Tanzania has more protected areas than any other African country with over 25% of the country's land being preserved as either national parks or game reserves. Tanzania currently has 13 national parks, 14 game reserves and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area as well as several protected marine reserves on the mainland and around Mafia island and the Zanzibar archipelago. The country's national parks are managed by the Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA) which is under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism. The game reserves fall under the jurisdiction of the Wildlife Division and the marine reserves under the Division of Fisheries which both in turn, fall under the responsibility of the same ministry.

Tarangire National Park
With an area of 2600 sq.km, this is one of the most beautiful protected aeas in northern Tanzania. It has the highest concentration of wildlife during the dry season, and is the only park in the area where one can find a large concentration of elephants year round. Tarangire is known for its river floodplains, wetlands, gently rolling hills, rocky outcrops, acacia woodlands and numerous baobab trees. The park is also home to oryx, greater and lesser kudu, lion, cheetah, generuk, wildebeest, zebra and more than 550 species of birds.

Ruaha National Park
Ruaha National Park is the second largest park in Tanzania (12950 sq.km). Together with Rungwe/Kizigo Game Reserve it forms the large Ruaha Ecosystem. The great Ruaha River flows through the entire eastern part of the park and it is the centre of wildlife activities during the dry months of June to November. The park has the second largest elephant population in the country. Other animals include wild dogs, greater and lesser kudu, sable and roan antelope, hippo, lion, leopard, cheetah and over 400 species of migrant and resident birds.

Mikumi National Park
Mikumi National Park is the third largest park in Tanzania (3230 sq.km). The main feature is the flood plain of Mkata River, together with the Uluguru mountain ranges which border the park on two sides. The flood plain are largely open grassland and is bordered in the west and east by wooded grassland and intermediate vegetational zones which merge with miombo woodland. Animals include elephants, giraffes and lions.

Selous Game Reserve
Is the largest game reserve in Africa (second largest in the world). Selous holds large numbers of wildlife, most of it along the mighty Rufiji River. Due to seasonal flooding, it has created along its course many permanent lakes which are centres of wildlife activity. In addition to a large population of elephants, there are buffalo, wildebeest, zebra, waterbuck, eland, lion, leopard, wild dogs, hippo, crocodiles, etc., and over 350 species of water and land birds. Only in Selous one can experience the thrill of a walking safari, which assures close contact with wildlife.

Serengeti National Park
This most famous game park in the world encompasses nearly 15,000 sq.kms and is unrivaled anywhere for its seasonally shifting concentrations of herbivores. Nearly 1.5 million wildebeest, 500,000 gazelle and 250,000 zebra completes a cyclical annual migration within the ecosystem between November and June. The Serengeti is also known for its large prides of lion, cheetah, wild dogs and leopard.

Lake Manyara National Park
Although one of the smaller Tanzanian parks (325 sq.kms) in the Rift Valley, Manyara boasts a large lake. During the months of July through April, the lake waters are tinged pink from the hundreds of greater and lesser flamingos who feed there. Other features of the park include its stable heards of elephants and buffalos, enormous troops of baboons and its famous tree-climbing lions.

Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Encompassing some 8300 sq.kms, this unique multiple land use area must be seen to be believed. The crater (a collapsed volcanic caldera) covers 250 sq.kms and is 611m deep. The crater floor contains alkaline and fresh water lakes and teems with large carnivores, herbivores, primates and birds. It also boasts one of the last viable populations of the nearly extinct black rhinoceros and the highest density of lions and spotted hyenas. A visit to the Ngorongoro Crater is like returning to prehistoric times when animals ruled the earth. Ngorongoro includes the world-famous archeological sites of Laetoli, with its fossil footprints of ancestral humans who walked the earth 3.6 million years ago, and Olduvai Gorge, which continues to yield a remarkable record of human evolution beginning some 2 million years ago.

Arusha National Park
Arusha National Park covers an area of about 137 sq.kms and is located near Arusha town between the peaks of Mt. Kilimanjaro and Mt. Meru. The Ngurdoto Crater, Momella Lakes, the highland mountain forest and the rugged Mt. Meru (4575m) are the four features of the park. There is a wealth of wildlife including the colobus monkeys, velvet monkeys, bushbucks, buffalos, red forest duikers, elephants and giraffes. More than 500 species of birds have been recorded.