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The Lesser Known National Parks of Tanzania
There is more to Tanzania National Parks than Kilimanjaro,
Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti. Tanzania is blessed with
many National Parks that are remote, have a high density of
animals and offer a taste of Africa that is rarely offered by
most other safari destinations. These National Parks offer
exceptional safaris and they are not just off the beaten track
but well and truly in the wilds of Africa. These parks are home
huge herds of animals; predators; innumerable birds and best of
all few tourists. Some parks boasting one million hectares with
one lodge and a handful of guests.
First of all I must mention two parks very briefly; these parks
are well known but underrated and largely ignored. They deserve
better and therefore are worthy of a mention here. The first is
Arusha National Park; a small park about 53 square kilometers.
It is very accessible situated on the slopes of Mount Meru on
the outskirts of Arusha town. It is a beautiful park, and offers
canoeing and walking safaris; it is well worth a visit. The
other park is Tarangire National Park, most northern safaris
will use this park as a jumping off point en-route to the
Serengeti. If it is the dry season, this park should be visited
for two days at least, and choose a lodge deep in the park such
as the elegant Swala Camp. Many animals come to Tarangire in the
dry season as this park has a year round water supply. Tarangire
may be Tanzania's most underrated park.
Mafia Island Marine Park - this is the lesser known sister
island to Pemba and Zanzibar. This island is surrounded by a
barrier reef and is only reached by flight from Dar es Salaam or
the nearby Selous Game Reserve. The sea around Mafia is a
tropical Marine Park ranging from coral reefs, sea-grass beds,
mangroves and inter-tidal flats. Most of the marine park is less
than twenty meters bellow the mean tide levels.
Saadani National Park is 100 km north of Dar es Salaam. Saadani
is where the bush meets the sea. This colorful clash of
ecosystems is found nowhere else along the coast of East Africa.
Imagine - this is the place where the hippopotamus compete with
coral reefs, lions roar at the surf and baboons race along the
beach. Elephants have even been spotted enjoying the surf. Game
viewing is in open 4x4 vehicles, however, walking safaris are
allowed in the Forrest and on returning to your hotel - take
off
your boots - and enjoy a refreshing walk in the surf. There are
only a very few locations where walking safaris are allowed in
Tanzania and this is one of them and this park also boasts a
unique night walk trail. A highlight here is the green turtle
nesting sites along this beach.
Katavi National Park. A year or two ago the Serengeti had
100,000 visitors; in contrast the Katavi National Park in the
remote and inaccessible west of Tanzania had only 83 guests. It
is rumored that when a guest arrives at the park gates the
wardens there are shocked and bewildered, so rare are tourists
to this park. Here, in this park the only other people you will
meet are other guests and the staff at the one [tented] lodge in
the entire park. Here you have one million hectares to yourself
and the largest herds of buffalo in Africa; and where there are
buffalo the lions are not far behind.
There is a high plateau in Southern Tanzania called the Kitulo
Plateau National Park and here high above the madding crowd is a
secret sea of orchids. This National Park of wild flowers in all
its glorious color is a delight to anyone who appreciates and
loves the orchid in its natural setting. The Kitulo Plateau
became Tanzania's fourteenth National Park, however, unlike the
Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater, this park was not created for
the protection of fauna but for the protection of the flora and
in particular the orchid.
Udzungwa National Park is a park without roads. After arrival
the visitors must get out of the safari vehicles and walk. This
is a National Park with a difference and is best visited in the
dry season; as the paths and trails in the mountains tropical
rain forests become quite slippery in the wet season and
crossing the swollen mountain rivers can become dangerous.
These few parks only scratch the surface of the many National
Parks of Tanzania. Tanzania has so much to offer take your time
when planning a visit to make sure you make the most of this
wonderful country. It is not difficult to get away from the
madding crowd; there are many destinations that offer the safari
of a lifetime.
About the author:
For more information on Tanzania National Parks see
http://www.betheladventure.co.uk Bethel Adventures uses tourism
to improve the lives of the poorest communities in Tanzania.
Using tourism to improve lives.
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