Arusha National Park

Less Crowded but Plenty to See

Arusha National Park was our first destination on our two week Safari in Tanzania and Kenya. What we really liked about the park is it is smaller and less crowded than the other parks, but still had a good variety of wildlife. We were excited to see our first baboon, but then saw large groups that were fascinating to watch. We encountered our first elephants with 10 feet of the Land Cruiser. We say Colobus monkeys jumping from tree to tree and some very cute blue monkeys. We also saw a few giraffes. Didn't see any cats, but saw plenty at other locations. Arusha was fairly close to our lodge, so we got back in time to relax. We did not run into any bugs. We highly recommend Arusha.

For a day trip, Arusha National Park is pretty special.

I only had one day to spend on seeing wildlife after a week of work in Arusha. Arusha National Park proved to be a very accessible location. It is easy to get to and has an abundance of wildlife if you're prepared to spend some time to look around. It may not have all the animals, but if you go with the proper expectations you will not be disappointed.

Arusha National Park is a green paradise

I have been in Arusha National Park several times, and the park never disappoints me. Of course it depends on what you are looking for. Arusha National Park is not comparable to Serengeti, Tarangire and other parks in Tanzania. But the park is great in its own way. There are, they say no big cats in the park ... but I have actually seen a leopard once crossing the road upp the mountain. The park sits on the eastern slopes of Mt Meru and you can drive upp quite high upp almost beyond the tree limit. Also the park features walking safari and canoeing. The later I have not tested but I can recommend the walking safari. Both in the lowlands walking to a water fall. And upp in the mountain ... (you need a guide with a gun on the walking safari). The park have both rainforests and small grass plains. You will I can almost promise you see buffalo, zebra, giraffe, waterbuck, flamingo, and two different kinds of monkey (not counting baboon) - the blue monkey and the colobus monkey. I do not know about accommodations today. But there are a lot of hotels close to the park. Arusha national Park was one of our usual day trip from where we used to live when I lived in Tanzania. So I really love the park. This time it was also a day trip and it was the first time for me with a safari company - Mlimani Safaris Africa. And I can recommend them to. So my conclusion is. If you are visiting Arusha for other purposes than Safari (business / conferences) and do not have time for a long safari. Arusha National Park is the place to go. If you have been in the other bigger parks and are tired of big plains and dusty roads, but still wants some wildlife and nature experience. This is the place to go. Or if you like the shade of a jungle. Don't miss Arusha National Park.

Too beautiful

Very quiet, lush, and green. Flamingos and giraffes highlight this park. Walking safaris available. In our walking safari - treks to waterfalls - we spent about half an hour walking literally meters away from a family of giraffes. As long as we stayed quiet, they let us accompany them before they broke off from us slowly. Surreally experience.

Arusha is a lovely half day spent before starting safari. This is only park in Tanzania to see the beautiful bkack and white Colobus Monkey.

Small park, easy to get to with some wonderful mountain scenery. Limited selection of wildlife.

Arusha N.P. is a convenient stop if you are staying in Arusha. Monkeys and antelope are common and flamingos frequent the lake.

Relaxing day unwinding after climbing Kilimanjaro

We visited Arusha NP the day after climbing Kili. The journey over from Moshi, where we were based, showed us more of the region, and Arusha NP offered an un-hurried day out. Our guides took us to their favourite spots; we saw many giraffe and zebra, baboons and colobus monkeys. Best treat was seeing Flamingos in a ring 1-3 deep all around big Momela lake. The park is very scenic, especially Ngurdoto Crater, and it would be good to return to see more of it, perhaps by climbing Mt Meru. Arusha NP offers quite a contrast to the almost complete absence of wildlife on Kili!

We didn't see that much animals at Arusha National Park (though it's always a matter of luck). But we still enjoyed the different landscape and beauty of this national park. We also booked a walking safari to the waterfall which was really a great experience. It's definitely something totally different (and worth doing) as you feel more like beeing a part of the nature than you would do sitting in a car. Moreover here you can find animals you won't see at the Serengeti such as colobus monkeys.