Arusha National Park

Lot of birds in the park, good sightings and also the special Black and white Colobus monkey are in the park. Nice tropical rainforest.

Arusha National Park is lusher and has thicker vegetation than the other Parks we visited. However, it has some unique bird species and well as the charismatic black and white Colobus monkey.

Beautiful landscape of stunning variety.

Arusha National Park has an incredible diversity of landscape for its small size, ranging from savannah, to soda lakes, forests with craters, and the slope of Mount Meru itself.

A small safari to get you started on your Tanzania adventure

My time in Tanzania was to start on the Serengeti, move to Ngorongoro Crater, then to Tarangire, and finish at Arusha National Park. After doing some research I changed that order and reversed it...and I am glad I did.

Arusha National Park is far smaller than the other parks and doesn't have the larger wildlife the other parks have like elphants, hippos, rhinos, etc. What it does have is a thriving flamingo population, baboons, and black and white colobus monkeys. It is a great park to start your journey through Tanzania because it gives you a way to sort of dip your toes into the safari travel without being immersed in it. The roads are dirt, the wildlife is right outside of your car, the views are beautiful but it is a small park and the animals are smaller and less intimidating than other parks.

We stopped for lunch at a picnic grounds and could see baboons around the restroom area maybe 30 feet from us waiting for us to leave so they could scavenge any food we left behind. Impressive animals but at no time did I feel threatened. The lakes were filled with greater and lesser flamingos in the thousands. The Black and White Colobus monkeys played in the trees above our heads in the jungle sections of the park. And the bird species were innumerable.

You will get a feel of a safari vehicle riding on dirt roads, get a bit of jungle, plains, lakes, etc that you will encounter at the larger parks without feeling over-whelmed. But Arusha is simply not as thrilling as the big three. The Serengeti is unmatched, Ngorongoro is unique, and Tarangire provides amazing landscapes as backdrops to the many elephants in the park. The other three are better for seeing the big 5 and most of the animals you came to Tanzania to see, but Arusha is a good way to start your journey...just don't finish it there or you will be disappointed. But when you start there...you get a brief look at the bigger things to come.

More dense with vegetation and so harder to see the animals.

A chance to encounter the locals close up.

It was difficult to stop and get out of the car in some parts. At times it felt a little rushed. But the day was perfect. There were some great viewpoints and the views were amazing. We saw lots of wildlife so I felt satisfied on that front.

We went through the park on our journey up to the summit of Mount Meru, soeven though we went through the park we didn't go on safari

Diverse habitats but not the fantastic spectacle of some of the other Tanzanian parks

Arusha is a great place if you already have experience at the major parts. On the positive side, it isn't crowded with tourists. It has diverse habitats from forests to lakes to savannah to mountains. There are quite a few large mammals, but no predators or elephants. The flamingos around Momella lakes will blow your mind (and are so much closer and easier to enjoy than at Lake Natron, the other famous flamingo destination). It has a lot to offer for serious birders, but doesn't have too many of the spectacular birds that interest casual birders. We only went there self-guided, so I can't comment on going with a guide. There are a couple of great lodges just outside the park, Hatari by the north entrance, and another I can't remember by the south entrance. The park is small enough that you can see most of it in two days (excluding hiking in the forest, which I can't comment about; supposedly climbing Meru is fantastic, and a much different experience than the crowded slog up Kili). The small size makes it manageable, but is probably also the biggest negative and why I said it is good to visit after a major park- Arusha just doesn't have the vast open spaces and throngs of animals of Tarangire, Ngorongoro, or Serengeti.

It was a good way to start the trip but not the best park. Many giraffes which gives the landscape a very prehistoric look.

Arusha National Park has beautiful landscapes and unique animals

My father and I spent one day in Arusha National Park prior to climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. Upon arrival, we weren't expecting to see much as the park is close to the city of Arusha, but there are many different species of wildlife visible in the park. Our tour guide knew all of the park areas and took us to his favourite spots. We saw giraffes, zebras, monkeys, baboons, hippos, flamingos, plenty of birds, and even a few elephants!

The location of the park is great because we were able to see many animals within close proximity to the city. As a photographer, there were many opportunities for closeup photographs with elephants, giraffes, and zebras. I would recommend the park to anyone because of its size and ability to see a large variety of animals.

While staying in Tanzania, I stayed in Moshi. The national park was less than a 45 minute drive. The transportation was great and our guide was very knowledgeable. Visiting in July was great. The weather was good. We were only able to see Kilimanjaro during dusk because of the quick weather changes in the mountain areas, but it never rained and was fairly sunny throughout the day.

I would recommend a visit to Tanzania and Arusha National Park. It was an incredible experience and I wish to go back!