PROTECTED AREAS AND NATIONAL PARKS IN WESTERN AND SOUTHERN TANZANIA

On top of the National Parks and Conservation Areas in the Northern Safari Circuit, there are numerous other protected areas throughout the south and west of Tanzania that are worth a visit. Because of their location and accessibility all parks are recommendable for the ones looking for the adventures off the beaten path. If you wish to go to one of those areas, we can arrange a customized trip for you as we also have safari experience for those parks. Just send us an enquiry and we will provide more information and possible routes and combinations to you.

Tanzania’s western highlights

Mahale Mountains National Park, Gombe Stream National Park and Katavi National Park are the main protected areas located close to or right at Lake Tanganyika, which is the border between Tanzania and Democratic Republic of Congo as well as partial border to Zambia. All three parks can only be reached by plane connecting through Dar Es Salaam and Kigoma or by car in a two-day trip from Arusha. Gombe Stream and Mahale Mountain National Park both do not have roads and are therefore only accessible by boat and foot. While the main attraction of both parks is chimpanzee tracking and bird watching, Mahale Mountain also offers other activities like mountain climbing, kayaking, snorkeling and fishing. Katavi National Park on the other hand is home to a large population of hippopotamus, crocodiles and elephants along with buffaloes, antelopes (including the rare species of roan and sable antelopes), lions and spotted hyenas.

Tanzania’s southern attractions

Ruaha National Park, Selous Game Reserve, Mikumi National Park and Udzungwa National Park are the most worthwile places to visit in Southern Tanzania. All of the areas can be reached by plane from Dar Es Saalam and less frequently also from Arusha and with the exception of Ruaha, they are fairly accessible by car from Dar Es Saalam as well. Together with Udzungwa, Mikumi is a smaller park out of the four and it offers common wildlife of Tanzania with rare sable antelopes and wild dogs on top. Udzungwa on the other hand is a hiker’s paradise, with its forest and mountain scenery including beautiful waterfalls and endemic plants as well as the Udzungwa red colobus monkey and the sanje crested mangabey which cannot be found in other areas. Ruaha has become the largest National Park of Tanzania after its extension in 2008. Apart from big herds of elephants, buffaloes, predators like lions, wild dog and leopard, the more rare sable and roan antelopes as well as greater and lesser kudu can be spotted. All those can be discovered at Selous Game Reserve as well, but in an area of more than twice the size of Ruaha National Park reaching 55.000 square kilometers. On top of that, in Selous, you can experience wildlife on foot as well as by boat as well.