Confidence Guarantee & SAVE £300 ON SELECTED TANZANIA TOURS
01279 704 135
Open today 09 - 15 | Opening hours
10 days

Southern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha

Fly-in safari in Nyere & Ruaha in Southern Tanzania. This tour is for travellers who dream of wild nature and experiencing wildlife without many other visitors around them.

Southern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha
Southern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha
10 days
HomeAfricaTanzaniaSouthern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha

Southern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha

Fly-in safari in Nyere & Ruaha in Southern Tanzania. This tour is for travellers who dream of wild nature and experiencing wildlife without many other visitors around them.

HomeAfricaTanzaniaSouthern Tanzania: fly-in safari in Nyerere & Ruaha
What is included in the price?
This package includes the following
  • Flight from chosen airport to Dar Es Salaam incl. transfer
  • Flight in small local airplane from Dar Es Salaam to Nyerere National Park
  • Flight in a small local airplane from Nyerere National Park to Ruaha National Park
  • Flight in a small local flight from Ruaha National Park to Dar Es Salaam
  • Local English-speaking guide/driver
  • 1 night in Tanzania incl. breakfast
  • 6 nights in Tanzania incl. full board
  • Safari drive (morning, evening or full-day game drive) during your stay in Nyerere National Park
  • Boat trip on Tanzania’s largest river, Rufiji River
  • Bushwalks in Nyerere National Park
  • Safari drive (morning, evening or full-day game drive) during your stay in Ruaha National Park
  • Driving in open vehicles with window seats
  • All National Park fees
  • Option of beach holiday extension on Zanzibar
  • Transfer from the domestic terminal to the international terminal in Dar Es Salaam
  • Flight from Dar Es Salaam to chosen airport incl. transfer
  • ATOL certificate
  • Emergency hotline staffed 24/7 throughout your tour
  • Departure guarantee – the tour will take place regardless of the number of participants

THE TOUR IN SHORT

Few travellers make the long journey to Southern Tanzania, but those who do are in imminent danger of becoming entangled in a lifelong love story.

The two national parks, Nyerere and Ruaha, are the two largest national parks in Tanzania, and like Serengeti, Nyerere is on UNESCO’s list of Natural World Heritage Sites. Despite this, not many visitors find their way to the two parks, which is really a shame! Both parks have an impressive diversity of flora and fauna. Despite this similarity, there are also major differences between the two parks.

Nyerere has a ‘lowland’ climate. The heat is humid, and the sun almost bakes the landscape. Tanzania’s largest river, the Rufiji, cuts through the park and provides a unique opportunity to go on a river safari.

Ruaha has a ‘highland’ climate. Here, the heat is dry, and the sun burns down on you mercilessly. Water is scarce here. In turn, the elephants compete with the Baobab trees in being the most majestic.

The journey here is a fly-in safari. You spend as much time as possible on what you have come to Tanzania for – namely safaris. All meals and game drives are included, and you can have a say in what the days will look like.

The tour can be extended with a beach holiday on Zanzibar after the end of the safari.

We recommend that you avoid travelling during the period April-May, which is the rainy season in Southern Tanzania. The areas that you visit on this tour are off the beaten track, and the roads (too) easily become inaccessible.

Why choose this tour

  • Experience nature and wildlife in Tanzania’s two largest national parks in Southern Tanzania, which have few other visitors
  • Sail on Tanzania’s largest river, the Rufiji, where you can see hippos and crocodiles up close
  • See some of Africa’s largest herds of elephants and lions
  • Option to conclude your adventure with a beach holiday on exotic Zanzibar

Our tours always include

  • All international and domestic flights
  • All accommodations
  • All specified excursions and activities
  • 24/7 telephone – We’re with you all the way
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Departure from chosen airport

Today is your departure day from your chosen airport, and the tour goes to Tanzania in East Africa with connecting flight(s) along the way.

Day 2: Arrival in Tanzania, overnight accommodation in Dar Es Salaam

On arrival in Tanzania, you will be met at the airport and driven to your hotel, where you will stay for one night. You will have the rest of the day at your leisure to relax after the flight.

Accommodation:
Day 3: Departure towards Nyerere National Park – and your first safari

After breakfast, you will be picked up at the hotel and driven back to the airport, from where you will fly to Nyerere National Park.

The flight takes just over an hour.

With its more than 30,000 km2, Nyerere National Park is Tanzania’s largest national park. The park is more than twice the size of Serengeti, and due to the size and diversity of the landscape and thus also of the wildlife, the park is on UNESCO’s list of Natural World Heritage Sites. The area’s wild and varied nature offers open plains, swamps, forests and rivers. Here you will also find Tanzania’s largest river, Rufiji, which gives life to plants and animals around it.

Precisely the diversity of the landscape can make it more challenging to spot the animals than in, for example. Serengeti, but, in return, you are guaranteed some very special experiences in the different terrains of the area – and best of all; there are not many visitors in Nyerere, which means that you will have many of the most beautiful experiences (almost) to yourself!

On arrival at the small airstrip in the national park, a guide will be waiting for you to take you to the camp, where you will spend the next three nights. Already en route to the camp, you may be lucky enough to see the first wild animals.

After check-in and lunch, you will depart on the first real game drive of the tour.

Nyerere is particularly known for having one of the largest numbers of lions in Africa as well as about half of the wild dogs left in the world. In addition, the national park is also home to many other animals, e.g. buffaloes, giraffes, elephants, crocodiles, hippos and an amazing bird life. For example, see if you can spot the shy Pel’s fishing owl or keep an eye out for all the other land and water birds.

You will be back in the camp in time for a shower and a sundowner before dinner is served.

Accommodation:
Days 4-5: Safari experiences in Nyerere National Park

You have a say in how your days in Nyerere are spent. In the evening, during dinner, you will have a chat with your guide about what activities you can choose between the next day. The guide can advise you on how best to spend the day based on how the animals are expected to behave. Of course, the weather plays a big role, and the wildlife varies depending on whether it is hot/cold/wet/dry. Use the guides’ expertise. They know the bush like the back of their hand and make sure that you have an unforgettable safari experience!

You can typically choose between bushwalks, game drives or boat trips on the Rufiji River. The boat trips on the river are something very special, and they are precisely one of the reasons why safaris in Nyerere are so different from, for example, safaris in Serengeti. Here you will be at eye level with hippos and crocodiles (at a proper distance, of course!), and the bird life along the riverbanks is always phenomenal.

You will often return to the camp for a few hours in the middle of the day for lunch and a little rest, but there will also be the opportunity for a full-day game drive, where you bring your packed lunch in the vehicle. No matter what awaits you, you can look forward to it – Nyerere is a must-see experience!

Accommodation:
Day 6: Nyerere National Park – Ruaha National Park

In the morning, there is time for an early bushwalk or a morning game drive, before breakfast is served in the camp. After breakfast, it is time to pack up and say goodbye to Nyerere National Park. There is transport to the small airstrip, from where you will fly westwards to Ruaha National Park.

The flight takes just over two hours, and you can start looking forward to what is expecting you.

Ruaha is Tanzania’s second largest national park, and the nature here is completely different from that of Nyerere. The landscape is wild, and it is in many ways similar to Serengeti – only without all the other guests and with a lot more Baobab trees. It is dry here, with more savannah, far more rocks and less water than what you saw in Nyerere.

On arrival at the local airstrip, you will again be met by a guide who will drive you to your lodge, where you will stay for the next three nights. You will probably notice that the air is drier here than in Nyerere, and the heat will probably feel more comfortable. With a little luck, you will spot the first animals on the drive to the lodge, but many animals seek shade in the middle of the day, when the sun is highest in the sky.

After check-in and lunch, there is time for a short rest before the afternoon’s game drive in the park.

The wildlife in Ruaha National Park is amazing. The park is especially known for its very large herds of elephants and lions. It is not uncommon to see herds of lions with up to 20 members. Ruaha is also one of the best places in Tanzania to visit if you want to experience the endangered wild dog. The park also has sable and roan antelopes as well as both the greater and lesser kudu. Leopards, cheetahs and crocodiles live side by side with buffaloes and hippos, and the park is home to more than 530 different species of birds.

It is said that there are about 400 different plant species in Serengeti. In Ruaha, the figure is more than 1,600.

Accommodation:
Days 7-8: Safari experiences in Ruaha National Park

Just like in Nyerere, you also have a say in what your days will look like in Ruaha National Park. Together with your guide, you will make a plan for the programme of the day: morning game drive (before or after breakfast) and/or afternoon game drive or maybe a full-day game drive. The guides know the park and will advise you on how to get the most out of your stay here.
Remember also to set aside some time to just sit on your porch and follow what is happening at the riverbank. Who knows whether that is exactly the moment in which a lion comes to the river to drink…

Accommodation:
Day 9: Morning game drive and departure from Ruaha – home journey or beach holiday in Zanzibar

There is time for a last morning game drive before breakfast at the lodge and departure towards the airstrip. From here, you say goodbye to the bush and fly back to Dar Es Salaam.

In Dar Es Salaam, a guide will be ready to take you to the international terminal, from where your return journey begins.

If you would like to digest your experiences in a sun lounger in Zanzibar, this can, of course, also be arranged!

Day 10: Arrival back home

You land at your chosen airport after an adventurous tour of Southern Tanzania

Combine with
Choose from the options below
Beach holiday in Zanzibar
6 nights

Surrounded by the waters of the Indian Ocean, Zanzibar consists of the main islands of Unguja (also called ‘Zanzibar’) and Pemba, as well as a number of smaller islands. The island of Zanzibar is a treasure trove of natural and cultural treats. Brilliant white sandy beaches, azure seas and a truly amazing coral reef. A warm and sunny climate all year round. A dramatic history, liberally sprinkled with Arabian sultans, Portuguese seafarers, unscrupulous slavers and European explorers who have all left their mark on the island. And one of the most fascinating towns in Africa, dotted with fine examples of beautiful Arabian architecture. Not forgetting the delicious Swahili cuisine and the accommodating population …

When would you like to travel?
Departure dates
All prices shown are per person
Unique advantages for groups of 6 people and more – ask for a quote today for more information.
REVIEWS
Travellers' tales
BEFORE YOU TRAVEL
Good to know
Africa
Catriona Hodge

Catriona is passionate about helping other people fulfill their travel dreams, as she knows how much travel has only improved her life for the better!

Opening hours
Monday-Thursday 9-15
Friday 9-13
JOIN THE ADVENTURE
Related tours
WHY TRAVEL WITH TOURCOMPASS?
Why choose us

We know your time is precious. That's why we strive to provide personalised, attentive service to ensure your comfort and safety throughout your tour. From the moment you book to the moment you return home, we’re here to handle every detail with the utmost care.

We offer a diverse array of destinations, each promising its own unique story, shaped by its local cultures, fascinating wildlife, and natural beauty. 

We design every tour based on the extensive research and first-hand experiences of our travel specialists and experts. Each tour is crafted to showcase the best each country has to offer.

With us, you can rest assured; your journey is in safe hands. We are ATOL certified and a proud member of ABTA, maintaining rigorous standards of quality and service to ensure your complete peace of mind.

EXPLORE
Check out all our exciting destinations