Thank you for an amazing safari. Our guide Patrick was the best. His extensive knowledge of flora and fauna was amazing. He has a great sense of humor; he is warm, patient and professional. Patrick not ...
Constantine and Luis Regalado Physician Wellington, FL
Tanzania's Northern circuit is home to the world's greatest wildlife preserve, Serengeti National Park, within which one discovers the lion, the cheetah, the wildebeest (especially the wildebeest), the zebra, the giraffe, the rhino, the entire menagerie of East African wildlife, small and large, nervous and ferocious. All by itself, the Serengeti's splendorous grasslands, green hills and sudden kopjes make Tanzania the premier Safari destination in East Africa (although Kenyan tourism officials might disagree).
But there's more to the Northern Circuit than Serengeti. Mount Kilimanjaro and the Ngorongoro Crater remind us of the immense geologic forces at work on the East African landscape, while Arusha National Park and Lake Manyara and Tarangire remind us how wildlife (and people) fit into landscapes shaped by geology and climate and time. Kilimanjaro, Africa's tallest mountain at nearly 20,000 feet, the roof of the world, is attainable by most fit, capable hikers extensive mountaineering experience is not required. The floor of Ngorongoro Crater, a collapsed prehistoric lava dome, is home to 30,000 or more large mammals buffaloes, zebras, antelopes and their predators, hippos and wandering elephants, all protected within a ring of jagged rock thousands of feet high. And then there's Lake Manyara just a short drive away a stunning example of the alkaline rift valley lakes that dot the region. A few miles south of Lake Manyara lies Tarangire National Park, perhaps the least visited of the Northern Circuit parks, but also home, in the dry season, to the largest concentration of wildlife in the region.
All of it, Serengiti and its sister parks, lie within a few hours' drive of the town of Arusha. Arusha is the hub of the Northern Circuit, with roots in Tanzania's German and British colonial past. Today the town plays a prominent role in contemporary East African politics. It is sure to reward a day or two of exploration before or after one experiences the main attractions of the Maasai Steppe.
Tanzania's Southern Circuit of park's and reserves Selous, Ruaha, Mikumi and Udzungwa do not enjoy the name recognition of Tanzania's Northern Circuit celebrities. They do, however, offer the same unique safari experience, usually with more intimacy and privacy than is available in the more well known destinations of the north.
Selous Game Reserve is the largest such reserve in all of Africa. Game viewing is good, lodging options are exceptional, and the reserve's history is rich. Beyond the Rufiji River system, with its hippos and crocodiles and plains herbivores on the nearby grasslands, the reserve consists of miombo woodlands, which stretch south into Mozambique and are home to woodland species such as sable antelope and duiker. Selous is bordered to the northwest by Mikumi National Park and Udzungwa National Park. Of these two, Mikumi offers the better lodging options and game drives on the Mkata floodplain. Udzungwa offers day or overnight hikes in the montane rainforest and the opportunity to glimpse monkeys and baboons and shy forest lurkers such as red and blue duikers. Ruaha National Park is the furthest from Dar es Salaam, hub of Southern Circuit safaris, and it is also the most intimate. Occupying the transition zone between Tanzania's northern and southern ecoregions, Ruaha is home to species of plant and animal life native to both. The relative remoteness of the park makes visits personal and private.
Because the distances involved in Southern Circuit safaris are so vast particularly if Ruaha is on the itinerary all of the parks and reserves include airstrips. Many safari travelers save a day or two on the road by opting to travel from destination to destination via bush plane.
