Southern Tanzania Game Parks Lodge Safari

The 10-day Tanzania Game Parks Safari starts and ends in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. This is a 3 to 4 Star luxury lodge safari focusing on game viewing in Southern Tanzania’s top wildlife areas, namely:

• Selous Game Reserve
• Mikumi National Park
• Ruaha National Park

The Southern Tanzania Game Parks Lodge Safari takes you on game viewing drives in 4X4 safari vehicles, bush walk safaris, a game viewing boat cruise and bird watching.

Day 01: Dar es Salaam – Tanzania

Upon arrival at the Dar es Salaam Airport in Tanzania you will be met by your safari guide and transferred to your luxury Dar es Salaam hotel.

On the first night of the Tanzania Game Parks Safari you have dinner and stay overnight at a 3 Star hotel in Dar es Salaam.

Meal Plan: Bed & Breakfast.

Day 02: Dar es Salaam to Mikumi National Park – Tanzania

Day 2 starts with an early breakfast before checking out of the hotel and driving to Mikumi National Park along the Dar es Salaam Mbeya highways.

Our drive takes us through the African villages of Kibaha and Chalinze, famous for their pineapple plantations and cashew nuts. Along this scenic route we pause in Morogongo town to browse the crafts and souvenirs before continuing to to Mikumi Park.

Arriving at Mikumi National Park in the afternoon we embark on our first exciting game drive on this Tanzania Lodge Safari.

The Mikumi National Park is home to a variety of wildlife, including elephants, zebras, giraffes buffaloes, impalas, elands, kudus, baboons, wildebeest and other antelopes. Predators, such as tree-climbing lions, leopards, wild dogs and black-backed jackals, also inhabit the park. Mikumi National Park hosts over 400 bird species and hippos can be found nearby.

At the end of the game drive we return to camp for dinner and an overnight stay at a 3 Star Tented Camp near Mikumi, Tanzania.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Afternoon Game Drive.

Day 03: Mikumi National Park – Tanzania

After breakfast we leave Mikumi National Park travelling to Ruaha National Park via the Great Ruaha River and Kitonga Hills.

We make our way towards Iringa Town arriving at the overnight camp in the late afternoon.

The rest of the day is free for you to relax and unwind at the safari lodge, watching the wild animals and birds that visit the camp in the late afternoon and evening. You have the option of taking a thrilling night game drive in the evening (at extra cost), followed by dinner at the 3 Star Tented Camp.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Transfer and Scenic drive, Optional Night Game Drive at Camp (extra US$99 per person).

Day 04: Ruaha National Park – Tanzania

Today on this Southern Tanzania Game Parks Safari we cover the short distance to Ruaha National Park after breakfast. We venture into the wildlife park on a morning game drive stopping for a picnic lunch in Ruaha Park, before taking an afternoon game drive.

Ruaha National Park is the second largest National Park in Tanzania, covering about 10,300 km² of rugged, semi-arid terrain in central Tanzania.

Ruaha is part of a large network of parks protecting an extensive ecosystem in Tanzania. 

Ruaha National Park is best known for its large population of elephants as well as buffalos and also hosts an abundance of endangered wild dog, lion, leopard and cheetah. Ruaha is home to an estimated 475 bird species, sable and roan antelope species, and both the greater and lesser kudu.

At around 6:00pm we depart from Ruaha Park heading to our 3 Star lodge along the Ruaha River for dinner and an evening of leisure.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Morning and afternoon game drives in Ruaha Park.

Day 05: Ruaha National Park – Tanzania

After breakfast we return to Ruaha National Park for your choice of either a morning game drive or a morning bush walk (at extra cost) in the wilderness area, followed by an afternoon game drive in search of the wildlife found in Ruaha National Park. 

In the evening we return to our 3 Star Lodge on the Ruaha River for dinner and an overnight stay after another rewarding day in the African bush. 

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Optional walking safari (extra US$77 per person) or Morning and afternoon game drive.

Day 06: Ruaha National Park to Mikumi National Park

In the morning we have breakfast before checking out of our safari lodge and leaving Ruaha Park behind.

We drive for about 5 hours stopping for a picnic lunch en route to Mikumi National Park. Our drive takes us through Tanzania's Iringa Town, Kitonga Hills and Udzungwa Highlands as we head to Mikumi Village.

Arriving at Mikumi Park we explore the wilderness area on an afternoon game drive before returning to our lodge in the early evening for dinner and an overnight stay at the 4 Star Tented Camp. 

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch.
• Activities: En-route morning game drive, Scenic drive via local villages, towns and farming area, Afternoon Game Drive.

Day 07: Mikumi National Park to Selous Game Reserve

Today we move on from Mikumi National Park to Selous Game Reserve in south-east Tanzania via Morogongo town where you can buy souvenirs.

Our scenic drive to Selous Game Reserve passes Uluguru Mountain and the African village of Matombo, famous for its organic produce.

In the late afternoon we arrive at Kisaki Village, a junction station on the Tanzania-Zambia railways line. The remainder of the afternoon is free for you to enjoy at the 3 Star lodge where we will have dinner and stay the night.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Morning Scenic en route drive, Afternoon at leisure and Bird watching at camp.

Day 08: Selous Game Reserve

Day 8 of this Southern Tanzania Game Parks Safari starts with breakfast before we check out of the lodge and drive to the nearby Selous Game Reserve.

Upon arrival we enter the Selous Reserve at the Matembwe gate exploring the wildlife park on a morning and afternoon game drive with a picnic lunch stop.

The Selous Game Reserve is one of the largest game parks in Africa, covering 54,600 km² (21,081 mi²), making it larger than Switzerland. Selous is home to Africa’s big game and boasts the greatest population of elephants in Tanzania, as well as an incredible abundance of giraffes. This untouched wilderness area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, hosting staggering numbers and an impressive diversity of wildlife species.



The untamed Selous Game Reserve is home to large numbers of wild dog, buffalo, wildebeest, zebra, hippo and impala, as well as 350 bird species. This pristine wilderness area uniquely includes a wide variety of habitats, ranging from forests and woodlands to lagoons and lakes that support its rich wildlife.



After another successful day of game viewing in Tanzania we head to our camp for dinner and our overnight at a 3 Star riverside camp.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Picnic Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: Morning and Afternoon Game drives.

Day 09: Selous Game Reserve

We spend another full day game viewing in Selous Reserve, starting with a morning boat safari.

After lunch we take an afternoon game drive in the game reserve and then return to our lodge for an overnight stay at the 3 Star riverside camp.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Hot Lunch, Dinner.
• Activities: 2 Excursions - Morning Boat Safari and Afternoon Game drive.

Day 10: Selous Game Reserve to Dar es Salaam – Tanzania

On the last day of this Tanzanian Game Parks Safari we check out of the safari lodge after breakfast, storing our luggage at reception.

From the lodge we  either embark on a walking safari in Selous Reserve or a last morning game drive returning to the lodge for an early lunch. After collecting our luggage we drive to the coastal city of Dar es Salaam, arriving at about 6:30pm.

This fantastic accommodated Wildlife Safari to southern Tanzania's Game Parks ends in Dar es Salaam where you can be dropped at the Airport.

• Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch.
• Activities: Morning Game drive and Afternoon Scenic en route drive. Or optional flight to Dar es Salaam (at extra cost).