One of the only places left on planet Earth where someone can see their surroundings and get a feeling that they are seeing a nature's paradise is Serengeti National Park. This famous and highly regarded wildlife conservation area is located in the Northern part of the United Republic of Tanzania, in East Africa.
Serengeti National Park is one of the beautiful wildlife spots in the world where it is possible to see magnificent wildlife roaming free on the African savannah plains just as they were doing thousands of years ago. This is also a large national park, with a land mass area of approximately 30,000 square kilometers, equivalent to 12,000 square miles, as listed on wikipedia, so by all means a vast area.
The richness of the wildlife, flora and fauna in Serengeti is quite incredible. There are hundreds of species of mammals, reptiles and birds in the park and it's ecosystem. The animals include the ''Big Cats'' such as Lions, Leopard and Cheetah, in addition to Elephant, Giraffe, Zebra, African Cape Buffalo, Rhino, several Antelope species and many other animals not least reptiles such as Crocodile and Hippo. One can see a full list here of the animals in Serengeti and the numbers of wildlife is also remarkable, with an estimate that there are for example over 3000 Lions in the park ecosystem. The wild Buffalo populatition is estimated to be close to 30,000 while Elephants are estimated to number close to 5000.
The park is also known for the world famous Wildebeest migration, when over a million animals migrate northwards from Serengeti in Tanzania into Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. These two parks are joint together and not even separated by a fence, which is why the animals can move freely from one park to the other for greener pastures, which in turn depends on the East African climate cycle.
The Serengeti to Masai Mara Wildebeest Migration
Generally the wildebeest migration occurs between July to September, typically starting July end ending in September. The wildebeest then stay on in Masai Mara for several months, finally dispersing southwards back into Serengeti. The animals, wildebeest and zebra, end up having to cross the Mara River during the migration. These rivers are infested with the vicious Nile Crocodile, and predictably, many of the crossing animals end up as prey for the deadly crocodiles. This scene is often captured in many television documentaries such as this one by BBC Earth.
Serengeti Natitonal Park and Masai Mara Reserve together form one single ecosystem spanning two countries and both of these parks together are arguably the very best wildlife conservation area in the world. However crossing from one park to the other is not that straightforward as tourists are not allowed to simply cross from one to the other and instead travelers have to go all the way to the nearest border crossing point between Kenya and Tanzania which is Isebania town, where they cross into Kenya and then carry on their journey to Masai Mara. In total therefore the journey from Serengeti to Masai Mara can take upto 8 hours. Serengeti is a larger park in area compared to Masai Mara so it can take a couple off hours just to get from one side of Serengeti to the other westerly side. Travelers who wish to compare these two parks can read up on the advantages, disadvatnages and comparison of Serengeti vs Masai Mara here.
The best way of exploring and enjoying seeing the wildlife and picturesque scenery of Serengeti is by booking a Safari tour package. There are a variety of tours ranging from 3 to 6 day safaris most of which are done by road from Arusha city in Tanzania. One can look up some of these Serengeti packages online as these are nowadays offered directly by Tanzanian or Kenyan tour operators and travel companies. The road packages include private transport in 4x4 Toyota Landcruiser safari vehicles, with the services of experienced Driver-Guides who also provide twice daily safari game drives while in Serengeti. This is when tourists can then explore the park and spot the incredible wildlife and relish the wide open landscapes of the African plains. A game drive typically lasts 2 to 3 hours each.
Ideall the most popular duration for a safari in Serengeti is 4 days, which means one would stay at a lodge or camp inside the park for a lenght of 3 nights.
Finally, tourists wishing to visit the park will want to plan their visit ideally for the months of late May to July as this is when the chance of seeing the migration are at the highest. These are also the drier months of the year and will allow for great wildlife viewing. Park entry fee for Serengeti National Park is seasonal and is subject to the TANAPA Tanzania Government 18% VAT which makes this park one of the more expensive for tourist entry fee in East Africa as per 2023 rates.
In conclusion, Serengeti in Tanzania is one of the best safafri and wildlife destinations in the world and it is well worth planning a visit to East Africa and specifically Tanzania to experience this wonderful location.