Being a nature enthusiast and having had the opportunity to travel to some of Tanzania's National Parks and other protected areas, I have found it difficult to choose my favorite attraction. But there's a place that never fails to catch the heart of anyone who gets a chance to visit. There's a place.. so vast, that it's former inhabitants named it 'Siringet', meaning the Endless Plains!
The Serengeti National Park is Tanzania's 3rd largest national park under Tanzania National Parks Authority. This massive park covers over 14,000 square kilometers and encompasses open grasslands, shrublands, woodlands and riverine forests. The combination of these different habitats gives this landscape a unique scenery.
The Serengeti National Park was first designated as a game reserve in 1930s and later on it attained it's national park status in 1959 after part of its area was re-established as Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Overtime, the national park has attained several statuses including; UNESCO World Heritage Site and Man & Biosphere Reserve. And for those who can recall the year 1959, they will probably remember the premiere of the documentary 'Serengeti Shall Not Die' by Bernhard & Michael Grzimek. This wasn't the last time the park appeared on our TVs, as it became everyone's dream about Africa when some of the scenes from the movie The Lion King were inspired by this beautiful Tanzanian park.
The Serengeti National Park boasts for having one of the largest mammal migrations in the World. The Great Wildebeest Migration is an annual event that occurs in the wider Serengeti Ecosystem which includes several other protected areas inside and beyond Tanzania's boundaries. In this annual migration you can witness over a million wildebeests, zebras and some other smaller antelopes on a race for green pasture, following a clockwise direction over the Serengeti Ecosystem. This magnificent wildlife spectacle has over the years made the Serengeti National Park remain as Africa's Leading National Park, for 6 years in a row in the World Travel Awards.
This great migration combined with the park's diverse wildlife species including all of the Big 5, large numbers of predators, birds and unique flora, definitely gives Serengeti National Park a competitive advantage over all of it's rivals.
The Serengeti National Park is easily accessible by land & air from anywhere as it has several airstrips where private or charter planes can land. The wide varieties of accommodations inside and outside the park gives every traveler a good opportunity to choose from budget to high end options. While in the park you can; go on a game drive, go on a balloon safari, go on a walking safari, camp under Africa's starry night sky, grab a drink over a beautiful sundowner and do many more activities.
Welcome to Serengeti National Park and discover one of the World's secluded treasures.
Karibu Tanzania!
