10-Nights Tailor Made Tanzania: Ruaha, Nyerere & the Serengeti - Luxury Tailor Made Travel

Ruaha National Park

Ruaha National Park, the second-largest national park in Tanzania, lies about a two-hour drive northwest from Iringa, but is most normally visited by air in conjunction with the Selous Game Reserve.

Wild and relatively little-visited, Ruaha is known for its high elephant densities and for great predator sightings, with prides of 20 lion likely to be seen, along with cheetah and leopard. It also harbors a substantial population of the endangered African wild dog.

The Ruaha River is the main feature of the park (where hippo and crocodile thrive) and as most of the park is on the top of a plateau, the ripples of hills, valleys and plains make the topography uniquely beautiful. Because it lies in a transitional vegetation zone, Ruaha supports an unusually wide variety of ungulates, most notably the rare greater kudu, and several bird species more normally associated with southern Africa. Striking features of the landscape are the plentiful baobab trees that stud the plains and the palms that line its dry river beds. The handful of safari lodges and tented camps dotted around Ruaha all possess an intimate bush feel in keeping with the park's untrammeled atmosphere, but the park is also accessible to campers in the areas by the main gate.

The park is 292 mi/470 km southwest of Dar es Salaam.

Nyerere National Park

Established in 1922, the Selous Game Reserve is Africa's largest wildlife reserve (21,235sq mi/55,000 sq km), and is in fact roughly the size of Switzerland and four times larger than the Serengeti. The park is named after Captain Frederick Selous, a British explorer and hunter who wrote a book about the region and his travels. He was killed in action during World War I in 1917 while scouting in the area. His grave lies within the reserve at the foot of the Beho Beho Hills.

There are both tented camps and lodge accommodations in remote spots in the north of the park. The best way to get to these is to fly, though there is also the option of taking the train—the TAZARA railway runs through part of the reserve—or driving over a long day from Dar es Salaam.

The highlight of Selous (pronounced se-LOO) is its large variety of animals, including impala, hippo, buffalo, wildebeest, hyena, kudu, sable antelope, elephant, baboon, lion and waterbuck. It is of particular significance as a stronghold for the endangered African wild dog, hosting around one-third of the global population outside captivity. However, because of its remoteness and vast size, while the Selous offers a safari far away from paved roads and curio shops, you're less likely to see as much game as you would in parks where the animals are more concentrated.

Motorboat trips on the palm-lined Rufiji River, Tanzania's largest waterway (and where most of the Selous camps are located), are memorable for the large concentrations of hippos, crocodiles and various water-associated birds, such as the African fish eagle and African skimmer.

Selous begins 80 mi/130 km southwest of Dar es Salaam.

Arusha

Arusha is the safari capital of East Africa, a bustling, vibrant town with the streets filled with 4X4 game viewing vehicles criss-crossing the potholed roads. Maasai warriors in full regalia stroll the streets, mingling with tourists in crisp khaki, fresh off the plane from Europe or the United States.

Serengeti

Today, the Serengeti National Park helps protect the greatest and most varied collection of terrestrial wildlife on earth, and one of the last great migratory systems still intact. The Serengeti is the jewel in the crown of Tanzania's protected areas and has come to symbolize paradise. The region encompasses Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Maswa Game Reserve, the Loliondo, Grumeti and Ikorongo Controlled Areas and Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Two World Heritage Sites and two Biosphere Reserves have been established within the region. It's unique ecosystem has inspired writers and filmakers as well as numerous photographers and scientists. The essential features of climate, vegetation and fauna have barely changed in the past million years. Some patterns of life, death, adaptation and migration are as old as the hills themselves.

Dar es Salaam

Dar es Salaam in east Tanzania is located on an arm of the Indian Ocean. It is the country's largest city and former capital, chief seaport, and principal commercial, manufacturing, and educational centre. Rail links extend inland to Arusha in the north, to Lakes Tanganyika and Victoria, and to Zambia. Dar es Salaam's exports include coffee, sisal, cotton, and copper (from landlocked Zambia). Places of interest include Kariakoo market, the Botanical Gardens, National Central Library and the National Museum of Tanzania which has notable collections dealing with east African ethnography, archaeology, and history.