The overview
This 11-day Southern and Western Tanzania safari journey offers the better of the two regions in Tanzania. The package includes visits to the best wildlife sites in Southern Tanzania and Western Tanzania, including Nyerere National Park and Ruaha in the south and Katavi and Mahale Mountains National Park in the west. Because the parks are less trafficked and pristine, this safari is ideal for individuals who like seclusion on game drives.
It is worth mentioning that the safari circuits in Southern Tanzania and Western Tanzania are still relatively unexplored, and logistics can be difficult. It is therefore advised that you schedule your trip to these locations as soon as is possible before the day period of the safari
The highlights of the Tanzania safari holidays
- Chimpanzee tracking
- Unlimited game drives
- Walking safaris
- Spotting of various wildlife
- Big five animals spotting
- Hiking
- Relaxation at the beaches in Mahale
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival and transfer to hotel in Dar es Salaam
When you arrive at Dar es Salaam International Airport, one of our representatives will welcome you and drive you to the hotel in Dar es Salaam. He will also brief you on this luxurious flying safari itinerary. Hotel dinner and overnight stay.
Meal plan: Dinner
Day 2: Local flight from Dar es Salaam to Nyerere National Park (Selous)
After breakfast at your accommodation, you will be driven to Dar es Salaam Airport for a morning flight to Nyerere National Park’s Mtemere Airstrip, a 45-minute domestic flight to Nyerere. Pick up at the airstrip and proceed to your lodge or camp, with your first wildlife drive along the route.
After eating lunch at the lodge or camp. In the afternoon, you will have a boat ride on the River Rufuji to relax and learn about this amazing wildlife habitat. During this journey, you can expect to see hippos, crocodiles, and, if you’re lucky, other species come to drink at the river, such as elephants, several types of antelopes, and numerous birds. You will return to the lodge or camp in the evening for relaxation, dinner, and overnight.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 3: Full day exploration of Nyerere National park
After breakfast, you are going to explore the huge Nyerere National Park, which was carved out of the vast Selous Game Reserve, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The enormous park will be toured on board open-sided Safari land cruisers specially designed for pleasant safari game drives and animal watching. The larger Selous Ecosystem is one of the greatest unspoiled wilderness areas on the African continent, including vast plains, woodlands, rivers, and lakes that all serve as wildlife habitats.
During the game drives you will search for Africa’s Big Five animals and the other different wild animals that live here among which are: lions, zebras, elands, impalas, buffalos, bushbucks, elephants, oryxs, crocodiles, waterbucks, hippos, sable antelopes, klipspringers, pukus, duikers, giraffes, greater kudus, Lichtenstein’s hartebeest, along with the occasional leopards and spotted hyenas, in addition to the largest thriving population of the endangered wild dogs.
There are also numerous bird species found here, some of which live in the forest, along river banks, and in swampy places. Aside from safari game drives in a jeep, you will also have one walking safari session in Nyerere National Park. Dinner and an overnight stay at the resort
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 4: Domestic flight transfer from Nyerere to Ruaha national park
After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airfield for a one-and-a-half hour flight to the secluded Ruaha National Park. The guide will pick you up and take you to the lodging, with the opportunity to see wildlife along the way. After lunch, you’ll go on an afternoon safari game drive in Ruaha until sunset, afterwards you’ll be driven back to your lodge or camp for supper and sleep. In the evening, you can sit around the campfire with a drink of your choice and tell stories.
Meal Plan: All meals are included
Day 5: Full day game drive in Ruaha
On breakfast, you will go for a full day of wildlife drives in Ruaha. Ruaha National Park is a lesser-known and secret safari location in southern Tanzania with a diverse range of flora and species. You will get a more private safari experience than in the more popular parks in northern Tanzania. You’ll spend time exploring this well-kept natural nature area, looking for various wild animals, birds, and learning about the flora.
Ruaha National Park is home to one of the greatest buffalo and elephant populations in East Africa, as well as an unusually significant number of big cats and predators. Ruaha is thought to have the world’s second greatest population of lions. Ruaha is also home to a high number of cheetahs, leopards, and the endangered African Wild-dogs.
The also has a diverse bird population, with over 570 distinct bird species documented. Because the park is located in the transition zone between the southern and eastern ecosystems, it provides a surprisingly diversified combination of habitats that support a large variety of bird, animal, and plant species. Return to the lodge for dinner and overnight stay.
Night game drives, hot air balloon rides, and walking safaris are also available at an additional cost. If you require these additional services for prior reservations, please let us know when scheduling your safari.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 6: Flight from Ruaha to Katavi National Park
After an early breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport for the flight to Katavi National Park, which is located further to the west of Mainland Tanzania. When you arrive at Katavi’s airstrip, you will be met by a guide and transferred to the lodge, with opportunities for wildlife viewing along the route.
Have lunch and a few hours of rest, you’ll go on afternoon game drive. An open-sided safari land cruiser will be driven by a fully educated and experienced safari guide who is a park resident. You return to the lodge for dinner and an overnight stay after the wildlife drive.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 7: Full day game drive in Katavi national park
This day will be spent exploring the game park on morning and afternoon game drives. The amount of wild creatures residing within Katavi National Parks is astounding, with some experts claiming that it may be comparable to the Ngorongoro Crater in northern Tanzania.
The park is well-known for having the largest concentration of hippo and crocodiles in Africa. The vast population of hippos, estimated to number over 600 depending on the time of year, can be seen hibernating in the hippo pool, a sight unlike seen anywhere else on the continent.
In Katavi National Park, you can see lions fighting with massive buffaloes as they try to chase them down. There are also many elephants, as well as zebras, waterbucks, giraffes, hyenas, topi, and leopards, as well as the extremely rare wild dogs. Game viewing is unquestionably rewarding here. Katavi National Park receives extremely few people each year, making safari in Katavi National Park a unique and authentic experience. You nearly have the entire park to yourself. Katavi offers walking safaris guided by armed ranges provided by Tanzania National Parks Authority, who are also experienced naturalists, in addition to safaris in a 4×4 safari jeep.
Return to the lodge in the evening for dinner and overnight stay.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 8: Another day of game drive in katavi national park.
After a leisurely breakfast, you can go on more game drives in Katavi to regions of the park that you may not have visited the previous day. On this day, you can go on a walking safari. In the afternoon, spend the remainder of the day relaxing at the camp or resort.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 9: Transfer flight to Mahale national park and do afternoon chimpanzee tracking
After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airfield for your morning flight to the Mahale National Park, which is located farther west. When you arrive at the airstrip in Mahale National Park, one of the guides will meet you there and transport you to your lodging.
Go to the park headquarters in the afternoon for a briefing on chimp tracking in the jungle. Visit the jungle with a knowledgeable park ranger guide who understands chimp habits, their particular body movements, and the finest trekking paths. Although there is no time limit for tracking the chimps, their movements determine the duration of the tracking.
Other primates, birds, lions, elephants, buffalo, giraffes, and antelope are likely to be seen throughout the course of the trek. View the chimps in their natural habitat, eating habits, and temperament. Return to the lodge for some rest and relaxation, as well as an overnight stay.
Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 10: Full day exploration of Mahale mountains national park
10day morning,After breakfast, you will trek the verdant slopes of this park in search of various animals, including Chimpanzees, who are only found in Tanzania in Mahale and Gombe.
This national park is home to a variety of wildlife, including chimps, hippos, crocodiles, and the occasional leopard. Many primates reside in the jungles, and you can expect to see them swinging from one tree branch to another and hearing their echoed calls as they communicate in their own unique ways. Red-tailed monkeys, yellow baboons, colobus monkeys, and black and white colobus are among the primates found in Mahale’s woods.
In the afternoon, you can relax on the magnificent white sand beaches, cruise in traditional dhows, or kayak on the lake before returning to your lodgings for dinner and the night. Meal plan: All meals are included
Day 11: Flight from Mahale to Dar es Salaam for your departure flight back home
After a leisurely breakfast, you will be transferred to the airstrip. There, you will board a flight to Dar es Salaam International Airport, where your safari will come to a close.
If you want to head north for further safari game drives in the famous parks of Northern Tanzania, such as Ngorongoro and Serengeti, the flight can be scheduled to Arusha instead of Dar es Salaam.
Meal plan: Breakfast
