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Tarangire National Park

Manyara, Tanzania

Tarangire National Park Zebra Grazing

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tanzania // African Safari· Tarangire National Park Tanzania Location: [post_gps_latitude], [post_gps_longitude]

Although it’s not as well known as its neighbors, the Serengeti or the Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park (pronounced Tarrangeeri, with those distinctive clipped vowels and the hint a rolled r’s of a Tanzanian or South African accent) is larger than the entire island of Zanzibar. But as large as it is, it’s still only the sixth largest national park in Tanzania, thanks to some remarkably forward-looking conservation and environmental policies enacted by the Tanzanian government since independence in the 1960s–something near 30 percent of the country has been set aside as either national park or conservation area. And only 3-4 hours outside of Arusha, Tarangire is easy to get to and is a prime stop of Tanzania’s northern safari circuit.

If elephants are your thing (or baobab trees, although that’s a little more niche), Tarangire is brimming with them. The park is reputed to have the highest concentration of elephants in the world, something on the order of 3,000 or so. Within a few hours of driving along the park’s rugged, dusty roads, you’re likely to come across many hundreds.

But Tarangire is not just about elephants and baobab trees. In the dry season, when animals gravitate to one of the two main water sources in park–the long, flat swamps or the namesake Tarangire River that winds through the park–it ranks only behind Serengeti for the concentration of native wildlife. There are, of course, not fences around the parks so as to encourage the natural migrations, so in the wet season, when the animals are less constricted in where they find water, they disperse across the Maasai Steppe.

Depending on the time of year you’re there, you won’t go long without seeing zebras, wildebeest, waterbucks, warthogs, cranes, giraffes, dick dicks, ostriches, baboons, and velvet monkeys. And there are big cats–lions and leopards–although the large spaces and the many hiding places created by the rolling savanna mean that they’re not as easy to spot here as in Serengeti or Ngorongoro Crater. And if you prefer your critters with wings, you’ll find hundreds of varieties of birds; the swamp has an especially dense collection of nesting birds in season.

There’s quite a mix of landscapes at Tarangire. Much of it is open, rolling savanna, but there are some areas of grassland plain (such as the area known as the Small Serengeti) and some extensive, flat swamps in the southeastern part of the park.

Photos of Tarangire National Park

Tarangire National Park Elephant Walk

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Baobab Trees Sunset

Baobab trees. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebra Herd with Grass

One of the theories for why zebras have stripes is that it works as a camouflage when they’re in groups, so predators have trouble distinguishing where one animal ends and another starts. You can see that at work here to some extent. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Lion

A lioness on the prowl. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant with Mountain

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebras in Reed Lake

A small lake covered in lily pads. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Vervet Monkey Adult and Child

Vervet Monkeys. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Baobab Tree Sunset

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant at Watering Hole

There are a *lot* of elephants in this park. This one had the longest tusks of any I came across. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Male Impala with Grass

Impala. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Pair of Acacia Trees at Sunset

Acacia trees. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Swimming

An elephant takes a dip in the water (covered in lily pads), making sure to keep its trunk out. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Old Elephant

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Marabou Stork on a Branch

Marabou stork. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Acacia Tree Sunset

Acacia tree. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Young and Parent

I couldn’t get The Baby Elephant Walk out of my head. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Baobab Tree Sunset

A baobab tree. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebra Bird

The symbiotic relationship between a zebra and oxpecker. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Face

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebras with Elephants

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Picnic Ground

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Sign Feeding of Animals is Prohibited

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Olive Baboon Family

Olive baboons. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Baobab Tree Silhouette

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Superb Starling

Superb starling. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Adult Elephant Eating

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Trees and Landscape

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Giraffe

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Landscape

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Baby Elephant Walk

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park African Bees

The bees found the honey at breakfast. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Front

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Overlook

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Ostriches

Ostriches. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebra Front Side View

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Herd of Elephants Walking

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Adult Elephant

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Tarangire River View

The Tarangire River that provides the hub for so much of the wildlife in the park. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephants Swimming

Taking a dip in the lily-covered pond. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebra

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Pride of Lions

A pride of lions lounging in the shade during the middle of the day. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant in Lake

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Adult and Young Elephant

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Mother and Child

Sticking close. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Zebra and Elephant

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Tarangire River Water Source

The Tarangire River.

Tarangire National Park Baby Elephant

A couple of elephants caked in mud near the river. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Family

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Elephant Mud

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Two Elephants Playing

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Herd of Elephants in the Shade

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Marabou Stork

Marabou storks. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Marabou Storks on a Tree

More marabou storks. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Tarangire River

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Young Zebra

Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

Tarangire National Park Wildebeest (Gnu)

A wildebeest (also known as gnu).

Tarangire National Park Entrance with Safari Vehicles

At the park entrance. Photo by David Coleman. How to license & download this image.

What to Know Before You Go

  • It’s possible to do Tarangire as a day trip from Arusha, but even if you leave at 7am you won’t get into the park before 10:30 or 11. You’ll then have a few hours in the park before having to leave. Doing that, you’ll surely see quite a few animals. But most animals are least active in the heat of the middle of the day. And you’ll be limited in how far you can venture into the park. If you plan for at least a full day, or even 2 or 3 days, you’ll not only have the chance to explore in the beautiful light of early morning and late afternoon, but you’ll also be able to venture further afield, including to the swamp the other side of the park, which shows a completely different type of landscape.
  • While there isn’t a huge range of lodging options available, there are budget campsites inside and outside the park as well as lodges and luxury camping inside the park.
  • Unless you’re staying at one of the lodging options inside the park, you can’t enter before 6am or leave after 7pm. Because it’s so close to the equator, sunrise and sunset are consistently about 6:30am/pm year round.
  • Every park has different wildlife patterns. At Tarangire, it’s often easier to see a greater concentration and variety of animals in the dry season because the animals congregate around the water sources.
  • There are tsetse flies at Tarangire. A small percentage of them have been found to carry human African Trypanosomiasis, commonly known as sleeping sickness.
  • Be prepared for sun and dust, especially in the dry season. Make sure to take in with you enough water for the day. And cover up against bugs.
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Where to Next?

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  • Mt Kilimanjaro Stars and Camp at Lava Tower
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Travel Advice for Tanzania

You can find the latest U.S. Department of State travel advisories and information for Tanzania (such as entry visa requirements and vaccination requirements) here.

The British and Australian governments offer their own country-specific travel information. You can find the British Government's travel advice for Tanzania here and the Australian Government's here.

Health & Vaccinations

The CDC makes country-specific recommendations for vaccinations and health for travelers. You can find their latest information for Tanzania here.

David Coleman Photography

I take photos. I travel. I write. I do it for a living. Seven continents. Dozens of countries. Up mountains. Under water. And a bunch of places in between. You can find my main site at havecamerawilltravel.com. Or check out what’s in my go-to travel photography kit. Or get in touch here.

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Location: Manyara
Country: Tanzania
Coordinates:
      Latitude: -4.101340
      Longitude: 36.092874

      # African Safari
      # Tarangire National Park Tanzania



About David Coleman

I take photos. I travel. I write. I do it for a living.

I’m based in Washington, DC.

You can find my photography gear reviews and tips at havecamerawilltravel.com/photographer.

David Coleman Photography

I take photos. I travel. I write. I do it for a living. Seven continents. Dozens of countries. Up mountains. Under water. And a bunch of places in between. You can find my main site at havecamerawilltravel.com. Or check out what’s in my go-to travel photography kit. Or get in touch here.

Licensing & Prints

Looking for travel stock photos or prints? I might be able to help. You can search my collection here:

If you already have a buyer account with Alamy and would prefer to use that, you can search my images directly here.

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© 2009–2019 David Coleman · Have Camera Will Travel LLC · all rights reserved


Photos by David Coleman. Please contact me for licensing images.
All images are registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.


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