A vast, remote park in south-central Tanzania where the Great Ruaha River draws elephants, big cats and kudu through baobab country
Ruaha National Park feels like old-style safari country. West of the highland town of Iringa, the land opens into rolling bush studded with giant baobabs, granite outcrops and dry sand rivers, cut through by the Great Ruaha River, whose name the park authority links to a Hehe word for a great river. In the dry season the river shrinks to pools and channels, and wildlife from across the region concentrates along its banks.
Its mix of river, savannah and miombo woodland supports a wide range of species: greater and lesser kudu, roan and sable antelope, Masai giraffe, large herds of buffalo and elephant, and lions, leopards, cheetahs, spotted hyenas and wild dogs. More than 570 bird species have been recorded. Camps are few and far apart, which means you can often watch animals without another vehicle in sight.
German colonial authorities first protected part of the area as the Saba Game Reserve in 1910. Under British rule it was renamed the Rungwa Game Reserve in 1946, and in 1964, soon after independence, its southern section was upgraded to Ruaha National Park. In 2008 the Usangu Game Reserve and neighbouring wetlands, important for the flow of the Great Ruaha, were added, making Ruaha one of the largest parks in the country.
Ruaha forms the heart of the wider Rungwa-Kizigo-Muhesi ecosystem of around 45,000 square kilometres, which includes neighbouring game reserves and a wildlife management area. Poaching took a heavy toll in the early 2010s, with elephant numbers in the Ruaha-Rungwa ecosystem estimated to have fallen from about 34,000 in 2009 to roughly 16,000 in 2015. Conservation work today focuses on anti-poaching, protecting the river's water flow, and reducing conflict between people and predators on the park's edges.
The park takes its name from a word in the language of the Hehe, the people most closely associated with the Iringa region. Iringa itself is a highland town with markets and cafés, and villages on the approach road through Tungamalenga offer simple guesthouses. Many households around the park keep livestock, so conservation programmes here often work on protecting cattle bomas from lions and sharing the benefits of tourism.
Game drives follow the river and its tributaries, where elephants dig for water in the sand, predators wait near drinking spots and hippos and crocodiles crowd the remaining pools. Guided walking safaris, available in designated zones with authorised rangers, are one of the best ways to appreciate the scale and detail of the landscape, and some operators run fly-camps on foot. Night drives need specific permission.
Ruaha rewards a longer stay. Three or four nights give time to explore different areas, from the river circuits to the drier woodland further out. It pairs naturally with Nyerere National Park for a southern safari, or with a road journey through Iringa, Mikumi and the Udzungwa Mountains.
The dry season from roughly June to October is best for wildlife, as animals concentrate along the river and the bush thins out; it gets hotter and dustier towards October and November. The green season brings lush scenery, newborn animals and excellent birding, but some tracks become muddy and rivers can rise.
Checked against the sources on 28 October 2026. Opening times and fees can change — confirm before you go.
General guidance from our specialists, not official information.
Iringa, about 130 km to the east, is the nearest town, with banks, fuel, markets and accommodation, and a convenient overnight stop on the road from Dar es Salaam or Mbeya. The Udzungwa Mountains and Mikumi National Park lie further east along the route towards Morogoro. Scheduled and charter flights use the Msembe and Jongomero airstrips inside the park.
Created in 2019 from the northern part of the vast Selous Game Reserve, Nyerere National Park covers about 30,900 square kilometres of river, woodland and plain along the Rufiji River. It is known for boat safaris among hippos and crocodiles, guided walks and one of Africa's key strongholds for wild dogs.
ExploreEstablished in 1964, Mikumi covers about 3,230 square kilometres between the Uluguru and Udzungwa mountains, with the open Mkata floodplain at its heart. Its position on the main highway west of Morogoro makes it the easiest park in southern Tanzania to reach by road, ideal for a short safari from Dar es Salaam.
ExploreGazetted in 1992, Udzungwa protects about 1,990 square kilometres of the Eastern Arc Mountains, rising from around 200 metres to 2,576 metres. It is a park for walkers, with forest trails, the multi-tiered Sanje waterfalls and endemic primates such as the Udzungwa red colobus and Sanje mangabey.
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Tanzania · 10 nights5★ LodgeTanzania · 8 nights5★ LodgeTanzania · 5 nights5★ LodgeThis guide was researched from the sources below and reviewed by our team on 28 October 2026. Facts under “Verified information” link to the page they were checked on; travel tips are general guidance. Photos are credited on each image. The ambient recording’s author and licence are shown in the sound player.
