Northern Circuit National Parks
Serengeti National Park
Serengeti National Park is one of the best-known wildlife sanctuaries in the world. It covers an area of about 14763sq kms, with various vegetation, grassy plains, savannah acacia lands, wooden hills and mountains which are the backdrops for an extraordinary concentration of animals which reaches its peak during the wildebeest migration.
Serengeti is one among the world’s remaining natural wildlife refuges, the name comes from the Maasai ‘Siringet’, meaning endless plains. The Park contains an estimated three million large animals, most of which take part in seasonal migration which makes it one of natures’ wonders.
Tarangire National Park
Tarangire
National Park is the sixth largest national park in Tanzania, it is located in
Manyara Region. The name of the park originates from the Tarangire River that
crosses the park. The Tarangire River is the primary source of fresh water for
wild animals in the Tarangire Ecosystem during the annual dry season. The
Tarangire Ecosystem is defined by the long distance migration of wildebeest and
zebras. During the dry season thousands of animals concentrate in Tarangire
National Park from the surrounding wet season dispersal and calving areas.
Lake Manyara National Park
Lake Manyara National Park is one of the most diverse of Tanzania’s national parks, a tiny (325 km sq about 205sq miles) combining the Rift Valley, Lake, dense woodlands and steep mountain side. This park is very famous for its tree-climbing lions. Manyara is a birding paradise, especially for waterfowl, migrants and the forests are one of the best places around to see leopards. The park is also particularly noted for its huge herds of buffalo and elephants, giraffe, Impala, hippos and great variety of smaller animals.
The Ngorongoro Crater
The Ngorongoro Crater is at 2,286 m above the sea level and is the largest unbroken caldera in the world. Ngorongoro is surrounded by very steep walls rising at 600 meters from the crater floor. The crater was declared a world Heritage Site. The views at the rim are sensational. On the crater floor, grassland blends into swamps, lakes, rivers, woodland and mountains. The Crater is a home to up to 25,000 large mammals, mainly grazers –gazelle, buffalo, eland, hartebeest and warthog. You will neither find giraffe as there is not much to eat at tree level nor topi as the competition with wildebeest is too fierce, nor will you find Impala.
