Ruaha National Park

The second biggest park in Tanzania, where the East African savannah gives way to the miombo woodland of the south. Large elephant herds, baobabs and lions in strong prides, with a fraction of the visitors of the north.

Ruaha Park in short

Size

20,226 square kilometres (7,810 square miles), the second biggest park in Tanzania, more than twice the size of Yellowstone

What Ruaha is known for

Elephant, baobabs, lion and the Great Ruaha River

Ruaha from Dar es Salaam

About two hours by air, or ten to twelve hours by road

Best time to visit Ruaha

June to October, with July to October the strongest period

We recommend

At least three nights, five if you have the time

Why go to Ruaha National Park

Ruaha National Park lies on a border you cannot see but do notice. Here the East African acacia savannah runs over into the miombo woodland of southern Africa, and that produces a mix of species you rarely find together in one park. It is the only park in East Africa where both the greater and the lesser kudu occur, and that is no coincidence, it is that transition zone.

The park is named after the river. Ruvaha means river in Hehe, and the Great Ruaha River along the southeastern boundary is the lifeline. In the dry season it falls largely dry to a string of pools, and that is exactly when it becomes the focal point of the park. Everything that drinks comes to those pools, and elephants dig for water with trunk and feet in the dry sand rivers around them.

And then the elephants themselves. Ruaha has the largest elephant population in Tanzania, and in the dry season they are one of the surest sightings in the park. Around them buffalo herds that can run to several hundred animals, lions in prides larger than you are used to in the north, and baobabs that give the landscape a character of its own.

What makes Ruaha National Park different above all is how few people come. The park drew just over twenty thousand visitors in a year in the last published count, while the Serengeti takes in hundreds of thousands. A traveller summed it up on TripAdvisor, this is not a Serengeti zoo but real wilderness. That is exactly the trade you make here.

What you see in Ruaha National Park

Ruaha is a wilderness park, and that means something different from a park with high densities. The game is spread over an enormous area, so you search longer and you find less often. What you get back for it is that at a sighting you usually stand alone, and that you see species that do not occur in the north.

What you will almost certainly see

In the dry season elephant, buffalo in herds up to several hundred, impala, giraffe, zebra, hippo, crocodile and lion in strong prides. And the greater kudu, with its spiral horns, far more numerous here than in the northern parks. For birdwatchers Ruaha National Park is a top destination, with around 570 recorded species. November to April is strongest, when the migrants are in.

What you see with luck

Leopard are seen regularly but never guaranteed. Cheetah are present but thinly spread. And then the African wild dog, of which one of the most important populations in the world lives here, although the chance of a sighting is unpredictable and nobody should make a promise about it. Beyond that the lesser kudu, sable antelope, roan antelope, eland and the striped hyena. On a night drive you can come across serval, genet, civet, mongoose and galago.

What you do not see here

Rhino do not live in Ruaha, they are locally extinct here. Ruaha National Park is therefore not a Big Five park, and operators who write that it is are wrong. Grant’s gazelle is absent too, because that is a northern species. And a boat safari is not possible here, because the river falls dry in the dry season. For that you need to be in Nyerere.

The lions of Ruaha

You read everywhere that more than ten per cent of all the lions in the world live in Ruaha. That figure comes from research, but it covers the wider landscape of just over twenty-one thousand square kilometres, so the park plus the surrounding reserves and village land, and it is an estimate and not a count. The lions that are here live in large prides and hunt buffalo, which produces something you seldom see elsewhere. But you have to look for them, and that takes time.

Where to go on safari in Ruaha

Ruaha National Park is too big to take in one picture, and where you sleep decides what kind of safari it becomes. The centre lies at Msembe, on the Great Ruaha River, and that is where most of the camps stand, on the east side where the game density is highest. This is also the only part where you meet other vehicles in high season, although compared with the north that is few. Close by lie the Mwagusi and Mdonya sand rivers, with sausage trees and large fig trees, classic game country where elephants dig for water.

Further southwest lies Jongomero, very remote, with hardly any vehicles and strong walking safaris. The camp there closes from around the middle of March to May. Scattered through the park are rock formations such as the Lunda and Kimilamatonge kopjes, with views over the landscape. And in the southwest lie the Usangu wetlands, part of the park since 2008 and only open to visitors since 2022, through one camp that works from June to November. The focus there is on research and conservation, and the nearest airstrip is two hours of driving away.

Your guide makes the difference

In a park where the game sits spread over twenty thousand square kilometres, experience beats luck. A guide who knows Ruaha knows which pools hold water in which month, where the buffalo herds are and which lion pride is behind them, and along which sand river the elephants are digging at the moment. He reads the landscape while he drives. Fresh tracks in the sand of a dry riverbed, vultures circling, a group of impala all staring the same way. In the north you need such signs less, because there the game is often simply standing in front of you. Here they make the difference between an empty day and a day that stays with you.

And he knows when patience pays. Ruaha rewards waiting. Staying at a pool until the elephants come gets you more here than driving on to the next point.

The best time to go to Ruaha National Park

Ruaha has one long rainy season, from November to April, and a dry season of roughly June to October. No month is worthless, but the difference between wet and dry is bigger here than in the northern parks, because the game spreads out with the water.

July to October, the dry season

This is Ruaha at its strongest. The park dries out, the game concentrates at the river and the last pools, and the vegetation thins so that you see further. July to October is the best period, with August the busiest month and October the hottest, with afternoons regularly above thirty-five degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit). September is ideal for walking and night safaris. The nights are cool, so bring warm clothing.

November and December

The first rains usually begin in the middle of November. Early November combines the last concentrations with the first showers, and the migrant birds arrive. In December the green returns while the animals are still relatively concentrated. Quiet, except around the holidays.

January and February

The green season, warm and lush. The game is more spread out because there is water everywhere, so searching takes more time, although the river and the Mwagusi stay rewarding. This is the peak of the bird season, with few visitors and lower prices.

March to May

The wettest months, with April the heaviest. The vegetation is dense and the game widely spread. From the middle of March most camps close, the south around Jongomero and the Usangu wetlands are practically unreachable, and in April landing is sometimes not possible. Anyone who wants to travel in this period is better off choosing another park.

How long to stay

At least three nights. Ruaha National Park is large, the game sits spread out, and the journey there takes time. Four or five nights is what we recommend if you want to get to know Ruaha properly. Then there is room for the unpredictable species, such as wild dog, leopard and cheetah, and time to do a walking safari or a night drive alongside the ordinary drives. And that is possible here, because unlike the northern parks Ruaha National Park lets you go into the field on foot with an armed ranger, and lets you head out with a spotlight after sunset. Those are two experiences the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater do not offer, and they are a reason in themselves to stay longer.

Where it fits in your route

Ruaha National Park lies on the southern circuit, which means you combine it with a tour through the southern parks or fly in. From Dar es Salaam you are at the Msembe airstrip in one and a half to two hours, from Zanzibar in two to two and a half, usually via Dar. There are also direct flights from the Serengeti, a few times a week, in three to four hours. From Dar es Salaam by road it is ten to twelve hours, manageable with a night in Iringa or a stop in Mikumi or Nyerere. How we fit Ruaha into a larger route, you can read in our guide to safari in Tanzania.

Where you sleep in Ruaha

The number of camps in Ruaha National Park has been kept deliberately small, and that is exactly why it stays so quiet. Most lie on the east side and in the central zone, along the Great Ruaha and the Mwagusi, where the game density is highest. They are mostly small tented camps, from comfortable to very luxurious. At Msembe there is also simple accommodation run by the park authority, with bandas and campsites. In the south around Jongomero and in the Usangu wetlands there is just about one camp each, so there you see almost nobody.

Frequently asked questions about Ruaha National Park

How much does entry to Ruaha National Park cost?

Thirty dollars per adult per twenty-four hours, excluding eighteen per cent VAT, so around thirty-five dollars including. Children from five to fifteen pay ten dollars, under five is free. That is about half the Serengeti rate. If you sleep inside the park, a concession fee of thirty dollars per person per night is added. Note that the official park page sometimes shows the Serengeti rate, and that is not correct for Ruaha.

Is Ruaha National Park the largest park in Tanzania?

No, it is the second largest. Nyerere National Park became a national park in 2019 and at almost thirty-one thousand square kilometres is bigger. Until 2019 the claim was correct, which is why it still stands on many sites.

Is Ruaha National Park crowded?

No, and that is one of the strongest reasons to go. Ruaha takes in a fraction of the visitors of the northern parks, there are few camps, and at a sighting you usually stand alone. In the central zone other vehicles do drive in high season, so it is not completely empty there.

Can you do a night drive in Ruaha National Park?

Yes, and that is exceptional, because in most northern parks it is not allowed. After sunset you head out with a spotlight, looking for animals that sleep during the day, such as serval, genet, civet and galago.

Can you do a walking safari in Ruaha National Park?

Yes, with a mandatory armed ranger. You walk in country where elephant, buffalo and lion live, so it happens under guidance. The south around Jongomero is the strongest for this.

Can you take a balloon flight in Ruaha National Park?

Yes. Ruaha was the first park on the southern circuit with balloon flights, in 2018, and since 2023 they fly again. You leave around five in the morning from a launch site east of Msembe, fly for about an hour, often low over the river and the sandbanks, and have breakfast in the bush afterwards. Only in the dry season, from June to October. Reckon on around six hundred dollars per person.

Can you do a boat safari in Ruaha National Park?

No. The Great Ruaha River falls dry to pools in the dry season, so there is no boating here. If you want a boat safari, Nyerere National Park is the place, and those two combine well.

Will I see wild dog in Ruaha?

Perhaps. Ruaha holds one of the most important populations of African wild dog in the world, but they travel over enormous distances and the chance of a sighting is unpredictable. More nights increases your chance, and a guarantee does not exist.

Is Ruaha National Park suitable with children?

Less so than the northern parks. The camps are remote, the distances large, and walking safaris are no place for young children. For families with older, interested children it can work well, certainly with the night drive included.

Ruaha in your Tanzania trip

Ruaha National Park is the wilderness of Tanzania, and it asks for time and patience in return for quiet you do not find in the north. Whether it suits you depends on what you have already seen and how many days you have. Tell us when you want to go and what you are after, and we will think with you about the route, the number of nights, and whether flying is the best way in.

Request a call

Prefer to look around first? See our itineraries

Other parks in northern Tanzania

A safari through the south is almost always a tour past several parks, with three or more nights per place. Ruaha National Park combines best with Nyerere National Park, where you can do boat safaris, and with Mikumi as a stop on the way from Dar es Salaam. Every park has its own character, and that variation is what makes the trip.

Nyerere National Park

The largest park in Tanzania, with boat safaris on the Rufiji river and a landscape of lakes and channels.

Mikumi National Park

Open plains with elephant and giraffe, four hours from Dar es Salaam and the easiest first stop in the south.

Discover South Tanzania

Our fifteen day itinerary through the south, with Nyerere, Mikumi and Ruaha, and Zanzibar to finish.