Safari Parks & Reserves

Arusha National Park is a small but strikingly beautiful park situated between the peaks of Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro in northern Tanzania. Covering just 552 square kilometers, it encompasses a remarkable range of habitats including montane forest, the Ngurdoto Crater (often called 'Little Ngorongoro'), the alkaline Momella Lakes, and the upper slopes of Mount Meru, Tanzania's second-highest mountain. The park is a haven for black-and-white colobus monkeys, giraffes, buffalos, and over 400 bird species. While it lacks large predators, it offers exceptional walking safaris, canoeing on the Momella Lakes, and the challenging but rewarding multi-day climb of Mount Meru. Its proximity to Arusha town makes it perfect for a day trip or as an acclimatization hike before climbing Kilimanjaro.

Kapama Private Game Reserve is one of the Greater Kruger area's largest private reserves, spanning 13,000 hectares of diverse bushveld in the Limpopo Province. The reserve is home to the Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre (HESC), which plays a critical role in the conservation of cheetah, wild dog, and other vulnerable species. Kapama's terrain includes open savannah, dense bushveld, and seasonal waterways that support all of the Big Five alongside cheetah, hippo, and diverse birdlife. The reserve operates four distinct lodges ranging from family-friendly to ultra-luxury, making it one of the more versatile safari destinations in the Greater Kruger area. Elephant-back safaris, once Kapama's signature activity, have been replaced by ethical elephant interaction programmes.

Set in Zimbabwe's beautiful Eastern Highlands, Nyanga is the country's oldest national park and home to Mount Nyangani, Zimbabwe's highest peak at 2,592 meters. While not a traditional safari destination, it offers stunning mountain scenery, waterfalls, trout fishing, and a refreshing escape from the lowland heat.

Lalibela Wildlife Reserve is a family-owned, malaria-free Big Five destination in the Eastern Cape, encompassing 7,500 hectares of Valley Bushveld near the Bushman's River. Named after the ancient Ethiopian rock-hewn churches, Lalibela has been steadily building its reputation as a quality safari option for travellers combining wildlife with the Garden Route. The reserve supports all Big Five alongside giraffe, hippo, cheetah, and over 280 bird species. Lalibela operates three distinct lodges — including the innovative Lentaba Lodge with its wheelchair-accessible game-viewing vehicle — making it one of the most inclusive safari destinations in South Africa. The reserve's community upliftment programme provides education and employment to surrounding villages.

Marsabit National Park is a forested oasis rising from the surrounding desert, centred around an extinct shield volcano in Kenya's vast northern frontier. The park encompasses three volcanic crater lakes — Lake Paradise, Sokorte Dika, and Sokorte Guda — shrouded in dense montane forest, creating an almost mythical landscape. Covering 1,554 square kilometres, Marsabit was once home to Ahmed, a legendary elephant with enormous tusks who was placed under presidential protection by Jomo Kenyatta. The park's forest supports elephant, buffalo, greater kudu, and abundant birdlife, while the surrounding plains are home to reticulated giraffe, Grevy's zebra, and gerenuk. Getting to Marsabit is an adventure through the Chalbi Desert.

Pian Upe Wildlife Reserve is Uganda's second-largest protected area at 2,788 square kilometres, yet it remains one of the country's least known and least visited wildlife destinations. Located in the northeastern Karamoja region, this vast semi-arid landscape of open plains, rocky outcrops, and scattered acacia woodland is reminiscent of Kenya's northern frontier. The reserve is particularly notable for its populations of cheetah, roan antelope, greater kudu, and Bright's gazelle — species extremely rare or absent elsewhere in Uganda. It also supports good numbers of buffalo, zebra, eland, and hartebeest. The Karamojong pastoralists who live around the reserve add cultural richness to any visit.

Watamu Marine National Park is one of Kenya's oldest and most beautiful marine protected areas, encompassing pristine coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forests along the coast north of Mombasa. Designated as part of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, Watamu's crystal-clear waters support exceptional marine biodiversity. Covering 10 square kilometres of ocean, the park protects some of East Africa's healthiest coral formations, home to over 600 fish species, three species of sea turtles, and seasonal whale sharks and manta rays. The park includes the famous Turtle Bay, a sheltered lagoon perfect for snorkelling, and the mysterious Mida Creek mangrove ecosystem.

Lake Turkana, the world's largest permanent desert lake, is one of Earth's most extraordinary natural wonders. Known as the Jade Sea for its stunning turquoise-green colour caused by algae, this vast alkaline lake stretches 250 kilometres through Kenya's remote northern frontier, where the landscape resembles another planet entirely. The lake and its environs are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, encompassing Sibiloi National Park, South Island, and Central Island — all volcanic. This is where some of the world's most important hominid fossils have been discovered, including Turkana Boy. The lake supports the world's largest population of Nile crocodiles and is a critical stopover for migratory birds. Reaching Turkana is an expedition in itself, traversing the Chalbi Desert and Suguta Valley.

Shimba Hills National Reserve is a lush coastal rainforest reserve perched on a ridge above Kenya's south coast, just 30 kilometres from the beaches of Diani. It is the only place in Kenya where the endangered sable antelope can be found, making it an essential stop for serious wildlife enthusiasts visiting the coast. Covering 192 square kilometres of rolling green hills, tropical forest, and grasslands, Shimba Hills supports a healthy elephant population alongside buffalo, leopard, giraffe, and abundant birdlife. The Sheldrick Falls — a 25-metre waterfall reached by a scenic forest trail — is the reserve's most popular attraction. The park provides a refreshing counterpoint to beach holidays with its cool, elevated climate.

The Kwando Concession is a remote and pristine private reserve along the Kwando River in northern Botswana. One of the earliest private concessions in the country, it offers an authentic and uncrowded wilderness experience with excellent populations of wild dogs, lions, leopards, and large herds of elephants and buffalo. The concession's isolation ensures genuinely exclusive safari encounters.

Mountain Zebra National Park was established in 1937 specifically to save the Cape mountain zebra from extinction, when fewer than 50 individuals remained. Today this conservation success story in the Eastern Cape's Karoo region protects over 800 Cape mountain zebra alongside cheetah, buffalo, black wildebeest, eland, and over 350 bird species across 28,400 hectares of dramatic mountain terrain. The park features the Bankberg mountain range rising to nearly 2,000 metres, deep valleys carved by the Willow River, and sweeping Karoo plains dotted with distinctive dolerite formations. A malaria-free destination with excellent hiking trails including the three-day Mountain Zebra Trail, the park offers a quieter alternative to the Eastern Cape's private game reserves with affordable SANParks accommodation.

The Northern Tuli Game Reserve is a collection of privately owned farms managed as a single wildlife area in the Tuli Block of eastern Botswana. Known for its spectacular sandstone formations along the Limpopo River, the reserve offers unique safari experiences including cycling safaris and walking trails. The dramatic landscape of rocky outcrops, riverine forest, and open savannah supports large elephant herds and diverse predators.