Ruaha National Park
Ruaha is Tanzania's largest national park, a remote wilderness of big elephant herds, powerful lion prides and the wild Great Ruaha River.
What makes it different.
Ruaha is Tanzania's largest national park at over 20,000 square kilometres, yet it sees a fraction of the visitors of the northern parks. It is known for some of the biggest lion prides in Africa, large elephant and buffalo herds, and the Great Ruaha River, which draws wildlife through the dry months.
The Great Ruaha River, the focus of dry-season game viewing
Some of the largest lion prides in East Africa
Big elephant and buffalo herds
A genuine chance of African wild dog
A meeting point of southern and eastern species, with greater and lesser kudu
Over 570 recorded bird species
Wildlife to look for.
Lion
Elephant
Leopard
African Buffalo
African Wild Dog
When to go.
Dry Season
June to October is the best time. As the land dries, animals crowd the Great Ruaha River and the remaining pools, and the big prides follow the herds. Visibility is excellent and the heat builds toward October.
Green Season
November to April brings the rains and a green transformation, superb for birding and dramatic skies. Some tracks become difficult and a few camps close, so most game-focused visits stick to the dry months.
In pictures.
Getting there.
By Air
Most visitors fly. Scheduled flights run from Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Mikumi and the Serengeti to Ruaha's airstrips, usually one and a half to two hours from Dar es Salaam.
By Road
Ruaha lies about 130 km west of Iringa on a rough final stretch. The full drive from Dar es Salaam is long, around ten hours, so flying is the usual choice.
Good to know.
It is Tanzania's largest national park and one of its wildest, with huge predator and elephant numbers and very few vehicles. If you want a remote, uncrowded safari, Ruaha delivers it.
Exceptionally. Ruaha holds some of the largest lion prides in Africa, and the dry season concentrates them along the Great Ruaha River where hunting is frequent.
June to October, the dry season, when wildlife gathers at the river and sightings are at their best.
The wild Tanzania most travellers never see go where the prides are big and the crowds are not.
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