Getting to Mahale National Park

Getting to Mahale National Park is one of the various aspects to consider when planning a Tanzania safari tour in Mahale National Park. Mahale National Park is one of the best Tanzania safari destinations in Tanzania, which travellers can visit to enjoy a variety of attractions and activities in Mahale National park. apart from the usual game drive safaris which take travellers to some of the prime savannah parks of Tanzania like Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tarangire National Park and so many others, Mahale National Park is one of the best alternative to these, giving travellers an opportunity to enjoy the amazing attractions in Mahale National Park.

Mahale National Park is famous for chimpanzee tracking, rewarding travellers with amazing chimpanzee tracking safaris in the park. Mahale National Park can be reached by travellers after Mahale National Park safaris, in various ways. Basing on your itinerary plan however, your point of entry in Tanzania would be either Kilimanjaro International Airport in Arusha city, or Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam, the capital city of Tanzania. Depending on prior arrangements with your tour operator, you are usually picked up from the airport.

Getting to Mahale National Park can be done by road, but would take quite a long drive, from either Dar es Salaam or Arusha city, and thus travellers are advised on taking flights to access Mahale National Park, or by water. By water, getting to Mahale National Park can be done using a private motorboat, taking about 3-4 hours.

Getting to Mahale National Park
Chimpanzee Trekking in Mahale

It is however by air that travellers are best advised to access Mahale National Park. Travellers can fly into Kigoma Airport (TKQ), from where they can thus proceed with another charter flight to an airstrip in Mahale National Park. There are a number of domestic charter and scheduled flights to Kigoma Airport, and consequently to Mahale National Park, operating that travellers can use to access Mahale National Park. Most a times, these charter flights can be booked for you well in advance by your tour operator, or maybe could be advised accordingly. The various domestic airlines that travellers can use to access Mahale National Park include Regional Air, Zan Air, Safari Air Link, Coastal Aviation, as well as Air Tanzania.

To be able to get into Tanzania, and using any of the domestic flights in Tanzania, one ought to have proper documentation. Your tour operator should be in place to advise you correctly in this regard; a valid passport, visa, yellow fever vaccination cards, and of recent negative Covid-19 test results, are some of the most important documentations to be read with to be able to access Tanzania.

Mahale National Park regulations, are in place to be followed by travelers who do visit Mahale National Park. Some of the rules in Mahale National Park include;

  • Keep to the marked trails, which you do follow while on various activities in Mahale National Park including chimpanzee tracking.
  • Avoid making noise in the park, this stresses the animals.
  • Do not take pets or domestic animals in the park, it is a wild habitat for wild animals only
  • Do not take fire arms to the park
  • Do not litre the park, keep all your rubbish with you until you get to a rubbish pit.

Travellers who do visit Mahale National Park do look to enjoy various attractions and activities like chimpanzee tracking. A chimpanzee tracking permit is required to be allowed to do chimpanzee tracking in Mahale National Park. A single chimpanzee tracking permit is valid for entry of up to 24 hours only.

Getting to Mahale National Park
Getting to Mahale National Park

Apart from the chimpanzees, other attractions in Mahale National Park that travellers can see when they do get to the park include a series of Mountains including the Mahale Ranges, various primates like blue monkeys, Angola Colobus, birds, among so many others, as well as amazing beach shores of Lake Tanganyika from where one can enjoy boat safaris and amazing sunset views.

Getting to Mahale National Park is important to know, so as to be able to enjoy the various attractions and activities in Mahale National Park. it should be noted that getting to Mahale National park is not the easiest or cheapest place to get to, but if one is really after chimpanzee tracking in Tanzania and more, be sure that you shall be aided if you do get in touch with a reputable tour operator to help you.

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