror into the hearts of their enemies. The wa-masai have also given their own names to the walls and floor of the crater, the walls are known as en tiak which means sheer drop- while the floor is ramat meaning health- land. Being a conservation area rather than a National Park the Masai are allowed to bring in their animals to graze and water, making it possible to see wild animals and domestic livestock in the crater together. We normally camp on the rim of the crater, (simba campsite) and from here, it is about one hours drive around the rim to the point where we reach the descent road. from here there are spectacular views across and down into the crater. It can be very cold at this height (2300 mts) so it is advisable to wear warm clothes until we reach the floor of the crater. the road follows a winding and very steep route known as the Seneto Descent.
Lake Manyara:
Lake Manyara was made a National Park in 1960 and covers an area of 330 square kilometres, of which some 230 square kilometres are lake. it lies at the foot of the western wall of the Rift Valley escarpment, and is particularly famous for its elephant and tree climbing lions. It is also well known for its rich variety of birdlife in both the forest and along the lake shore. the name Manyara comes from the Masai word for the plant euphorbia tirucalli which they use to build their livestock stockades.
Tarangire National Park:
Tarangire National Park is probably the least visited of the northern Tanzanian game parks, and retains a real air of undiscovered Africa, particulary in the south of the park
Mt.Kilimanjaro Climbing & Trekking:
Rising above the hot and dusty Maasai Steppe in northern Tanzania is a Mountain with its flat top white with snow stark against the blue African sky, it is Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, the highest free-standing mountain in the world, and one of the largest volcanoes ever to burst through the earths surface.Situated only three degrees below the Equator with snow and glaciers covering its peak,and just under four miles high it can be seen from more than 100 miles away on a clear day.Kilimanjaro is in fact a young mountain, roughly one million years ago there was probably a large river where it now stands. The formation of the Great Rift Valley two or three million years ago left deep fractures in the earths crust, and eventually many volcanoes broke through in the Kilimanjaro region.
Mt Meru Climbing & Trekking:
Mount Meru is one of Africa's highest and most beautiful volcanoes, with a route which passes through a wide range of vegetation up into a moorland. The summit of Mt Meru is reached by walking along a very narrow, barren ridge, affording one views of Ash Cone thousands of feet below in the crater and Kilimanjaro across the vast plains in Moshi.Mt Meru is home to over 400 species of birds as well as large herds of elephant, buffalo, rhino, giraffe, baboon, warthog, monkey and monkey.The climb is often used as an acclimatisation trek prior to ascending its larger sister, Kilimanjaro, and can be completed in either three of four days. Accommodation is in mountain huts. The climb is fully portered and one walks with a guide and armed mountain game guide. The mountain is situated in Arusha Park.
Udzungwa Mountain National Park:
It has a total area of 2,000km². It contains the greatest altitudinal range of forests in East Africa - the eastern escarpment is the only place in East Africa with unbroken forest cover from lowland forest communities at below 250m above sea level, through intermediate types, to mountain communities at over 2,800m. Because of such a wide range in altitude and habitat types, Udzungwa National Park has one of the highest numbers of species endemism worldwide. Udzungwa National Park is located 65 km south of Mikumi National Park.
With no roads entering Udzungwa National Park it is a paradise for hikers and backpackers alike. Numerous breath-taking day-hikes can be organized along with multiple day excursions into the dense rain forest or onto the high plateau. One beautiful trek is up to the Sanje River Waterfall, which plunges for 170 metres through the forest to the valley below. The view from the top is magnificent!
Seleos Game Reserve:
The concentrations of wildlife in the Selous are understandably huge. The Selous, named after a German explorer and author, boasts Tanzania's largest population of elephant – currently about 10,000 animals – as well as some of Africa’s largest numbers of buffalo, hippos, Nile crocodile and wild dogs. Other species commonly seen are lion, bushbuck, impala, giraffe, eland, baboon, zebra and greater kudu. The Selous also contains one of the few viable populations of black rhinos in the world, with between 150 and 200 individual animals. The reserve also contains more than 350 different bird species and 2,000 different species of plants. The Selous was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983 due to its unique ecological importance.
The landscape is shaped by the Rufiji River and its tributaries, lined by Barrassus Palms, and it is the heart of the park. The Rufiji swells through the park down to the Indian Ocean forming a series of small lakes that serve as an important source of water for the multitude of the plains game. It is only in the Selous Game Reserve that one can combine game drives, boat tours and walking safaris. The hinterland around Lake Tagalala and Beho Beho is some of the most picturesque in area.
Usambara Mountains:
The Usambara Mountain are situated in the northeastern part of Tanzania between Mount Kilimanjaro and the Indian Ocean Region of Tanga. It has been dubbed the "Galapagos" of the plant world. This incredibly beautiful and lush area is a welcome retreat from Tanzania’s Game Parks and cities. Because of its pleasant climate, the mountains were favored by the Germans and the English during colonial times, as is evidenced by the numerous historic buildings from the past. The mountain region is ideal for hiking as well as some spectacular driving.From a distance the mountains are a colorful mosaic. On the fertile slopes around Soni and Lushoto farmers cultivate small plots but further away from the towns large areas are still covered by dense tropical forests.
The viewpoints on the southern and western side of the Usambara are well known for the spectacular views of the plains of Mkomazi and Handeni. Kilimanjaro can be seen on the horizon and at the end of the day the sunset turns the area into a tremendous pallet of unforgettable colors
Mikumi National Park:
Swirls of opaque mist hide the advancing dawn. The first shafts of sun colour the fluffy grass heads rippling across the plain in a russet halo. A herd of zebras, confident in their camouflage at this predatory hour, pose like ballerinas, heads aligned and stripes merging in flowing motion.
Mikumi National Park abuts the northern border of Africa's biggest game reserve - the Selous – and is transected by the surfaced road between Dar es Salaam and Iringa. It is thus the most accessible part of a 75,000 square kilometre (47,000 square mile) tract of wilderness that stretches east almost as far as the Indian Ocean. The open horizons and abundant wildlife of the Mkata Floodplain, the popular centrepiece of Mikumi, draw frequent comparisons to the more famous Serengeti Plains. Lions survey their grassy kingdom – and the zebra, wildebeest, impala and buffalo herds that migrate across it – from the flattened tops of termite mounds, or sometimes, during the rains, from perches high in the trees. Giraffes forage in the isolated acacia stands that fringe the Mkata River, islets of shade favoured also by Mikumi's elephants. Criss-crossed by a good circuit of game-viewing roads, the Mkata Floodplain is perhaps the most reliable place in Tanzania for sightings of the powerful eland, the world’s largest antelope. The equally impressive greater kudu and sable antelope haunt the miombo-covered foothills of the mountains that rise from the park’s borders.
More than 400 bird species have been recorded, with such colourful common residents as the lilac-breasted roller, yellow-throated longclaw and bateleur eagle joined by a host of European migrants during the rainy season. Hippos are the star attraction of the pair of pools situated 5km north of the main entrance gate, supported by an ever-changing cast of waterbirds.
Gome Stream National Park:
An excited whoop erupts from deep in the forest, boosted immediately by a dozen other voices, rising in volume and tempo and pitch to a frenzied shrieking crescendo. It is the famous ‘pant-hoot’ call: a bonding ritual that allows the participants to identify each other through their individual vocal stylisations. To the human listener, walking through the ancient forests of Gombe Stream, this spine-chilling outburst is also an indicator of imminent visual contact with man’s closest genetic relative: the chimpanzee.
Gombe is the smallest of Tanzania's national parks: a fragile strip of chimpanzee habitat straddling the steep slopes and river valleys that hem in the sandy northern shore of Lake Tanganyika. Its chimpanzees – habituated to human visitors – were made famous by the pioneering work of Jane Goodall, who in 1960 founded a behavioural research program that now stands as the longest-running study of its kind in the world. The matriarch Fifi, the last surviving member of the original community, only three-years old when Goodall first set foot in Gombe, is still regularly seen by visitors.