Tarangire National park-Tanzania

A protected area of a high density of elephants, baobab trees and grassy plains is Tarangire National park covering an area of approximately 2,850 square kilometers. The national park is situated in the Northern part of Tanzania in the region of Manyara having the high herds of elephants of over 300, highest concentration of mammals in the country and also a home to over 550 bird species. Explore Tarangire national park more when having a guided game drive through the trail of the park. Tarangire national park is one of the destinations that should not miss on one’s itinerary simply because of the following attractions;

Highest herds of elephants: This is one of the key attractions at Tarangire national park due to the fact that it is considered to be the highest in the whole of Tanzania. Visit the park especially during the drier seasons –June to October where you will see over 300 large herds of elephants walking towns the Tarangire River in search for drinking water.

Wildlife: Tarangire national park hosts a various animals on its area of land which is approximately 2,850 square kilometers including Cape buffalo, zebras, elephants, lions, waterbucks, banded mongoose, leopards, cheetah, caracal, wildebeest, rhinos, giraffes, kudu, impala and others. The park also is a home to some primate species like vervet monkey and olive baboon.

Bird species: Tarangire National park is home to over 550 different bird species making it a birding haven especially to the birders. Move with a note book and your camera and spot the popular and un popular species including brown parrots, guinea fowl, steppe eagles, white-bellied, bateleur eagles, kori bustards, yellow collared lovebirds, bee-eaters, lilac breasted rollers, swifts, striped swallows, starlings, hamerkop and others.

Swamps: Tarangire National park is encompassed by a various swamps situated in the southern and eastern parts of the park. The swamps are homes to different wildlife and a variety of bird species. Animals in the swamps include tree-climbing pythons, silale swamp lions, cape buffalos, African wild dogs, and elephants. And bird species include yellow-collared lovebird, white-faced whistling- duck, vulturine guinea fowl, Donaldson smith’s nightjar, northern pied babbler, pink breasted lark and others.

The giant baobab tree: Also referred to as the tree of life, the baobab tree is one of the major attractions at Tarangire national park. Since it is very giant, this tree can store more than 400 liters and 1000 liters of water in its trunk. The tree is a source of food to the various animals and also provides shed to them.

Main activities at the park.

Game drives: Enjoy the guided game drive around the trails of Tarangire national park. The park is a home to a numerous wildlife including the predators that can be sight through the windows of the car. Among the animals include lions, elephants, leopards, rhinos, waterbucks, impalas, cheetahs, caracal, cape buffalos and others.

Bird watching: Since the park host over 550 bird species, this makes it one of the best destinations especially to the bird lovers. Get a chance of spotting different bird species including yellow-collared lovebird, white faced whistling-duck, bee-eaters, guinea fowls and others.

Accommodations at the park.

Tarangire National park has got a wide range of accommodation where a traveler selects. Among them include; Tarangire safari lodge, Nimali Tarangire, Tarangire treetops, sanctuary swala camp, maweninga camp, Sangaiwe tented lodge, Tarangire sopa lodge, Maramboi tented lodge, whistling thorn tented camp, and others.

How to get to the Tarangire national park

Tarangire national park can be accessed using two ways that is air transport and road transport.

By Air: The easiest way to get to Tarangire national park is flying into Kilimanjaro international airport. The airport is located 46 kilometers from Arusha. Also, another way is to fly into Julius Nyerere international airport which is near Dar es Salaam and then arrange for domestic flight at Arusha airport.

By road: The distance from Arusha to the park is approximately 140km and the drive takes about 3-4hours.