Leave the crowds behind and venture into the truly wild national parks of southern Tanzania on this budget-friendly Tanzania Private Safari!
Highlights of this small-group African Safari include wildlife viewing in four of Tanzania's hidden gems. You will start in one of Africa's largest game reserves, Nyerere National Park, then explore Mikumi National Park with great herds of herbivores roaming the Mkata Plains. From here your wildlife adventure continues in the remote Ruaha National Park, a predator hotspot hosting 10% of the world's lions. You will end off exploring the lush forests of the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, home to diverse and endemic plants, birds, and animals. From big herds of elephants and buffalos to prowling lions and cheetahs, and more rare sightings such as the Sanje crested mangabeys, you can be sure that unforgettable wildlife experiences await!
On this private safari, you will experience a truly unspoiled Africa with far fewer visitors than the northern parks of Serengeti or Ngorongoro.
Jambo and welcome to Tanzania and East Africa! Your guide meets you in Dar es Salaam where your Tanzania Private Safari begins. From the bustling metropolis of Dar es Salaam, we drive southwest to Nyerere National Park. Our first lodge is located just outside of Nyerere, bordering the park.
Covering an area of 30,893 square kilometers (3 times the size of the Serengeti National Park), Nyerere National Park is one the largest wildlife sanctuaries in the world. It was created relatively recently in 2019 with the upgrade of the north portion of the renowned Selous Game Reserve into a National Park. The Park is more remote and pristine than Tanzania’s more famous and crowded parks to the north, which allows for some spectacular game viewing opportunities and the chance to take your wildlife photos without the intrusion of many more safari vehicles crowding in on the shot.
The variety of ecosystems, from grassland plains and wetlands to woodlands and riverine forests, makes for an impressive variety of wildlife to be spotted, from the Big 5, amazing birdlife to the hippos and crocodiles which thrive in the- majestic Rufiji River which flows through the Park. This is also one of few Parks left in Africa with a sizable population of wild African Hunting Dogs which face extinction elsewhere.
You will arrive at the Safari Lodge in time for lunch before heading off for an afternoon 4x4 game drive.
On day two of our Tanzania Private Safari we explore the vast Nyerere National Park on morning and afternoon 4x4 game drives.
Nyerere National Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982, recognized as one of Africa's largest undisturbed wilderness areas showing minimal signs of human impact. This huge reserve encompasses a variety of terrains and habitats including mountains, forests, watercourses, lakes, and plains. Nyerere is valued for its high diversity of plant and wildlife species.
Along the way, we pause to watch the animals, birds, and other creatures we encounter. There is an abundance of large mammals, including Africa's Big 5. Elephants and buffalos are commonly seen, along with lions. Leopards are more elusive and rhinos are only found in the south of the reserve. Other wild animals that we are likely to see include giraffes, zebras, hippos, crocodiles, wildebeest, and a variety of other antelopes. Nyerere also hosts a sizeable population of endangered African wild dogs and other carnivores including spotted hyenas and jackals. In terms of antelopes, impalas are common, and we may see sable, puku, greater kudu, eland, Lichtenstein's hartebeest, bushbuck, oryx, waterbuck, duiker, klipspringer.
Between the game drives your time is at leisure at the lodge. The restaurant overlooks a waterhole that offers game viewing from the comfort of home. After dark the centrally located campfire is a great place to socialize and share stories of your adventures.
After a morning game drive through Nyerere National Park, we make our way to our next Safari Camp lying on the banks of the Rufiji River in the village of Mloka just outside of Nyerere National Park. We enjoy lunch here and settle in before heading off on an afternoon 4x4 game drive back into Nyerere National Park. We head back to the tented camp for dinner and enjoy a sunset on the beautiful stone deck area overlooking the river.
On day four of our Tanzania Private Safari we collect a delicious packed lunch and journey to Mikumi National Park in the Morogoro Region of Tanzania, east of Dar es Salaam. The Park lies between the Uluguru and Lumango Mountains and features Miombo woodlands on low foothills and seasonal floodplains below, covered with open grasslands that closely resemble the famous Serengeti Plains.
On arrival we enjoy a game drive across the Mkata Plains where herds of herbivores graze, attracting large predators in their wake. Common wildlife sightings in Mikumi Park include elephants, buffalos and lions (three of Africa's Big 5), and potentially leopards, although these big cats are more elusive. Other animals we are likely to see are wildebeest, zebras, giraffes, warthogs, crocodiles, and various antelopes. Mikumi is also home to endangered wild dogs, jackals, hyenas, hippos, baboons, and vervet monkeys. Twitchers can look forward to excellent sightings here with more than 400 bird species recorded in Mikumi. Common sightings include yellow-throated long claws, lilac-breasted rollers, bateleur eagles, black-bellied bustards, guinea fowls, African fish eagles, marabou storks, oxpeckers, straw-tailed whydahs, and Boehm's bee-eaters.
As the sun begins to set we make our way to our safari camp in Mikumi National Park for dinner and a relaxing evening.
After breakfast on day five, we depart for the remote Ruaha National Park. The drive is about 320km (200 mi), taking us about five hours.
Ruaha is Tanzania's largest national park, incorporating about 20 226 km² (7,809 mi²) of unspoiled wilderness. This isolated wilderness area receives far fewer visitors than most other African game parks offering a wilder and more authentic safari adventure.
We will spend the remainder of day five and the whole of day six exploring Ruaha on 4x4 game drives. Ruaha is renowned for its large predator populations including one of the largest lion populations in the world. If we're lucky we may witness lions hunting, or perhaps spot leopards. The chances of seeing cheetahs and African wild dogs are high as Ruaha also hosts healthy populations of these predators. In addition to impressive predator sightings, elephant sightings are almost guaranteed as Ruaha is home to over 10000 of these gentle giants. Other common wildlife sightings include large herds of Cape buffalos, as well as giraffes, zebras, hippos, impalas, and other antelopes. Both greater and lesser kudu are found in Ruaha, along with rare sable and roan antelopes. The unusual mix and high diversity of animal and plant species in Ruaha are due to its location in a transitional zone where eastern and southern ecological regions meet.
On nights five and six, we are based at a tented camp outside Ruaha National Park. The camp boasts its own waterhole where you can enjoy watching the animals coming to drink.
Next on our Tanzania Private Safari adventure, we travel eastward from Ruaha to the mountain forests of Udzungwa Mountains National Park. We settle into our camp bordering the Park set in lush green grounds of pristine rainforest offering excellent views of the forest canopy. The forest is home to a number of primate species, including the endemic Udzungwa Red Colobus, the remarkable Sanje Crested Mangabey, and the Black and White Colobus. A number of different hornbill species fly in over the forest edge and settle in trees along the borders of the rainforest in large numbers every evening at sunset, and the valley echoes with their distinctive calls.
Lunch is served after which you can spend the afternoon at leisure or take a short hike around and about the tented camp.
After an early breakfast, we enjoy a full-day hike to Sanje Waterfalls. The trail is 6 kilometers, with a height gain of 450m (about 6 hours trek round trip). Sanje Waterfall has three sections (30m, 70m, and 170 meters tall). It is surrounded by rainforest and offers excellent views over the Kilombero floodplains below.
Our walk will take us through the dense forests. You are sure to encounter some of the birds, reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, and primates unique to the Udzungwa Mountains. Baboons and vervet monkeys are often seen and two of the six primate species found here are endemic to the Udzungwa Mountains National Park: the Iringa red colobus and Sanje crested mangabey. The park is home to more than 400 bird species, including several species endemic to the Eastern Arc Mountains and four endemic to Udzungwa. Commonly sighted birds include marabou storks, crowned eagles, malachite and woodland kingfishers, Ruppell's vultures, and both silvery-cheeked and trumpeter hornbills. Over 2500 plant species have been recorded in the Udzungwa Mountains a quarter of which are endemic.
After breakfast at our forest lodge this morning we head back to Dar es Salaam (approximately 8 hours drive). Your guide drops you off at the airport bringing this remarkable private Tanzania Private Safari to a close.
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.
You have the option of adding a beach holiday to Mafia Island and/or Zanzibar Island to this Southern Tanzania Safari at a reasonable extra cost. Contact us for details about these well-priced beach trips.
For up-to-date and confirmed pricing info for optional items, please drop us an enquiry.
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