Lake Manyara National Park

Visited: May. 2024 Reviewed: Sep. 09, 2024 Submitted in:

Lake Manyara National Park is truly one of Tanzania's hidden gems. During our visit, we were amazed by the park's diverse landscapes, from lush forests to open plains, and the shimmering lake itself. The park is a paradise for bird lovers, with thousands of flamingos and over 400 bird species creating a stunning spectacle on the lake's edge. One of the highlights was spotting the famous tree-climbing lions, something that makes Lake Manyara National Park unique. We also saw elephants, giraffes, zebras, and hippos up close, all set against the beautiful backdrop of the Great Rift Valley. The tranquility of this park, combined with the abundance of wildlife, makes it a must-visit on any Tanzania safari tour. Whether you're a seasoned traveler or a first-time safari-goer, Lake Manyara offers a perfect blend of adventure and natural beauty. If you're planning a safari to Tanzania, don't miss out on Lake Manyara – it's a smaller park, but it's packed with unforgettable experiences!

Visited: Oct. 2022 Reviewed: Nov. 20, 2023 Submitted in:

I recently had the pleasure of guiding a 4-day safari through Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara, and the Ngorongoro Crater with Dakado Tanzania Safari, and I must highlight the extraordinary experience we had in the picturesque Lake Manyara National Park. Lake Manyara National Park, a hidden gem within Tanzania, enchanted us during our 4-day safari. The park's captivating features, including the picturesque lake, diverse birdlife, and iconic tree-climbing lions, created a nature lover's paradise. The lush groundwater forest and knowledgeable park rangers further enriched our experience, offering insights into the park's ecology and conservation efforts. Lake Manyara National Park, often overshadowed by its more famous neighbors, stands as a testament to the harmonious coexistence of wildlife and nature, providing an unforgettable and unique safari experience.

Visited: Feb. 2022 Reviewed: Feb. 19, 2023 Submitted in:

I visited this park sometime last year to do the research on lion tree climbing, This is the only park in East Africa which is famous for its lion tree climbing, Most of the lions here like climbing trees. This also help them to spot the prey while they are far, It was a lovely experience.

Visited: Mar. 2021 Reviewed: Apr. 30, 2021 Submitted in:

Lake Manyara Park is famous for its tree-climbing lions, which tend to sprawl out along the branches of Acacia trees most of the day. It is also sanctuary to buffalo and hippo, giraffe, impala, zebra, elephants, blue monkeys and vervets, aardvark, civet, bushbuck, waterbuck, baboons, leopard and the shy pangolin.

Visited: Sep. 2020 Reviewed: Feb. 02, 2021 Submitted in:

This little park is situated in the Western branch of the Great Rift Valley and it’s characterized by the lake that takes the most part of it. The forest is thick and the animals must be tracked down, chased if you prefer, but there’s plenty of them hidden in every corner. A shy elephant eating in the middle of a bush, a family of vervet monkeys climbing some tree branch and scanning the horizon, a group of female impalas drinking in a quite environment. The roads are congested with huge families of baboons crossing, eating, combing through and carrying the little ones on their back. They are really one the features of the park, always present, always numerous. And then, there’s the lake. Majestic. Last September, when I went on a quick trip to Manyara, the rains had been abundant and the roads were difficult to run across, but I could anyway enjoy the day and admire this little jewel of the Great Rift Valley.

While on a long safari we got to see the rare tree-climbing lions and it was worth it. Apart from the lions, there is also a wide variety of various wildlife including birds which is a plus considering some tourists are birdwatchers. I'd recommend this park anytime despite it not being too large.

We were very pleasantly surprised with the shear abundance of wildlife at Lake Manyara. It's an assault on the senses - literally so many birds you don't know where to look. A beautiful place and well worth a visit.

Never seen so many baboons in my life. We drove half hour into the park into an opening on the lake that had 100's of baboons, zebras and flamingos running around. Saw at least 10 giraffes and 20-30 elephants you'll see a lot of similar wildlife: elephants, baboons, gazelles. We absolutely loved the hippo pool, but not necessarily for the hippos. It was because of the myriad of birds - literally 1000s of them flying around, sitting around, you name it, the birds were doing it. captured a long video of the birds flying as one this way and that. Very cool to see 1000s of birds flying across the horizon. Definitely worth a visit when coming to Tanzania for a safari.

I had visited Lake Manyara National Park as a day visitor before, as most people on the northern circuit in Tanzania do…just passing through. The day visits are rewarding, there is no doubt about that. The easy-to-reach areas are enough to allow a rewarding day visit. But there is more and I didn’t fully realise this until I had experienced it for myself. If you can spare the time, you will not be disappointed. Lake Manyara National Park has lots to offer. I saw my first silvery-cheeked hornbill here, my guide thought I had seen a leopard such was the level of my excitement! I spent two nights in the park and we seldom saw other vehicles. Once we started to go deeper into the park there were no other vehicles. In peak season I am sure there will be more vehicles but with just two camps in the park offering accommodation, even in peak season once you get to the area of where the camps are, there is little chance of crowds. The park is most famous for its tree-climbing lions, thanks to social media we know that there are ‘tree-climbing lions’ in many other parks! If you plan to visit only to see the tree-climbing lions, most likely you will be disappointed. I did see lion but they were not in trees. Perhaps it was the rain, when I asked my guide he did comment that he had seen plenty of lion, but the 'tree-climbing lions'. If you want to fall asleep to the sound of a lion calling and wake up to the cheerful chatter of birds and the smell of fresh Tanzania coffee brewing, this is the place for you. If you want to take the time to enjoy a lake shore walk and watch the sunset from the shores of the lake, this is the place for you. It doesn’t have the herds of wildebeest like the Serengeti, nor does it have the visibility of the Ngorongoro Crater. What it does have is excellent birding, a variety of fun activities that gets you out of the game drive vehicle, tall trees, herds of elephants and something exciting around every corner. Even when the bush is thick as it was when I visited in November, the wildlife enjoy the clearings as much as we do and you often come across open areas where the wildlife gather. You never know what is around the corner. We had great elephant sightings, lots of giraffe, zebra, waterbuck, hippo out of water, impala, a large (and entertaining) troop of baboons, blue monkeys and countless birds.

Lake Manyara National Park that the name of the park that's found in rift valley. It was amazing tour in this park of northern Tanzania, we saw many birds and animals.