Tarangire National Park
Tanzania safaris | Tanzania tours |Tanzania Wildlife Safaris
Tarangire National Park, in northern Tanzania, is often overlooked in favour of its flashier near neighbours, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. While Tarangire does not attract as many visitors as the larger and more well known national parks, those that choose to visit this wildlife rich region are treated to a truly unforgettable safari awash with stunning landscapes, an incredible array of wildlife and a more local feel to the experience. Tarangire National Park covers an area of about 2,850 square kilometers (1,100 square miles) and is known for its enormous elephant herds, massive baobab trees when dry and dotted with swamps which fill up during the wet season, drawing in thousands of animals. An authentic, off the beaten path safari, it’s a perfect destination for those travelers.
Activities in Tarangire are varied and attractive ranging from game drives, walking safaris to bird watching and cultural tours, Tarangire offers a varied experience for those who seek to have a diverse experience of Tanzania's wild life.
Activities to do in Tarangire National Park
Game Drives:
A game drive is one of the most popular activities in Tarangire National Park. The park boasts vast landscapes, rich wildlife and the all important Tarangire River, a lifeline for animals during the dry season which makes this park a continuous haven for game viewing all year round.
What to Expect:
Elephant Herds: Elephant numbers in Tarangire are legendary. Visitors come to witness herds of hundreds of Elephants arriving throughout the dry season (June to October) with their large numbers gathered around the river or waterholes. It is great watching these gentle giants interact, drink and bathe and Tarangire makes memorable.
Predators and Prey: Wandering in the park are lions, leopards, cheetahs and hyenas and game drives give visitors a chance to view these predators at work. Look for hunting scenes, particularly in the dry season when animals congregate around water sources for a better chance of predator vs. prey interactions.
Other Wildlife: Elephants are in addition to all sorts of other animals – zebras, giraffes, buffalo, wildebeest, and other species of antelope. Unlike other parks, Tarangire has both the fringe-eared oryx and the long-necked gerenuk, rare antelope species, that steal the heart of the wildlife enthusiast.
Best Time for Game Drives: The Tarangire River attracts wildlife to the area during the game drives that take place during the dry season because the wildlife groups around the river due to the lack of water wherever else around. Temperatures are cooler in early morning and late afternoon, and animals are more active, so take these drives then.
Guided Nature Walks:
Walking safaris in Tarangire National Park are a must do if you are looking for a more immersive experience. A walking safari with an experienced guide and an armed ranger gives you a closer connection to the landscape and wildlife than you can get from a vehicle created prison.
Why Choose a Walking Safari:
Up-Close Nature Encounters: The bush on foot may allow us to see the smaller details of the ecosystem that are easily missed on a game drive: animal tracks, insect life and our little friends known as plant species. You’ll identify the sounds and smells of the wilderness, and get a closer look at one of park’s unique flora.
Wildlife from a Different Perspective: Walking safaris aren’t as much about coming face to face with the big cats and more about understanding the entire environment, which occasionally includes giraffes, zebras, elephants, and other animals… from a safe distance. It's a particularly exciting activity because of the thrill of walking in the wild with large animals potentially quite close.
Learning from Expert Guides: Your guide will show you how to track animals, identify plant used by Tarangire’s flora and fauna for medicinal purposes and explain about the symbiotic relationships which sustain Tarangire’s ecosystem.
Best Time for Walking Safaris: Walking safaris are best done early in the morning when it’s cooler, and the animals are also more active. How long your walk safari is will depend on your fitness level and preference; walking safaris can last a few hours through to a full day.
Birding :
With more than 550 species of birds Tarangire Natural Park is one of the best birding destinations in Tanzania. Wetlands, savannahs and woodlands blend to make a rich habitat for resident and migratory birds.
Wetland Species: The park’s swamps and floodplains are a magnet for waterbirds, including herons, pelicans and storks during the wet season (November to May). There are so many species to a look for including the colorful African jacana and Malachite kingfisher.
Raptors: Of its birds of prey, martial eagles, African fish eagles and bateleurs are impressive. These raptors are hard to miss, towering high in the sky on wingspans as long as three or four feet, or perched in a tree scanning for prey.
Endemic and Rare Species: Rare birds that must be seen include the ashy starling (endemic to Tanzania) and yellow collared lovebird. The Kori bustard, Africa’s heaviest flying bird, is also one of the few places to see it.
Best Time for Birdwatching: Birdwatching is best done in the wet season (November to May) when migratory species arrive and the park's wetlands are alive with many species of birds. But birdwatching is good all year round in Tarangire.
Night Game Drives:
One of the only parks in Tanzania that offers the chance of night game drives, it gives the visitor the opportunity to see Tarangire again, after dark, when the real magic begins, with nocturnal animals on the move. The unique activity offers a brand new perspective of the African bush.
What to Expect:
Nocturnal Predators: As predators such as leopards, lions and hyenas become more active at night, night game drives make spotting them even more likely. One particularly good time to spot leopards is at night, when they are hunting and patrolling their territories.
Smaller Nocturnal Creatures: Besides predators, night drives are full of smaller nocturnal animals such as genets, civets and even the elusive aardvark. You will also no doubt see bush babies with their big eyes glowing in the dark and jumping from tree to tree looking for food.
Stargazing Opportunities: The African night sky is stunning, and night drives allow for an unparalleled view of the stars, constellations and the Milky Way, as we don’t have the light pollution of the more developed areas.
Best Time for Night Game Drives: Year round night drives are possible, but are much more spectacular during the dry season, when nocturnal predators are active around water sources.
What to see in Tarangire National Park
Tarangire River:
The Tarangire River bisects the Tarangire National Park and is a life giving water source for wildlife (especially during the dry season). The river is stretched through the park's savannahs and woodlands, where it attracts animals all around for miles drawing them to the river, which is also a perfect spot for game viewing. Especially, big herds of elephants, zebras, buffaloes and antelopes crowd riverbanks to drink some water and cool themselves.
From June to October is the dry season, it is then when the river acts as a lifeline for animals and the concentration of wildlife is highest. It's great for game drives too as lions and leopards often follow prey around water for a chance to catch a kill. The river is a hotspot for birdwatchers partly because it supports vibrant birdlife.
Elephant Herds:
Tarangire national park is also popular because of its massive elephant herds. During the dry season the park hosts one of Tanzania’s largest populations of elephants, with herds of up to 300 animals. Tarangire’s gentle giants are a real highlight of any visit here, and you can’t miss these gentle giants as they amble across the plains, searching for food and socialising with one another.
There is nothing quite like watching a family of elephants, especially with calves, bathe in the mud of the Tarangire River, or feed under the shade of the baobab tree. While you can view the playful splashing of their young from a peaceful distance, visitors also have the opportunity to see the care taken by mothers and matriarchs. Extensively studied due to park’s elephant population, who are thriving and an example of successful conservation in Tarangire.
Baobab Trees:
Not only the park is famous for its wildlife, but it is also for its iconic baobab trees. They tower over the landscape, dominating the land and creating a unique, almost otherworldly quality. The park is home to some of Africa’s oldest plants, including baobabs that are thought to be more than a 1,000 years old, and today stand silent sentinels to centuries of ecological change.
The baobabs are an important part of the park’s ecosystem. They store water in their thick trunks and over the dry season, this sustains them when water is scarce. Baobabs, for their part, are easily recognizable from the scars left by stripping of bark by elephants, with their tusks, in search of the water reservoirs inside the trees. In addition, they are important shelter for various bird species and small mammals. Whilst they are these natural giants often attract photographers and nature lovers to capture the beauty, especially when they look silhouetted against a golden sky at sunset.
Seasonal Migration:
Tarangire National Park is home to one of the most impressive seasonal wildlife migrations in all Africa. From June to October, during the dry season, many thousands of animals migrate into the park from the surrounding areas for water. Larger herds of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle pour into Tarangire’s plains on ancient migration routes which have not changed for centuries.
Large herbivores are attracted to this influx of herbivores, which in turn attracts predators such as lions, leopards and hyenas to create thrilling predator and prey dynamics as only seen on the African savannah. While the Serengeti is well known for its excellent migration, the park’s own migration shares this honor, but on a more intimate and uncrowded scale.
Birds:
Tarangire National Park is a paradise for birders with over 500 of the birds recorded. The park’s habitats are diverse, encompassing riverine forest, swamp and woodland and with a wide range of both resident and migratory birds. The park's wetlands are especially active with birdlife during the wet season from November to May, when migratory species from Europe and Asia make their long stopover.
Some of the impressive bird species found in Tarangire are the yellow collared love bird, northern white crowned shrike, largest flying bird, the Kori bustard and the colourful lilac breasted roller. Wading birds such as storks, herons and egrets are also found in the park’s swamps. Some serious birders prefer Tarangire as it offers guided birdwatching tours with lot of in depth information to understand the avian life in the park.
Best Time to Visit Tarangire National Park
Best time to view wildlife in Tarangire National Park is dry season. Whilst during this time the surrounding areas become dry and animals migrate towards the river, Tarangire River being the park’s primary water source. Thanks to this natural congregation there are excellent game viewing opportunities.
Location of Tarangire National Park
Tarangire National Park is approximately 120 kms (75 miles) southwest of Arusha, and the ‘gateway’ to the northern safari circuit of Tanzania. It is a short drive of two hours from Arusha by road to reach the park. Other northern circuit destinations, including Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater can also lead you to the Lake.
The Lake can also be reached from other northern circuit destinations such as Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. Charter flights are available into Arusha or other major Tanzanian airports and fly into the park’s small airstrips for those with tight schedules or who want to be more convenient.
The park is contained in the wider Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem that includes Lake Manyara National Park and other wildlife corridors through which animals move seasonally. Due to its location in the Rift Valley, Tarangire covers a diverse landscape from flat plains to swamps, woodlands and riverine forests.
