On the Tanzanian side of the border, close to Mount Kilimanjaro, is one of the most enticing safari locations in East Africa. From touring the more well-known northern safari parks of Tarangire, Lake Manyara, and Ngorongoro to visiting lesser-known sites like West Kilimanjaro, Mkomazi, and Lake Natron/Ol Doinyo Lengai, where you can have a more sedate, private safari experience, there is a lot to do here.

There is always a lot of amazing wildlife to view wherever you go. But there is also majesty here, and being in awe of some of Africa’s most stunning mountains may be one of your most memorable experiences. If lodging isn’t already included by your trip, think about making reservations for a place to stay in town the night before your tour starts, as many tours in northern Tanzania leave from Arusha.

1. The Crater of Ngorongoro

Ngorongoro Crater is a long trip from Moshi, but no one has ever complained. With a lost world of wildlife, including lions, elephants, black rhinos, spotted hyenas, flamingos, and much more, and a setting that is unmatched anywhere else, Ngorongoro is undoubtedly one of Africa’s greatest natural wonders. On Tanzania’s safari circuit, there aren’t many experiences that compare to the thrill of descending into the crater in the gentle, post-dawn light. The scenery, wildlife, and pure, unadulterated beauty make this an unforgettable encounter.

It takes five to six hours to drive from Moshi.
Accommodations: There are many excellent lodges and other lodging options along the route that leads from the provincial town of Karatu up to the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. These accommodations are frequently hidden away in the woodlands. Up on the rim itself, the tented camps, lodges, and campsites can offer breathtaking views.
Activities include bird watching, picnics, and game drives.

 

2. National Park Tarangire

A true land of giants, Tarangire National Park is home to both elephants and baobab trees, both of which will be ethereal presences during your visit. The park is particularly well-known for its large cats, zebra herds, and other attractions. It also offers a great range of lodging options both within and right outside the park. You might occasionally see wildlife alone because it doesn’t receive as many visitors as other parks in the Northern safari circuit. When there were no other cars in sight, I spent time in Tarangire seeking cheetah families and lion prides.

It takes four to five hours to drive from Moshi.
Accommodations: Tarangire offers excellent lodging, with a few lodges and tented camps dotted across the park and along its edge.
Activities: Bird watching and game drives

 

3. The National Park of Lake Manyara

One of Tanzania’s greatest parks, Lake Manyara, is a short drive from Moshi. Along the park’s western edge, the Great Rift escarpment rises sharply, creating stunning scenery. It also boasts an amazing array of wildlife. Peter Matthiessen’s The Tree Where Man Was Born vividly recounts some of the early elephant exploits of renowned elephant expert Iain Douglas-Hamilton. You never know when you’ll look up and see a lion staring back at you, as the park is also famous for its tree-climbing lions. Particularly around the park entrance and along the beaches of Lake Manyara, the wildlife is amazing.

It takes four hours to drive from Moshi.
Accommodations: In the town of Mto wa Mbu, close to the park entry, or along the Great Rift escarpment, where there are breathtaking vistas, there are numerous lodging options available at a variety of price points. There are also a few excellent options inside the park.
Activities include bird gazing, treetop canopy treks, and game drives.

 

4. National Park Arusha

The trip from Moshi to Arusha National Park, which is located in the wooded foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, is easier than you might imagine. It’s an amazing park with some of East Africa’s most breathtaking landscapes. The park’s boundaries include Ngurdoto Crater, often known as Little Ngorongoro, a region of wildlife-rich grasslands called Serengeti Ndogo (Little Serengeti), and Mount Meru, which is undoubtedly Mt Kilimanjaro’s competitor in terms of beauty.

In addition to giraffes, elephants, zebras, red duikers, waterbucks, bushbucks, klipspringers, dik-diks, buffalo, and hippos, you may spot blue monkeys and black-and-white colobuses while on safari here. In addition, you may go to the top of Mount Meru, go canoeing, and search for some of the 400 different bird species.

It takes two hours to drive from Moshi.
Accommodations: Moshi, Arusha, or the Arusha–Moshi route are convenient places to base yourself for day visits. There are a number of campsites and the great Hatari Lodge inside the park.
Activities include hiking, mountain climbing, game drives, and bird watching.

5. The National Park of Mkomazi

Safari preconceptions must be left behind when visiting Mkomazi, just as the crowds must be left behind. The majority of safari vehicles drive quickly by, but that’s only because few people are aware that Mkomazi is a promising safari destination for the future.

The classic features of Mkomazi are still present, including breathtaking vistas of Mount Kilimanjaro and the Usambara Mountains, which provide their own natural beauty despite the rocky slopes, baobabs, and dry plains. Topi, eland, zebra, and giraffe are almost expected to be seen here.

The park’s arid terrain is also ideal for observing certain highly valued, desert-adapted animals, like the fringe-eared oryx, smaller kudu, and gerenuk (the gazelle that aspires to be a giraffe). Mkomazi offers exceptional bird watching as well; astonishingly, over 400 species have been identified there. Any visit here is also made much more solemn by the enclosures for African wild canines and reintroduced black rhinos, which are intended to be released into the wild eventually.

It takes two hours to drive from Moshi.
Accommodations: Although there are at least two campgrounds and a number of permanent tented camps, such as Mkomazi View Camp, within the park, you could visit on a day trip from Moshi.
Activities: Bird watching and game drives

 

6. Ol Doinyo Lengai & Lake Natron

Although it may appear quite remote on a map, these two rarely visited locations are a perfect match because of the shortcut to Lake Natron off the Arusha–Nairobi road. Compared to many other northern Tanzanian safari areas, a vacation to the isolated Crater Highlands is a really refreshing experience. First of all, Lake Natron is among the best locations in East Africa to witness large groups of pink flamingos, and the lake’s scenery is sure to uplift the spirit.

One of Africa’s most stunning peaks is Ol Doinyo Lengai, which is located just beyond the southern shore of Lake Natron. Climb it if you want to, but no matter where you are in the region, you will be attempting to catch a glimpse of the mountain that the local Maasai refer to as the “Mountain of God.”

Three and a half to five hours to drive from Moshi
Accommodations: There are a few scattered lodging options close to Lake Natron’s southern coast. These consist of campgrounds, tented camps, and lodges.
Activities include bird watching, mountain climbing, and game drives.

 

7. Kilimanjaro’s West

For discerning safari tourists, West Kilimanjaro skirts the western foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. A safari can incorporate wildlife, cultural experiences, and breathtaking views here, but it won’t have the same volume of visitors as it would elsewhere. The area serves as a crucial migration route for lions and elephants between northern Tanzania and Kenya’s Amboseli National Park. One of the highlights of this sparsely inhabited nation could be witnessing these and other iconic species in their natural habitat.

This is the Maasai nation, which is a section of the heartland that stretches throughout southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. Here, however, the focus is primarily on meeting Maasai tribes without the glitz and on their terms. The finest part is that it offers some of Tanzania’s most unobstructed views of the Crater Highlands to the west, Mount Meru, Mount Longido, and Mount Kilimanjaro. It’s a new safari location that won’t be kept a secret for long because of the few remote and upscale tented sites in the vicinity.

It takes one hour to drive from Moshi.
There aren’t many options for lodging in the area, although there are a few tented camps spread out over the hills to the west of Mount Kilimanjaro. Shu’mata Camp is a fantastic option.
Activities: Drives for games

 

8. Chala Lake

Although there are several stunning crater lakes in northern Tanzania, Lake Chala, which is close to Moshi, is a great addition to a safari in Mkomazi National Park. There are numerous picturesque vantage places from which to take in the views as the crater’s high, wooded walls drop down to enigmatic blue-green waters. It’s very close to Marangu, one of the main entrances into Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park, and, like other locations near the mountain, you won’t often see other people in your photos.

From Moshi, it takes 75 minutes to drive.
Accommodations: Lake Chala Safari Lodge & Campsite is a welcoming camp with a view of the lake, however most visitors come for a day excursion from Moshi or Marangu.
Activities: Taking in the sights