Tarangire National Park Safari Tours - Tailor Made for You

Elephant Safari Holiday

Tarangire is a small national park, sometimes overlooked, or rushed through by people on their way to the Serengeti, but this reputation is undeserved. Tarangire is an all weather park, which has amazing wildlife in both the dry and wet seasons. However the true golden months of Tarangire National Park is September into October. At the end of the dry season, Tarangire is packed full of animals, seeking the small water that Tarangire holds. During this time, a four day safari in Tarangire National Park would be a good choice. Some photographers stay even longer. Combined with Lake Manyara National Park, Tarangire is reason enough to visit Tanzania.

Wildlife Safari In Tarangire National Park

During an afternoon game drive in Tarangire National Park it is always possible to see hundreds of elephants congregating at the river bank, drinking and bathing. The park comes into its own in the dry season when many of the migratory wildlife species of the Maasai steppe come back to the permanent waters of the Tarangire River. Indeed, the name ”Tara n’gire” means “water / always”  in the Ol’ Maasai language.
Herds of wildebeest, zebras, eland, and oryx gather to stay in Tarangire National Park until the onset of the rains when they migrate again to good grazing areas further north.

Relatively Small Area With Many Different Eco-Systems

While covering  a relatively small area, Tarangire has a number of different eco-zones. Each one is a must visit on a Tanzania Safari Holiday. Marshland, wetlands, riverine woodlands, savannah and medium altitude hills make up the fabric of the Tarangire National Park.

When you start your elephant safari holiday in Tarangire National Park, there will be a plethora of baobab trees that first captures your eye. Tarangire National Park is located 120 km west of Arusha. It is an expanse of gently rolling hills with savannah plains, and rivers, like railways lines, cut deep into the red earth. The magical baobab trees seem to dwarf the game that feeds beneath them. All year long, huge herds of elephants roam the park, on the plains or near watering holes.

Tarangire National Park covers approximately 2600 square kilometres, making it smaller than the Serengeti National Park or the Ngorongoro Conservation area, but there is no comparison to the density of animals, especially in the dry season. Tarangire National Park can either be an essential stopover on a Northern Tanzania Safari Holiday, or a 5 day safari in its own right.

Being quite close to Arusha, it is normally the first park for safari tours to stop, but most make it a day trip and cars most often carry on to Manyara and Ngorongoro for the evenings’ end. This makes Tarangire National Park a gem of a park. When your safari car goes deeper into the national park, you will hardly see another car or visitor.

Where To Stay In Tarangire National Park For Your Safari

Tarangire National Park is blessed with some excellent accommodation options, both within and just outside the National Park. We can place you in any location which suits your budget and level of comfort.

If you want to stay on a hillside with views over Lake Manyara, then the Sangaiwe Tented Camp near Sangaiwe Gate has to be your first choice. Slightly lower down, and on the edge of Lake Burunge, is the Burunge Tented Camp. This is an excellent option as it allows for walking safaris, but is not quite as secluded as Sangaiwe. Inside the park is the utterly luxurious, but quite pricey, Oliver’s Camp, or the more reasonably priced but less personal, Tarangire Wildlife Camp.

You will need a minimum of two nights in Tarangire National Park, and up to five.