Tarangire National Park

The Park is located in Northern Tanzania, approximately 120 km southwest of Arusha town, and 160 km from the Kilimanjaro International Airport. It covers an area of 2.600 sq km and is Tanzania ’s fourth largest Park.

The Tarangire National Park is named by the Tarangire River that flows through the centre of the park providing a year-round water source for the abundant wildlife. It is the second only to the Serengeti ecosystem for concentrations of wildlife during the dry seasons (June to November). During that time thousands of animals including Wildebeests, Zebras, Elands, Elephants, Buffalos, Hartebeests and rare Oryx migrate from Maasai steppe to the Tarangire River looking for water with Lions, Leopards and other predators following them. In the Park you have a great chance to see also Olive Baboon, Bat-eared Fox, Bohors Reedbuck, Bushbuck, Cheetah, Gerenuk, Impala, Hippopotamus, Lesser and Greater Kudu, Rock Hyrax, Spotted and Striped Hyena, Warthog and if you are lucky, even a Black Rhino or a tree-climbing Python!

Tarangire is the only National Park in Tanzania’s Northern Circuit where you can see a large concentration of elephants all year round. The park is an ornithologist’s paradise with more than 550 species of birds, including the largest bird in the world, the Ostrich and the heaviest bird that can fly, the Kori Bustard. The peculiar Ground Hornbill is also a firm resident. Flamingos and Pelicans are common at Lake Burunge; the swamps are rich in bird-life as well as the Acacia woodlands and the flood plains of the Tarangire River . Bird species found here include African Hoopoe, Bataleur, Brown Parrot, Goliath Heron, Helmeted Guinea fowl, Hamerkop, Long-toed Lapwing, Madagascar Bee-eater, Yellow-collared Lovebird, White-bellied Lourie as well as various species of ducks, francolins, kingfishers, owls, doves, weavers, plovers, and sand pipers.

Vegetation of the Park includes wooded steppe, arid acacia savanna dominated by Acacia and Carniphora species, wetlands and seasonal flood plains, riverine grassland, deep gully vegetation and grasslands with scattered thousand-year-old giant Baobab trees.

Activities
Game viewing, Bird-watching. Outside the park: Cultural tourism at Babati town (Barbaig tribe, ancient Kolo Rock Paintings).

Have a look at our Safari Tours!
And for more photos, take a look at our Photo Gallery!

Map of the Park

When to go
The dry season (June to November) is considered to be the best time to visit due to the sheer numbers of animals. For bird-viewing it is best to come between the months of October and May.

Accommodation
There are a dozen of campsites in the Park as well as two lodges and two luxury tented camps with tree additional up-market accommodations in the Tarangire Conservation Area. Basic guesthouses and additional campsites are also near the highway outside the park. Have a look at some of the Safari Accommodation.

Getting there
A drive from Arusha (2h) or a flight from Arusha (30min), Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro International Airport.

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