 Ngorongoro Conservation Area
This large (3,200 sq mi) area comprises the southernmost reaches of the great Serengeti ecosystem and by December the wildebeest migration has usually reached the northern boundary. Here you'll find several dormant volcanoes complete with craters perfect for exploring on foot. The largest of these (accessible only to vehicles) is the renowned Ngorongoro Crater. It's estimated that this volcano may have been larger than Kilimanjaro before it erupted, leaving behind the greatest intact caldera in the world, the floor of which is teeming with wildlife. This is the best bet for seeing black rhino in East Africa and virtually everything else except giraffe (they can't manage to get down the steep walls).
Visit Ngorongoro Conservation Area on our Ultimate Tanzania Safari and our Great Parks of East Africa safari.
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 Serengeti National Park
The Maasai call this place "endless" and indeed it seems to be. The legendary Serengeti is famous as the home of up to a million wildebeest and 500,000 zebra that play out a real-life drama as they complete their circular migration over thousands of square miles in an annual cycle. The Serengeti is literally teeming with wildlife; eland, buffalo, antelope, hyena, thousands of predators and numerous smaller species inhabit the lovely landscape, which ranges from acres of grassy plains to acacia woodlands to wide rivers filled with crocodiles who feast on the wildebeest as they are forced to ford the rivers in their incessant search for grass. Particularly beautiful features of the region are the kopjes, rocky outcroppings thrusting up from the surrounding plains, which form excellent habitats to be explored.
Visit Serengeti National Park on our Ultimate Tanzania Safari and our Great Parks of East Africa safari.
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 Masai Mara National Reserve
The Mara is the jewel in the crown of Kenya's National Parks, harboring almost every species present in Kenya. It's especially known for the cats—lion, leopard and cheetah—and it would be rare for a visitor not to see a big predator on a visit here. The Masai live in harmony with the wildlife, relying on their cattle for food and respecting the balance of nature. The great annual migration of wildebeest arrives in the area (the northern reaches of the Serengeti ecosystem) with varying predictability, usually residing between July and October, depending on the rains. Hippo and crocodile make their home in the Mara River.
Visit the Masai Mara on our Great Parks of East Africa safari and new Walking with the Maasai safari.
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 Tsavo East National Park – Kenya
Established in 1948 and covering an area of almost 12,000 square kilometers, Tsavo East National Park in Southeast Kenya is one of the country's oldest and largest national parks. Its beautiful landscape of bushy grassland, baobab trees, doum palms, and open plains alternating with savannah and semi-arid acacia scrub combined with a fabulous rare light make Tsavo popular among photographers. Best of all - Tsavo is alive with wildlife yet empty of tourists! Game includes zebra, rhino, lion, leopard, crocodile, waterbuck, and elephant. Home to some of the largest elephant herds in Kenya, the elephants glow red after dust baths, blowing the vivid red dust through their trunks over their bodies.
From a historic point of view, Tsavo is one of Africa's most interesting areas. It was here that the celebrated "man-eaters of Tsavo" (lions) held up the building of the British Imperial railroad, and Tsavo was the scene of bitter fighting in World War I. Later, its vast elephant population became the center of the culling controversy and the battleground against poaching. Nowadays, Tsavo is peaceful and its elephant herds are rebounding magnificently. If you get a chance, get a hold of Philip Caputo's exciting account of tracking Tsavo's maneless male lions in the May 2000 National Geographic Adventure.
Visit Tsavo East on The Great Walk of Africa and Kilimanjaro and Beyond.
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 Bwindi National Park - Uganda
Bwindi is one of Uganda's most recently created national parks (inscribed in 1994). This 128-square-mile park in southwestern Uganda is formerly known as the "Impenetrable Forest" because of its dense undergrowth and other vegetation that make the forest almost "impenetrable." The lowland rainforest and mountainous forest vegetation constantly struggle to reach heights that will allow it to receive more light. This is truly an African jungle!
Many types of birds and butterflies can be found there, as well as many endangered species, including the mountain gorilla. And the endangered mountain gorilla is the main reason why people come here and trek through the forest to spend some valuable time with this elusive giant of Africa. This forest is a sanctuary for almost half the world's population of mountain gorillas (about 330 of 600), making it the mountain gorilla the world's rarest. Established as a safe habitat for several families of mountain gorillas, it is now the location of an important scientific conservation program.
Visit Bwindi on our Mountain Gorilla Expedition
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 Okavango Delta – Botswana
The Okavango Delta is one of the most pristine and unique wilderness areas of Africa. Spreading like a giant hand across Southern Africa, this 6,000-square-mile maze of lagoons, channels, and islands helps the Okavango River earn the description "the river that never finds the sea." Summer rains in Angola feed and strengthen the Okavango River as it snakes toward a permanent swamp in Botswana. Reeds and papyrus (yes, this is the plant that the first paper was made of 4,000 years ago by the Egyptians) filter out the sediments of the Angola floods, leaving crystal clear waters to flow through channels covered with water lilies. Bird life here is fantastic – more than 350 species: the magnificent fish-eagle is a common sight, as are a wide variety of storks, herons, ibises, and other water birds, including pygmy geese, African darter, and malachite kingfishers. Larger wildlife is interesting, too: lechwe stamp through the grassy shallows while sitatunga take shelter in the reeds (both are types of antelopes). Hippo and crocodile are common.
The best time to visit Okavango is from May through to October, when the Okavango River floods the delta. A game viewing trip in a Mokoro (an eco-friendly fiberglass dugout canoe, modeled on the traditional African wooden canoe) is a unique way to travel and will certainly bring you into close contact with buffalo, elephant, impala, kudu and many other animals. There's also optional fishing and swimming in the river in areas designated safe by our guides.
Visit the Okavango Delta on our Botswana Flying Safari.
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 Skeleton Coast National Park – Namibia
The name Skeleton Coast is no mere metaphor - this coast is a graveyard for ill-fated seafarers and inattentive whales! This 2-million-hectare (20,000_km) park is one of the least visited places on earth and is divided into northern and southern sections. A fly-in safari is the only way to experience the northern section and the best way to appreciate the remarkable and changeable scenery. The windswept dunes and flat plains give way in places to rugged canyons and extensive mountain ranges with walls of richly colored volcanic rock.
The main attraction for visitors to this park is its untouched and mysterious barren beauty, swept by cold sea breezes and often enveloped in a dense fog. The primary wildlife attraction of the Skeleton Coast is Cape Frio, which harbors a seal colony numbering in the tens of thousands. Desert elephants have been seen in the interior of the Skeleton Coast Park (and have even been filmed surfing down sand dunes like snow-boarders!). Giraffe, brown hyena, ostrich, and the rare black rhino are found inland where fresh water can usually be found. Further inland you'll also find the nomadic Himba tribe – possibly the most beautiful people in sub-Saharan Africa. The Himba are celebrated for their traditional way of life, which revolves around their cattle, symbols of wealth and status. They also still wear traditional dress: animal-skin aprons or skirts and jewelry that include coiled leather necklaces, copper bangles, and beaded anklets. The women also sport elaborate braided hairdos.
Visit the Skeleton Coast on our private adventure to Namibia's Skeleton Coast (combine it with our private adventure to Sossusvlei for a complete Namibian experience!).
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 Kruger National Park – South Africa
A model for nature conservation the world over, Kruger National Park is South Africa's largest and oldest park. The 210-mile-long and 36-mile-wide park located in South Africa's Northwest province, Mpumalanga, was established in 1898 at the initiation of then-president Paul Kruger. Kruger National Park is known to be one of the best places to see the "Big Five" - lion, elephant, leopard, buffalo and rhino, but offers so much more: about 340 species of trees, 115 species of reptiles, a little over 500 species of birds and almost 150 mammals. The best time for observing the animals is the dry winter season (April - September), as water is restricted to rivers and waterholes, where the wildlife comes together. Visibility is also good as the vegetation is less dense. In the summer everything is lush and green due to the rains - and the birding is excellent.
From an archeological point of view, Kruger is just as interesting. The first evidence of human occupation in and around Kruger Park stems from the 100 rock paintings and 300 archaeological sites (including Masorini and Thulamela) left by early humans thousands of years ago.
Visit the park on our Kruger National Park Private Adventure, or make it part of a longer Southern African trip by combining it with one of our other Private Adventures in the region.
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