Mikumi National Park

Mikumi National Park is easily reached in 4 hours by paved road from Dar es Salaam. Even the main road that crosses the park is paved: great comfort for tourists, but unfortunately causes frequent accidents for the local fauna.

From the entrance many animals are easily sighted, present in great variety thanks to an environment rich in vegetation. Mikumi, in the local language, is the name of the borassus palm, which can reach up to 30 meters in height. Not only palm trees, but also many other plants, including baobabs, thrive in the floodplain of Mkata, located in the northwestern part of the park. In this area, also called little Serengeti, most of the fauna is concentrated and, in the numerous Hippo pools – pools of water -, the hippopotamuses rest and puff crowded one next to the other. The fauna variety is also favored by the typical vegetation that covers almost three quarters of the park, the miombo.

The park was established in 1964 and in 1975 was extended to connect south with the Nyerere National Park, with which it makes up one of the largest wilderness areas in Africa, in the Selous ecosystem. Today it covers 3230 km² and has 200 km of walkable trails. The safari area is concentrated to the north. The large part of the park that extends to the south is crossed by a long dirt road, which leads to the Nyerere National Park, but the journey is uncomfortable and the conditions of the terrain are often prohibitive.

The park is also an important center of research and study on yellow baboons, in collaboration with the University of California and the Jane Goodall Institute in Gombe.

The different habitats that characterize the park and the rich forest of miombo allow the park to have all the predators and different animal species between mammals and birds. Unfortunately, poachers, in the past centuries, have caused damage to the present ecosystems and have led to the almost disappearance of elephants and black rhinos.

4 hours from Dar es Salaam

1 to 2 days to visit the park

altitude from 200 meters to 800 meters

3230 km² di estensione (più o meno la superficie della Valle d’Aosta)

accommodation in Mikumi National Park
accommodation near the entrance to the park

basic comfort luxury

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AREAS OF THE PARKS

North gate is the entrance for those arriving from Dar es Salaam, West gate leads to the road towards the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, Main entrance is the entrance located along the asphalt road that crosses the Park

Mkata plain is the alluvial plain formed by the river Mkata and is the area of the park’s richest in fauna

Official website of the park

The fauna in Mikumi National Park

one of the best for sightings of

• eland • Crawshay zebra

very frequent sightings of

• giraffe • elephant • Nyasa (Johnston’s) wildebeest • African buffalo • warthog • Sable antelope • Lichtenstein’s hartebeest • impala • greater kudu • Bohor reedbuck • waterbuck • bushbuck

probable sightings of

• lion • hippo • spotted hyena • black-backed jackal • olive baboon • crocodile • Angola black and white colobus • Mantled (Abyssiana) guereza (black and white) • Natal red duiker • vervet monkey • Dwarf mongoose

very rare sightings of

• wild dog • leopard

birdwatching

Lake species • White-faced Whistling-duck^⚑• Marabou^⚑• Yellow-billed Stork^⚑^⚑• Saddlebill^⚑• African Spoonbill^⚑• Grey Heron^⚑• Crowned Lapwing^⚑(in photo) • Temminck’s Courser^⚑…and several other

Other species • Common Ostrich^⚑• Helmeted Guineafowl^⚑• Black-bellied Bustard^⚑• Bateleur^⚑^⚑• White-backed Vulture^⚑^⚑• Ruppell’s Vulture^⚑^⚑• Lappet-faced Vulture^⚑ • African Hawk-eagle^⚑ • African Fish-eagle^⚑• Pale-billed Hornbill^⚑• African Grey Hornbill^⚑• White-fronted Bee-eater^⚑• Lilac-breasted Roller^⚑• Malachite Kingfisher^⚑• Rufous-necked Wryneck^⚑• Reichenow’s Woodpecker^⚑• Grey Kestrel^⚑• Dickinson’s Kestrel^⚑• Black-throated Wattle-eye^⚑• Square-tailed Drongo^⚑• Long-tailed Fiscal^⚑• Taita Fiscal^⚑• Cinnamon-breasted Tit^⚑• Fischer’s Sparrow-lark^⚑• Miombo Wren-warbler^⚑• Red-billed Oxpecker^⚑• Yellow-billed Oxpecker^⚑• Kurrichane Thrush^⚑• Miombo Rock-thrush^⚑• Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbird^⚑• Dark-backed Weaver^⚑• Yellow-throated Longclaw^⚑• Golden-breasted Bunting^⚑… and several other

⚑ Threatened

⚑ Tanzania endemic

⚑ Near endemic

⚑ Africa endemic

⚑ Migratory

PARK ACTIVITIES INCLUDED IN OUR SAFARIS

Safari by car: our programs provide a path that reaches all areas of the park.

Entry to the National Parks in Tanzania is allowed to licensed off-road vehicles of local tour operators with a valid license. The paths of the safaris are strictly bound to the trails. The strict regulation of parks has the laudable aim of safeguarding the inestimable natural heritage and supporting the local economy. The “DIY tourism” presents many unknowns and therefore becomes difficult to practice. With us, local tour operator with Italian participation, you can realize your dream of a tailor-made safari! Contact us

ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE PARK (during the day)

Morogoro: chaotic city with few tourist attractions, but it deserves to be visited if you want to grasp the real Tanzanian life outside of Dar Es Salaam, immersed in a green landscape at the foot of the Uluguru Mountains

For information on transit fees and park accommodation, already included in the price of our safaris, visit the Park Fees page. The system of taxation of tourism in the parks of Tanzania is the necessary contribution to the conservation of an uncontaminated and wild natural heritage, of inestimable environmental value.

For general information about all parks in Tanzania and about this park – when to go, where is it, nearby destinations – go to Parks of Tanzania page

Are you interested in Mikumi National Park? Contact us!

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