In terms of tourism and travel, the very best of Tanzania’s natural reserves is beautifully showcased and captured in the magnificent national parks and game reserves in the country. This is besides the beaches of Zanzibar. The game parks and reserves offer unmatched opportunities to view wildlife in their natural habitat.
For most safari operators and even safari travelers, the game reserves found on the northern parks of Manyara, Tarangire, Ngorongoro and Serengeti are better known – they offer better safari facilities and infrastructure. The northern parks clearly offer the best developed of Tanzania’s tourism routes, starting from the base town of Arusha.
However, the parks and reserves in the south provide a sense of African safari adventure that is not matched by any other wildlife area in the African continent.
The principal areas of the southern circuit are the Selous Game Reserve and Mikumi, Ruaha and Udzungwa Mountains National parks. They are less-known and less frequented in comparison with the parks on the north.
Here are the Reasons Why You Should Choose the Southern Tanzania Parks:
Original and Authentic Parks
Most of the parks in the south like Ruaha, had been previously inaccessible until very recently. They had remained virtually unchanged and unaffected by mankind’s intrusive and sometimes destructive activities.
Exclusive Safaris Parks
The parks in the south of Tanzania are less frequently visited as compared to the northern parks. The large number of wildlife and less number of visitors enhances the feeling a true African safari adventure.
Variety of Safari Activities
Other safari activities like nature walks, bush walks, river-boat rides, etc that are not readily permitted in the northern parks, are usually part of the safaris in the southern parks. This creates a varied for your safari adventure.
Open-sided Safari Vehicles
All safaris are conducted on the open-sided Safari vehicles giving you the authentic safari feel and freedom of photography and game viewing.
Intimate Lodging Experience
The lodges and camps in the southern reserves are much smaller and more intimate. You rarely find lodges or camps with more than 20 tents. This means your safari experience is more personal and there is more attention to details for each safari traveler.
Easy to Organize Short Safaris
Because of the shorter distance from the safari base – Dar es Salaam, it is much easier to organize a shorter safari of 1 or 2 nights to the southern parks. For example, Mikumi is just 4 hours away by road and 1 hour away by air. Selous, Ruaha and Mikumi are all fly-in destinations that allow you to avoid long drives on the road. In the north, the distances are sometimes vast, and the travel by road may be tiring.
