3-Day Mikumi National Park Safari

Mikumi borders Nyerere National Park and shares much of its wildlife, but the surfaced Tanzam highway runs straight through it, so it is only about four hours by road from Dar es Salaam. That makes it the natural choice for a short safari or a first stop on a longer southern trip.

The Mkata Floodplain in the park's north is the prime game-viewing area — open grassland that recalls the Serengeti, with reliable sightings of elephant, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, giraffe, impala and lion, plus over 400 bird species and popular hippo pools. Two nights gives a full day and two half-days of game drives.