Serengeti National Park
This is a Tanzania‘s oldest and most popular national park. The Serengeti is famed for its annual migration, when some six million hooves pound the open plains, as more than 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thompson’s gazelles join the wildebeest trek for fresh grazing. Interestingly, even when the migration is quite, the Serengeti guarantees you views of great herd of buffalo smaller groups of elephant, giraffe and thousands of eland, topi, Kongoni, impala and grants gazelle. Located: 335km (208 miles) from Arusha.
Lake Manyara National Park
The compact game viewing circuit through Manyara is an amazing Tanzanian safari experience. Manyara provides the perfect introduction to Tanzanian bird life. More than 400 species have been recorded here and even a first timer to this park might reasonable expect to see a hundred of these in one day. Highlights include; thousands of pink hued flamingoes on their perpetual migration as well as other large water birds such as pelicans, cormorants and storks. Another key attraction in the Manyara are the tree climbing lions. This is the only national park where you will find the unique tree climbing lion species. Location: In northern Tanzania. The entrance gate lies 1.5 hours (126 km / 80 miles) west of Arusha along a newly surfaced road. The park is 330 sq km (127 sq miles), of which up to 200 sq km (77 sq miles) is lake when water levels are high.
Tarangire National Park
Herds of 300 elephant scratch the dry river bed for underground streams, while migratory wildebeests, zebras, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and eland, crowd the shrinking lagoons. It’s the greatest concentration of wildlife outside the Serengeti ecosystem. The one place in Tanzania where country antelope such as the stately fringe eared Oryx and peculiar long necked gerenuk are regularly observed. Location :118 km (75 miles) southwest of Arusha and 2,600 sq km(1,005 sq miles) in size.
Ngorongoro Conservation Area
The Ngorongoro Crater is often called ‘Africa’s Eden. Ngorongoro is among the 8th Natural wonders of the world’. A visit to the crater is a main draw card for tourist coming to Tanzania and a definite world-class attraction. The Ngorongoro Crater and the Ngorongoro conservation area are without a doubt some of the most beautiful parts of Tanzania, steeped in history and teeming with wildlife. Besides vehicles safaris to Ngorongoro Crater, Olduvai Gorge, and surrounding attractions including hiking treks through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area are becoming increasingly popular option. Size: cover approximately 8300 square kilometer.
The Great Wildebeest Migration
The Wildebeest Migration in East Africa, also known as “The Great Migration” takes place between Kenya’s Masai Mara and Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park and is one of the greatest wildlife spectacles on the planet.Thouusands of wildebeest and zebra’s migrate between the Serengeti and the Masai Mara, constantly driven by their search for fresh grazing .The massive herds are closely followed by predators (lion, hyena and cheetah), making the most of every opportunity to catch their next meal. The precise timing of the annual wildebeest migration depends on the rains. It is a very unpredictable and spontaneous natural event, with calving season taking place in the Serengeti between January and mid-March. The wildebeest migration starts to head towards the Western Serengeti in May or June. The best time to see the migration is generally between June and August when the wildebeest congregate and prepare to cross the famous Grumeti River. If you are in the Masai Mara you can expect the wildebeest to make their arrival as early as July but, they generally arrive between August & September and remain in the gradually begin their migration from the Masai Mara back towards Serengeti.