This Tanzania Private Safari visits Mikumi and Ruaha National Park, offering a budget-friendly wildlife experience away from the crowds.
Embark on private 4x4 game drives in these less-crowded national parks of Southern Tanzania's Safari Circuit. Explore the game-rich plains of Mikumi National Park, encountering elephants, buffalos, and other large animals. Then embark on an incredible wildlife safari in the wild and remote Ruaha National Park, hosting large populations of predators and a diversity of other wildlife. Lastly, visit a tranquil organic farm near Morogoro where you can sit back and spoil your senses.
Spend your evenings under the Tanzanian skies at well-selected tented camps and enjoy one night's stay at a farm retreat.
Jambo and welcome to East Africa! This morning you meet up with your guide in Tanzania's bustling port city of Dar es Salaam where this Tanzania Private Safari begins. Departing from Dar es Salaam we drive to Mikumi National Park on Tanzania's Southern Safari Circuit.
Arriving at our first lodge, close to Mikumi Park, the remainder of the afternoon is free for you to unwind and enjoy the pool.
We get up early on day two of our private safari and set off into the unspoiled bush in search of wild animals and birds. The whole day is dedicated to 4x4 game drives in Mikumi National Park.
Mikumi National Park encompasses about 3 230 km² (1 247 mi²) of the Morogoro Region, forming part of the broader Selous Ecosystem. Game drives are usually conducted on the open grasslands of the Mkata Plains which attract a variety of grazers and predators. The grasslands of Mikumi resemble the open savannahs of the Serengeti Plains dotted with acacias and baobab trees.
On our wildlife safari in Mikumi, we are likely to spot elephants, buffalos, wildebeests, zebras, warthogs, and an assortment of antelopes roaming around. Predators found here include wild dogs, lions, jackals, hyenas, and even leopards. We may also see giraffes, hippos, baboons, and vervet monkeys. Mikumi National Park is also one of Tanzania's important birding areas, with over 400 species recorded here. Species include Boehm's bee-eater, lilac-breasted roller, yellow-throated longclaw, Dickinson's kestrel, straw-tailed whydah, Bateleur eagle, superb starling, and African fish eagle.
At the end of an action-packed day of game viewing, we return to our comfortable lodge just outside of Mikumi for a relaxing evening.
On day three of our Tanzania Private Safari, we leave Mikumi and travel west to Ruaha National Park. The drive takes around five hours and covers about 320 km (200 mi).
The next few days are set aside for exploring the spectacular landscapes of Ruaha National Park in search of wildlife and birds. Due to its isolated location, Ruaha is a less-explored and often overlooked gem with a truly wild and undisturbed feeling. This is Tanzania's largest national park, covering about 20 226 km² (7,809 mi²) of grassy plains and gentle hills sprinkled with acacia and baobab trees. Here, in this remote Tanzanian wilderness area, we escape the bustle and noise of modern life, tuning into the rhythms of the unspoiled African bush.
Ruaha is a predator hotspot, hosting one of the world's largest lion populations and one of the few sizeable populations of cheetahs in East Africa. The national park is also home to one of Africa's largest populations of endangered African wild dogs, numerous leopards, and hyenas. In addition to impressive carnivore sightings, we are sure to see elephants on our 4x4 game drives in Ruaha, which hosts over 10000 African elephants. We are also likely to see Cape buffalos as Ruaha hosts large herds of this member of the Big Five, along with plenty of giraffes, zebras, hippos, impalas, and other antelopes. Ruaha is situated where eastern and southern vegetation zones meet, resulting in an unusually high diversity of plant and animal species, including rare antelope species. Both greater and lesser kudu are found here, as well as sable and roan antelopes, along with more common species such as bushbuck, eland, and Grant’s gazelle.
For the next three nights, we stay at a fully-serviced tented camp near Ruaha National Park, enjoying an authentic African safari experience in canvas tents.
Today we say goodbye to the untamed wilderness of Ruaha National Park and head to an organic farm just outside of Morogoro.
In the afternoon we take a tour of the working farm to see the hibiscus, chilies, and herbs grown here. Find out a bit about the history of this tranquil place and see how the chilies are prepared or taste some delicious hibiscus jam and sample their herbal teas.
We spend our last night in spacious guest cottages looking out onto the Uluguru Mountains - a classical 'Out of Africa’ style experience.
After breakfast on the last morning of our Tanzania Private Safari, there's time for one last walk on the farm or a dip in the pool. Then we depart for Dar es Salaam making our way back to where our memorable Southern Safari Circuit adventure began.
Add a beach holiday to Mafia Island and/or Zanzibar to this private Tanzania Safari at an additional cost. Contact us for details about these well-priced optional beach tours.
If the preferred accommodation listed on this itinerary is not available, similar accommodation of the same quality is used, and we'll let you know.
This Private Tanzania Safari can be customized to suit your needs and preferences. Our travel experts can tailor this safari for you by changing the accommodation and adding destinations, extra days, activities, and more. To customize, contact us
For up-to-date and confirmed pricing info for optional items, please drop us an enquiry.
This tour does take children.
Children are welcome on this Private Tanzania Safari. For children's rates and tour details, please contact African Budget Safaris.
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