DESTINATION GUIDE // TANZANIA
Arusha National Park
Mount Meru, crater lakes and giraffe on foot. The one northern park where you can safely walk.
552 km2
PARK AREA
4,566m
MOUNT MERU
25 km
FROM ARUSHA
Walking
SAFARIS ALLOWED
No lions
SAFE ON FOOT
GENERAL OVERVIEW
About Arusha National Park
Arusha National Park covers 552 square kilometres just twenty five kilometres from Arusha town, which makes it the most accessible park in northern Tanzania and the one most travellers drive straight past. That is a mistake worth correcting, because it is also the most varied.
Three distinct areas sit inside one boundary. Ngurdoto Crater in the southeast is a collapsed caldera with a swampy floor, viewed from the forested rim. The Momella Lakes in the northeast are a chain of seven shallow alkaline lakes, each a slightly different colour depending on its mineral content. And Mount Meru dominates the west, an active stratovolcano rising to 4,562 metres, the second highest mountain in Tanzania and the fifth highest in Africa.
There are no lions here, which is precisely why walking safaris and canoeing are permitted. Arusha is where you get out of the vehicle, and on a circuit otherwise spent looking through a window that is worth a great deal.
WILDLIFE
What Lives In The Park
Giraffe. Arusha has an unusually high density of Masai giraffe, often in large groups on the open ground between the lakes.
Black and white colobus. The park is one of the best places in Tanzania to see them, in the forest around Ngurdoto and along the Meru approach.
Buffalo, bushbuck and waterbuck. All common. Buffalo in particular are frequently encountered on foot, which is why walks go with an armed ranger.
Elephant. Present but in low numbers and infrequently seen.
Flamingo and waterbirds. The Momella Lakes hold lesser flamingo, along with pelican, Egyptian goose and a long list of waders. Over 400 bird species are recorded in the park.
What is absent. No lion, and rhino are gone. Leopard and hyena are present but seldom seen. This is not a Big Five park and does not claim to be.
ACTIVITIES
What You Can Do Here
Walking safaris. Guided walks with an armed ranger, from an hour to a full day, on the Momella lakes circuit and the Ngurdoto rim. The absence of lions is what makes this routine here rather than exceptional.
Canoeing on the Momella Lakes. Two hour paddles among waterbirds, with giraffe and buffalo on the shoreline. One of very few places in Tanzania where canoeing inside a national park is permitted.
Mount Meru trek. Three or four days to the 4,562 metre summit via Miriakamba and Saddle huts. A serious climb with a spectacular narrow summit ridge, and widely used as acclimatisation before Kilimanjaro.
Game drives. The Ngurdoto Crater rim road and the lakes circuit, half a day in total.
Tululusia waterfall walk. A short guided walk to a forest waterfall.
Cycling. Guided rides on the park boundary roads.
WHY VISIT
What Arusha Is Known For
It is the get out of the vehicle park. Walking and canoeing are both routine here and both are prohibited in the Serengeti and on the Ngorongoro crater floor, so Arusha adds an experience the rest of the circuit cannot.
Mount Meru is the second reason. As a trek in its own right it is quieter, cheaper and by many accounts more beautiful than Kilimanjaro, and as acclimatisation before Kilimanjaro it is close to ideal.
And it is twenty five kilometres from Arusha town and forty minutes from Kilimanjaro International Airport, which makes it the obvious first or last day of a Tanzanian trip. Landing in the afternoon and spending the next morning canoeing among giraffe is a better start than a day recovering in a hotel.
What it is not is a Big Five destination. Come for the landscape, the walking and the primates rather than predators.
ENTRY FEES
Park Fees And Practicalities
Park entry for non-residents over sixteen is around 50 US dollars per person per day in high season and 45 dollars in low season, with children aged five to fifteen at roughly 15 dollars. Under fives enter free. Fees are set by TANAPA and VAT at 18 per cent applies to Tanzanian park charges.
Walking safaris require a ranger fee of around 25 dollars per group. Canoeing is charged separately by the operator, generally 50 to 70 dollars per person including the park activity fee.
Mount Meru treks are sold as packages covering park fees, hut accommodation, ranger guide, porters and meals, typically 900 to 1,400 US dollars per person for three or four days.
Tickets run for 24 hours from entry and vehicle fees apply on top. Everything is prepaid and itemised in your quote.
BEST TIME TO VISIT
When To Go
June to October, the long dry season. The clearest views of Meru and Kilimanjaro, the best walking conditions and the driest trekking on the mountain.
December to February. A second dry window, warm and generally clear, and good for the Meru climb.
March to May, the long rains. The forest is beautiful and the park almost empty, but trails are slippery and the summit ridge on Meru becomes hazardous.
November, the short rains. Afternoon showers with usable mornings.
Because the park sits between 1,400 and 4,562 metres, it is noticeably cooler than the lowland parks and mornings on the lakes can be cold.
GETTING THERE
How To Reach The Park
From Arusha town. Around 25 km to the Ngurdoto gate, forty five minutes on tarmac.
From Kilimanjaro International Airport. About 60 km, an hour, which makes the park a genuinely practical first stop straight off a flight.
From Moshi. Roughly an hour and a half.
To the Meru trailhead. Momella gate, in the northeast of the park, is about an hour from Arusha town.
Because it is so close to town, many travellers do Arusha as a day trip rather than staying inside the park, which works well for the drives, the walk and the canoe.
WHERE TO STAY
Lodges And Camps
Hatari Lodge. On the northern boundary looking at Kilimanjaro across the plain, on the farm where the 1962 film Hatari was shot. The most characterful option.
Rivertrees Country Inn. A converted farmhouse on the Usa River between the park and Arusha, a favourite first and last night on Tanzanian itineraries.
Arusha Coffee Lodge. On a working coffee plantation outside town, convenient for the airport.
Momella Wildlife Lodge. Simple rooms by the lakes inside the park, closest to the Meru trailhead.
On Mount Meru. Miriakamba and Saddle huts, both basic bunkhouses included in trek packages.
Most travellers stay near Arusha or Usa River rather than inside the park, since the gate is so close.
SAFETY AND TRAVEL TIPS
What To Know Before You Go
Buffalo on foot. The main reason walks go with an armed ranger. Follow the ranger’s instructions without debate.
Meru altitude. The summit is 4,562 metres and altitude sickness is a real risk. The four day itinerary is considerably safer than the three day version.
The summit ridge. Meru’s final approach is a narrow crater rim with steep drops on both sides, walked in the dark. It requires a head for heights.
Cold. Mornings on the lakes and nights on the mountain are cold. Pack layers even if the rest of your safari is hot.
Book activities ahead. Canoeing and walking both need arranging in advance rather than at the gate.
Malaria. Present at lower altitude. Prophylaxis is advised.
TOURS WITH US
Safaris With Sola Safari Travels
We build Arusha in as the first full day of a northern circuit, particularly for travellers arriving in the afternoon at Kilimanjaro International. A morning canoe on the Momella Lakes and a walk on the Ngurdoto rim is a far better start than a rest day, and it eases you into the altitude before the crater.
For Kilimanjaro clients we recommend a three or four day Meru climb first wherever the schedule allows. It improves summit odds materially and it is a fine mountain in its own right. Park fees, ranger fees, canoe hire and trek packages are all arranged in advance, in a private vehicle with one driver guide throughout.
SAFARI PACKAGES
Safaris That Include Arusha
Arusha works as the first or last day of a northern circuit, forty minutes from the airport. All departures are private.
5 DAYS / 4 NIGHTS
5 Days Serengeti and Ngorongoro Safari
The endless Serengeti plains and a full morning on the Ngorongoro crater floor.
From $1,100 per person
7 DAYS / 6 NIGHTS
7 Days Kenya and Tanzania
The Masai Mara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater in one crossing. Our most booked route.
From $1,590 per person
10 DAYS / 9 NIGHTS
10 Days Ultimate East Africa
Amboseli, the Masai Mara, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater at an unhurried pace.
From $2,360 per person
KEY QUESTIONS
Arusha Safari, Key Questions
Yes, as the first or last day of a Tanzanian trip. It is forty minutes from Kilimanjaro International Airport and it is the only northern park where walking and canoeing are routine. It is not a Big Five park, so judge it on landscape, giraffe, colobus and activities rather than predators.
Because there are no lions in the park. That absence is what makes guided walks with an armed ranger and two hour paddles on the Momella Lakes possible, when both are prohibited in the Serengeti and on the Ngorongoro crater floor.
Around 50 US dollars per non-resident adult per day in high season and 45 in low season, with children five to fifteen at about 15 dollars. VAT at 18 per cent applies to Tanzanian park charges. Ranger fees for walks and canoe hire are charged separately.
Serious but non technical. Three or four days to 4,562 metres, with a narrow crater rim ridge on the final approach walked in the dark, which needs a head for heights. The four day version is significantly safer for acclimatisation than the three day.
If your schedule allows, yes. It is widely used as acclimatisation and improves Kilimanjaro summit odds materially, with the added benefit of being quieter and cheaper than the main mountain.
Half a day covers the Ngurdoto rim and the lakes circuit. A full day lets you add a walk and a canoe. The Meru trek is three or four days on its own.
EXPLORE MORE
Pair Arusha With Other Destinations
The park sits at the start of the northern circuit, with Kilimanjaro next door and the rest of the parks to the west.
Your Arusha Safari Starts Here
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TAILOR MADE SAFARI
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