Mikumi National Park

Mikumi national park is one of the Tanzania national parks that is located in the Southern part of the country. It’s one of the few parks that are close to the former Tanzania capital city Dar es Salaam. It was established in 1964 and managed by the Tanzania National Parks Authority. It’s the fourth largest national park in Tanzania covering a total land area of 3,230 square kilometers. Mikumi national park was among the least visited national park due to poor accessibility till the express highway was construct that connected Dar es Salaam with the South African Countries hence boosting the number of visitors to the park. It is estimated that by 2012 the park received around 41,666 visitors which came from across the world.

Mikumi national park is named after the popular dominant Palm tree species that is commonly found at the park called Borrassus Spp. The tree is exceptional in that it grew at the park but with no stems seen from anywhere in the village. The park also shares its name with the village which is named after the park.

Famous for:

African Wild Dog population and its large eland population. The largest member of the antelope family cuts a striking figure as it grazes on the open fields, and the park’s huge array of bird life (over 400 species) make it a birder’s paradise as well.

• Mikumi is Tanzania’s fourth-largest national park.
• It’s also the most accessible from Dar es Salaam. With almost guaranteed wildlife sightings,
•  Mikumi National Park is an important education and research center. One of the current projects is a field study of the yellow baboons.
• It makes an ideal safari destination for those without much time.
•  The park has a wide variety of wildlife that can be easy spotted and also well acclimatized to game viewing.

Best Time

June to October (Animals are attracted to the waterholes)

High Season

June to October (Mikumi doesn’t usually have crowds at any time)

Low Season

April and May (Low season discounts might apply)

Safaris to Mikumi usually start from Dar es Salaam, and your point of entry for the country is Julius Nyerere International Airport (DAR). In most cases, your tour operator will pick you up from the airport and handle all further ground operations or domestic flights.

Mikumi is a four-hour drive away from Dar es Salaam and can easily be visited as a weekend get-away. However, most people visit Mikumi en route to Nyerere or Ruaha, the more popular parks in southern Tanzania. The only scheduled flights to Mikumi are with Safari Air Link which offers a daily connection to Ruaha, Selous, Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar.

• Wildlife in this quiet national park includes elephant, giraffe, buffalo, Burchell’s zebra, sable, eland, Lichtenstein’s hartebeest, lion, leopard, spotted hyena, and jackal. You can also find yellow baboons near Kiboga, at the southern end of the park.
• Birds list is also long making Mikumi national park a birding paradise, the park has over 400 bird species like Lilac-breasted roller, secretary bird, Boehm’s Bee-eater, Dickson’s kestrel, Straw-tailed Whydah, Superb starling, Yellow-throated long claw, Bateleur eagle, herons mention but a few.
• The species of plants such as acacia, baobab, tamarinds, and some rare palm.
• Uluguru mountain
• Kinole waterfall
• Choma waterfall
• Bondwa peak
• Chilunga cultural tourism

• Game drive
• Night game drive
• Birding at the park
• Nature walks
• Hiking

Mid range accommodation: Mikumi safari lodge, Mikumi adventure lodge, Matembezi safari lodge, Tan swiss lodge, Mikumi resort, Camp Bastian Mikumi, Hondo Hondo Udzungwa forest tented camp

Luxury hotel: Udzungwa falls lodge, Faru luxury tented campsite

Best Weather

June to October (Little to no rainfall)

Worst Weather

March and April (Peak of Wet season)