Tanzania is located at the border of Kenya in East Africa. Tanzania is made up of 22 national parks, and each of these parks provides the true African wilderness experience as seen below:
Serengeti National Park
Serengeti National Park is the most famous national park in Tanzania, renowned for the great wildebeest migration where millions of wildebeests, zebras, Thomson’s gazelles, impalas, and many other antelopes are closely followed by predators such as lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, and crocodiles, putting up the most dramatic wildlife show on Earth by migrating to the Masai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya and coming back annually.
Arusha National Park
Despite its size, Arusha National Park varies in its ecosystem, supporting various wildlife and also being home to the spectacular Mount Meru. The park is home to Mount Meru, Momella Lakes, Ngurdoto Crater, and lush green forests, making it a habitat for wildlife and bird species.
Mount Kilimanjaro National Park
Mount Kilimanjaro National Park is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Tanzania, with most tourists embarking on the journey of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, which is Africa’s highest mountain.
Mikumi National Park
Mikumi National Park was gazetted in 1964, covering an area of 3,230 square kilometers. The park is home to a variety of wildlife and over 400 species of birds recorded. Tourists can also take guided nature walks of 2-4 hours in the lush green montane forests.
Ruaha National Park
Ruaha National Park is one of the less-visited national parks in Tanzania but nevertheless provides the best wildlife viewing opportunities. The park boasts 10% of the lion population in the world, hence becoming a lion conservation unit in 2005.
Katavi National Park
Katavi National Park is located in the remote Katavi region of Tanzania. The untamed wilderness is home to some of the largest buffalo herds in the world. It’s the third largest national park in the country, supporting wildlife such as buffalos, leopards, lions, warthogs, duikers, elands, and more.
Rubondo Island National Park
Rubondo Island National Park is found on an island in Lake Victoria. While at the park, tourists can engage in activities like bird watching, fishing, wildlife viewing, and trekking chimpanzees that were introduced to the island in an attempt to rehabilitate captured chimpanzees back to their natural habitat.
Saadani National Park
Saadani National Park is unique because it’s a bush and beach destination. The park is home to elephants, lions, zebras, waterbucks, giraffes, reedbucks, bushbucks, duikers, and more. This park can be explored on a game drive or boat ride.
Mahale Mountains National Park
Mahale Mountains National Park derives its name from Mahale Mountain found within the park. This is one of the only two areas that are home to chimpanzees in Tanzania. The park is home to various species of mammals and birds with panoramic sunset views over Lake Tanganyika.
Mkomazi National Park
Mkomazi National Park is situated at the border of Kenya and Tanzania. It was first established as a game reserve but later upgraded into a national park in 2005. Apart from wildlife and birding, the park provides magnificent views of Mount Kilimanjaro, Usambara Mountains, and vast African wilderness.
Lake Manyara National Park
Lake Manyara National Park is famous for its tree-climbing lions, not found elsewhere in the world except Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda. The soda ash lake also attracts thousands of pink flamingoes and supports some of the highest elephant populations in Tanzania.
Nyerere Selous National Park
Nyerere National Park is the largest national park in East Africa, located in the southwestern part of Tanzania. It’s home to diverse animal species, bird species, plant species, and more.
Tarangire National Park
Tarangire National Park is one of the top birding destinations in Tanzania, with over 500 species of birds recorded. It’s also known for big herds of elephants, lions, buffalos, zebras, waterbucks, giraffes, topis, and many others. The park is a few hours’ drive from Arusha town.
Gombe Stream National Park
Gombe Stream National Park is one of the smallest national parks in Tanzania, covering an area of only 35 square kilometers. It’s located in the Kigoma region of Tanzania along Lake Tanganyika. It’s famous for Jane Goodall, who stayed there for many years studying the endangered chimpanzees.
Burigi Chato National Park
Burigi Chato National Park is one of the newest national parks in Tanzania, established in 2019. The park provides scenic views of Lake Victoria, Lake Burigi, and the Kagera River. The lake shores and river banks provide water for park animals. Wildlife can be seen on a game drive or on a boat ride.
Kigosi National Park
Kigosi was upgraded to a national park in 2019 to protect Moyowosi and Malagari wetlands, which are the largest in East Africa. While at the park, you can do wildlife watching, guided nature walks, and bird enthusiasts can enjoy watching aquatic birdlife you might not find in other parks.
Ibanda Kyerwa National Park
The still virgin Ibanda Kyerwa National Park is located in the western region of Tanzania. The park offers both day and night game drives, nature-guided walks, and birding. There are not many accommodation options except campsites found within the park.
Kitulo National Park
Kitulo National Park was established to protect its flora of montane forests and grasslands, making it the first national park in Africa established to protect its flora. The Kitulo plateau found within the park harbors 350 species of plants.
Udzungwa Mountains National Park
Udzungwa National Park boasts a large biodiversity. Though it’s not a paradise for wildlife viewers, the park has well-established hiking forest trails ranging from an hour to three-day hikes.
Ugalla River National Park
Ugalla River National Park is found in Tabora and Rukwa regions. It was established in 2019 after the Tanzanian government separated part of Ugalla Game Reserve to form a national park.
Rumanyika Karagwe National Park
Rumanyika Karagwe National Park is the best place for photography enthusiasts. It was upgraded to a national game park from a game reserve because its areas were being encroached by humans for settlement and farming, leading to increased poaching.
