Detailed Overview
Dar es Salaam is Tanzania’s most important city and the economic and cultural center of Tanzania. Dar’s name translates to the ‘Place of Peace’. It started life as a fishing village in the mid- 19th century, when the Sultan of Zanzibar developed a creek (now a harbor) into a safe port and trading center. Now it’s a teeming metropolis of 5.5 million people where Arab dhows mingle with huge ocean-going vessels.
For those who want to avoid crowds of tourists and experience a safari adventure “off-the-beaten-track”, the southern safari circuit would be perfect for that. The parks included in the southern safari circuit are Nyerere National Park (before Selous G. R.), which has been a World Heritage Site due to its biodiversity since 1982, Ruaha National Park, Mikumi National Park, and Udzungwa Mountains National Park. The parks in this region are huge, unspoiled, remote and are full of a spectacular diversity of wildlife and they offer exceptional birding opportunities. In Nyerere National Park you can find the world’s densest population of the last remaining African wild dogs and there are approximately 3,700 lions – the largest population in Africa. Ruaha National Park, one of Tanzania’s and East Africa’s largest parks, is home to one of the largest elephant populations in the world and is a bird-watching paradise with about 500 species of birds. The source of life for this park is the Great Ruaha River, which attracts large herds and therefore many predators to its banks during the dry season. The southern circuit offers activities that cannot be experienced in the north. For example, guided walking tours, that give you a chance to get closer to nature and boat safaris, like in Nyerere National Park where the Rufiji River with its numerous side arms and large lakes forms a labyrinth with islands, sandbars and lagoons and you can see crocodiles sunbathe on their banks and hippos wallow in the water. The landscape of the Mikumi N. P. is often compared to that of the Serengeti and is considered one of the best observation areas for the biggest antelope in the world – the eland antelope. And finally, the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, which is a part of 34 biodiversity hotspots due to its rich levels of biodiversity and endemism. Its massive forest panoramas and variety of gorgeous waterfalls are a great draw for trekkers. The park is home of an important population of primates, including the Sanje Mangabey and the Iringa Red Colobus, which you can find only here. There are 2500 plant species, 25% of which are endemic, and over 400 different bird species have been counted. On the way to Ruaha Nationalpark you can visit the “Isimila Stone Age Site” and the museum with small, well-captioned displays highlighting some of the discoveries. You walk through ancient canyons and pillars. Fossilized bones of mammals; an extinct hippopotamus and over 60.000 years old tools are some of the stone age finds found here.
A Highlight of this tour is surely the visit of Gombe Stream National Park, the smallest national park in Tanzania, that is located in the western Kigoma Region on the wild shores of Lake Tanganyika. Its main attraction are the chimpanzee families that live in the park. This park became famous for Jane Goodall, the resident primatologist who spent many years in its forests studying the behavior of the endangered chimpanzees. But hiking and swimming are also popular activities here, once the day’s expedition to see the chimpanzees is over.
Our last highlight and still an insider tip on this tour, is “Mafia Island”, a green, natural island with coconut palms in abundance, white sandy beaches and the clear, shimmering blue Indian Ocean with the most colorful and diverse underwater world of Tanzania. Among divers and snorkelers, Mafia is one of the best areas on the East African coast. Whale sharks, humpback whales, and fruit bats are also among the animals living here. A trip to the island of Juani makes it possible to observe how small turtles hatch from their eggs and master their first way towards the ocean. Other sports such as fishing and deep sea-fishing, kayaking, hiking and cycling are possible. Since the island of Mafia was an important Arab trading post, there are still some ruins from the 12th to 15th centuries, especially on the offshore islands of Chole and Juani. Sail to some of the islands in a traditional Arabic dhow and after a picnic, explore the area or relax on a pristine sandy beach or on a deserted sandbar in the sea.
