Serengeti national park

The Serengeti is one of the most famous parks in Africa and is synonymous with wildlife and classic African scenery. It is Tanzania’s oldest park and a Unesco World Heritage Site. It is home to the spectacular wildebeest migration and offers top-class wildlife viewing throughout the year.

Best Time to Go

June to February (Areas are best at different times)

High Season

July to March (The Seronera area is crowded)

Size

Second largest park 14,763km² / 5,700mi²

Altitude

1,140-2,099m / 3,740-6,886ft

WHAT TO KNOW BEFORE VISIT

Top wildlife viewing all year-round
Endless plains feel like authentic Africa
Superb for spotting predators
Excellent mid-range and luxury lodges
Hot air balloon safaris
The Seronera area gets crowded during peak season

THE WILDEBEEST MIGRATION

Every year, over 2 million wildebeest, zebra and gazelle migrate from the Serengeti to the Masai Mara Reserve in Kenya. If you're there at the right time, you can spot herds of wildebeest and zebra stretching to the horizon.

WILDLIFE

The Serengeti offers some of the best wildlife viewing in Africa. All the major safari animals occur in great numbers. Cheetah and four of the Big 5 are easily seen, but rhino sightings are rare, and only black rhino are present. Aside from the big cats, many other predators can be spotted including spotted hyena (especially in the morning), jackal and bat-eared fox.

SCENERY

Serengeti's scenery is renowned for its grassland plains in the southeast. The northern part is more hilly and rocky. To the west, valleys, rivers and forest can be found. Several areas in the Serengeti are dotted with 'koppies', granite outcrops rising up from the plains. It's an immense landscape and quite stunning – big sky country that feels like untamed wilderness.

WEATHER & CLIMATE

Conditions in the Serengeti are rarely taxing in the daytime during the Dry season (June to October), when the temperature stays nice and warm. It's a different story at night, when the mercury can take a deep dive. The heat creeps up a few degrees during the Wet season (November to May), though the odd cold front can introduce a chill.

BEST TIME TO VISIT

Overall, wildlife watchers are better off timing their trip to coincide with the drier months (June to October). Aim for June and July if you can, as the incredible wildebeest migration usually tramples the plains at this time. If you're keen on seeing predators in action, visit in late January or February. This is the hiatus in the annual rains, when the wildebeests calve