Ruaha National Park

Tanzania’s largest national park: baobab plains, the Great Ruaha River, big predators and over 570 bird species.

Ruaha is Tanzania’s largest national park and one of its least crowded. Rolling baobab country, rocky hills and the Great Ruaha River give it a wild, open feel very different from the north.

It is known for big prides of lion, good leopard and cheetah, African wild dog and large herds of elephant and buffalo. Greater and lesser kudu, roan and sable antelope are all possible, which is unusual in East Africa.

For birders, Ruaha sits where East and Southern African species overlap. More than 570 species have been recorded, including the Ruaha Red-billed Hornbill and Ashy Starling.

Getting there

Most guests fly from Arusha, Dar es Salaam or Zanzibar to an airstrip in the park. By road it is a long drive from Dar es Salaam or via Iringa, best split over two days or combined with Mikumi and Udzungwa.

Where to stay

Tented camps and lodges along the Great Ruaha and Mwagusi rivers, from simple to high end. Camps are well spread out, so game drives feel private.

Our guides’ tips

June to October is best for game, as animals gather at the river.
November to April brings migrant birds and green landscapes, with fewer visitors.
Combine Ruaha with Udzungwa and Mikumi for a southern circuit.
Allow at least three nights. The park is big.

Common questions

Is Ruaha good for first-time safaris?

Yes, especially if you want fewer vehicles. Many guests visit after the northern parks for a wilder second safari.

Is Ruaha good for birding?

Very. Over 570 species are recorded, including southern species rarely seen in the north.

How do I get there?

Light aircraft flights are quickest. By road, combine it with Mikumi and Udzungwa.

Safaris that visit Ruaha National Park

Baobab country in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania

20days

20-Day Southern Tanzania Birding Expedition

Mbulu, Ukaguru, Udzungwa, Ruaha, Kisolanza, Mikumi, Kilombero, Uluguru, Nyerere & Pugu Hills

Twenty days through Tanzania’s southern highlands and Eastern Arc mountains, from Mbulu and Ukaguru to Ruaha, Mikumi, the Ulugurus, Nyerere and the Pugu Hills.

See the itinerary Enquire

Bar-tailed Trogon perched in Usambara montane forest

39days

39-Day Ultimate Tanzania Birding Expedition

From Lake Victoria, Northern Savannahs to Eastern Arc Forests & Southern Wilderness

Tanzania’s most complete birding trip: 39 days from Lake Victoria and the Serengeti to the Eastern Arc forests, the southern highlands, Ruaha, Nyerere and Pugu Hills.

See the itinerary Enquire

Wildlife

Iconic wildlife of Ruaha National Park

The animals, trees and reptiles our guides look for here, with the best season and where to find them. See the full wildlife guide.

Mammal

African elephant

Loxodonta africana

Tarangire’s big herds are the classic sight: families drifting between baobabs to the river in the dry season.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park, Arusha National Park, Rubondo Island National Park, Mount Kilimanjaro

Mammal

Lion

Panthera leo

The Serengeti holds one of the largest lion populations left in Africa. Prides of twenty are not unusual.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park

Mammal

Leopard

Panthera pardus

Secretive and beautiful. The Seronera valley’s sausage trees are the best place in Africa to find one by day.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Manyara National Park

Mammal

Cheetah

Acinonyx jubatus

Built for the short grass plains. Watch one scan from a termite mound in the southern Serengeti.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park

Mammal

Cape buffalo

Syncerus caffer

The Big Five’s heavyweight. Herds of several hundred are a daily sight in Arusha National Park and the crater.

Seen in

Arusha National Park, Tarangire National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park

Giraffes on the plains with Mount Meru behind, northern Tanzania

Mammal

Masai giraffe

Giraffa tippelskirchi

Tanzania’s national animal, with jagged star-shaped patches. Common almost everywhere except inside the crater.

Seen in

Arusha National Park, Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Natron, Lake Eyasi

Mammal

Hippopotamus

Hippopotamus amphibius

Noisy, territorial and surprisingly fast. The Serengeti’s hippo pools hold hundreds in a single bend of river.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Victoria, Rubondo Island National Park

Mammal

Spotted hyena

Crocuta crocuta

Clever, social and the crater’s top predator by numbers. Listen for the whooping call after dark.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park

Mammal

African wild dog

Lycaon pictus

Africa’s most endangered large carnivore. Ruaha is one of the last strongholds, and sightings there are a privilege.

Seen in

Ruaha National Park, Tarangire National Park

Grant’s gazelles on the open plains of Tanzania

Mammal

Impala

Aepyceros melampus

The graceful antelope you will see most often, and the leopard’s favourite meal.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park, Arusha National Park

Mammal

Greater kudu

Tragelaphus strepsiceros

Spiral horns and a ghostly grey coat. Ruaha is the best park in East Africa for this shy antelope.

Seen in

Ruaha National Park, Tarangire National Park

Reptile

Nile crocodile

Crocodylus niloticus

Ancient, patient and enormous. The Grumeti River’s crocodiles wait all year for the migration to cross.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Lake Victoria, Rubondo Island National Park

Tree

Baobab tree

Adansonia digitata

The upside-down tree, some over a thousand years old. Tarangire and Ruaha are the great baobab landscapes of Tanzania.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Eyasi

Mammal

Lesser kudu

Tragelaphus imberbis

A shy, striped antelope of dense dry bush. Males carry long spiral horns.

Seen in

Lake Natron, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park

Birding

Birds to look for in Ruaha National Park

Specialities, endemics and the birds that make this place different, chosen by our birding guides. Browse all birds.

Endemic

Ashy Starling

Lamprotornis unicolor

Tanzania’s own starling: long-tailed, dusty grey and common around the baobabs of Tarangire.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park

Endemic

Yellow-collared Lovebird

Agapornis personatus

Green, yellow and masked in black, chattering in flocks around the baobabs. A Tanzanian endemic you will hear before you see.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ruaha National Park

Resident

Lilac-breasted Roller

Coracias caudatus

The most photographed bird in Africa, with eight colours and a rolling display flight to match.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Tarangire National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Ruaha National Park, Lake Manyara National Park

Resident

Von der Decken’s Hornbill

Tockus deckeni

The small dry-country hornbill with the red and ivory bill, hopping along the road ahead of the vehicle.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lark Plains

Resident

Red-and-yellow Barbet

Trachyphonus erythrocephalus

Spotted like a leopard and loud as a duet. Pairs sing together from termite mounds in the dry bush.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lark Plains

Resident

Saddle-billed Stork

Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis

Nearly 1.5 metres tall with a red, black and yellow bill. Tanzania’s most elegant wading bird.

Seen in

Serengeti National Park, Tarangire National Park, Ruaha National Park, Lake Manyara National Park

Resident

Green-winged Pytilia

Pytilia melba

A small waxbill with a red face, green wings and a barred belly, feeding quietly on the ground in the thorn bush.

Seen in

Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Ruaha National Park

Resident

African Fish Eagle

Icthyophaga vocifer

The voice of Africa. A white-headed eagle whose ringing call carries across every lake and river.

Seen in

Lake Manyara National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ruaha National Park, Gombe & Mahale Mountains, Arusha National Park, Lake Victoria, Rubondo Island National Park, Lake Tanganyika, Lake Eyasi

Endemic

Ruaha Red-billed Hornbill

Tockus ruahae

Described as a species only in 2005 and named after the park. The hornbill that makes Ruaha a birding destination.

Seen in

Ruaha National Park

Activities

Things to do in Ruaha National Park

How a day here is spent, from game drives to walks and boat trips. All safari activities.

Half day to full day

Game drives

The heart of every safari: a private 4x4 with a pop-up roof, your own guide, and the whole day to follow the wildlife.

Hartlaub’s Turaco in Arusha National Park

Any length, from a morning walk to a 27-day expedition

Birdwatching

More than 1,100 species, dozens of endemics, and guides who find most birds by ear. Our speciality.

Waterfall in the montane forest of Arusha National Park

One to four hours

Walking safaris and nature walks

Leave the vehicle behind. Walk with a ranger to a waterfall, across the plains, or into Eastern Arc forest.

Guests watching wildlife with binoculars from a Charles Tours safari vehicle

Any safari

Wildlife and bird photography

Vehicles positioned for the light, beanbags on the window, and a guide who understands what you are trying to capture.

Explore other Tanzania destinations

More parks, plains and forests our safaris visit, each with its own wildlife, birds and best season.

Arusha National Park

Montane forest, the Momella Lakes and Hartlaub’s Turaco, just 45 minutes from Arusha.

Flamingos in flight over a Rift Valley soda lake

Lake Natron

The Rift Valley soda lake where East Africa’s Lesser Flamingos breed.

Black-winged Stilt wading in shallow water

Lake Eyasi

Seasonal soda lake with flamingos, waterbirds and quiet dry bush.

Grey-headed Gull on a Rift Valley lake, Tanzania

Lake Victoria

Africa’s largest lake, with papyrus specialists and lakeshore birds.

Little Bittern (Ixobrychus minutus) in reeds, Tanzania

Rubondo Island National Park

Quiet island park with forest birds, waterbirds and sitatunga.

Lake Tanganyika

Clear lake, western forest birds and the gateway to Gombe and Mahale.

Bird singing on an acacia branch, northern Tanzania

Mount Kilimanjaro

Montane forest birding on the slopes of Africa’s highest mountain.

Lark Plains

The only place on earth to see the critically endangered Beesley’s Lark.

African elephant walking through dry grass, Tanzania

Tarangire National Park

Huge elephant herds, ancient baobabs and Tanzania’s endemic birds.

Lioness resting in an acacia tree, Tanzania

Lake Manyara National Park

Tree-climbing lions, groundwater forest and a soda lake full of waterbirds.

Ngorongoro Crater

A volcanic caldera with black rhino, lions and big grassland birds.

Wildebeest herds of the Great Migration, Serengeti

Serengeti National Park

Vast plains, the Great Migration and big cats all year round.

Usambara Mountains

Ancient Eastern Arc forests holding Tanzania’s rarest endemic birds.

Wild chimpanzee in the forest at Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania

Gombe & Mahale Mountains

Track wild chimpanzees in the forests where Jane Goodall began her research.

Sunbird perched in the forest canopy, Udzungwa Mountains

Udzungwa Mountains & Kilombero Floodplains

Rainforest endemics, Sanje Falls and the Kilombero Weaver in southern Tanzania.

Start planning your safari

Let’s plan a safari around your interests. Share your travel dates, number of people, the ages of any children travelling, and the birds or wildlife you hope to see. We’ll get back to you within 24 hours with a personalised itinerary and a detailed quote.

Send an enquiry WhatsApp +255 627 415 415