TOUR OVERVIEW
Mkomazi National Park is situated in the Kilimanjaro and Tanga regions of northeastern Tanzania, close to the Kenyan border. 1951 saw the establishment of a game reserve, and in 2006 it was elevated to the status of national park.The Acacia-Commiphora vegetation that predominates in the park's 3,200 km2 lies adjacent to Kenya's Tsavo West National Park.
The region that is commonly referred to as "Mkomazi" is actually the combination of two earlier game reserves: the Mkomazi Game Reserve in the west (in the Same District of Kilimanjaro Region) and the Umba Game Reserve in the east (in the Lushoto District, Tanga Region); these reserves are occasionally referred to as the Mkomazi/Umba Game Reserves in official documents. Mkomazi is the largest of the two, with a longer shared boundary with Tsavo West National Park and more diversity in topography and habitat. "Mkomazi" shall refer to the Mkomazi and Umba reserves collectively for the remainder of this section.
The main source of water in Mkomazi comes from the Umba River in the southeast. Apart from that, the park sees very little precipitation all year round making game drives along the river area definitely worthwhile.
Mkomazi National Park is one of the few places where you can see endangered black rhinos in Tanzania,
You’ll also have the chance to see endangered wild dog as well as many other species such as giraffe, eland, hartebeest, zebra, buffalo, elephant and the long necked gerenuk. Bird spotting is excellent with more than 450 avian species recorded including endemics such as the cobalt-chested vulturine guinea-fowl and other large ground birds such as ostrich, kori bustard, secretary bird and ground hornbill. Migratory species are also present here such as the Eurasian roller.
TOUR ITINERARY
We will collect you up at around 7 AM from your Moshi lodging, and we'll drive for almost two hours to get to the Mkomazi National Park entrance. Before we begin the visit, we'll pause for a moment to let you check in and to get information about when you want to visit the rhino sanctuary.
You will most likely encounter zebras, giraffes, elephants, ostriches, a variety of birds, and antelope over the majority of your game drive. The Pare Mountains define the vista, and the landscapes are equally breathtaking.
We'll take you to the rhino refuge at some time during the day, according on the park rangers' schedule. Here, you will first learn a little bit about the number of black rhinos in Tanzania and beyond, as well as about the breeding program that has been established at Mkomazi to help prevent their extinction. After that, you'll board a designated open safari vehicle with a local ranger to visit the public area of the sanctuary and witness a rhino.These rhinos can be seen and are not now included in the breeding program; instead, they are free-roaming animals. We specifically urge that you follow the ranger's instructions, such as being calm when approaching a rhino to avoid upsetting them.
Later in the afternoon, you will depart from the park after we serve a picnic lunch inside.