Tarangire National Park

The Tarangire River gives the park its name and keeps it alive. Its 2,850 km² take in rolling hills, seasonal swamps and open grassland scattered with baobabs, some of the oldest and most striking in Tanzania. A number are believed to be well over a thousand years old, and their swollen trunks have become a symbol of this part of the country. It is the third-largest national park in the north, yet it gets less attention than its neighbours. That gives it a quieter, wilder character, shaped as much by its giant trees as by the animals underneath them.

No other park in northern Tanzania holds as many elephants. In the dry season, herds of 300 or more come down to the river in scenes that can match anything in Africa. Lions here have a habit of resting in the branches of acacias and baobabs, and the park is also home to leopard, fringe-eared oryx and gerenuk, which are missing from most other northern parks. More than 550 bird species have been recorded, which puts Tarangire among the best birding spots in the country.

Between June and October the park is at its peak. Once water dries up across the surrounding plains, herds crowd the riverbanks, with concentrations that can match the Serengeti's, and the viewing is superb with far less traffic because so few visitors make the trip. The rains turn everything green. That is the moment for birds and for migratory species giving birth, though animals spread out and are harder to pin down.

Because visitor numbers are a fraction of those in the Serengeti, Tarangire suits anyone who wants plenty of wildlife without sharing it with a crowd. Roughly 120 km from Arusha, it works well as the opening or closing stage of a northern loop, frequently paired with Lake Manyara as a short, rewarding bookend to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro.