Tanzania & Zanzibar Luxury Honeymoon

Quick Facts

• Special Status: UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Location: Northern Tanzania
• Land mass: 54,600 km²
• Mammal species: Unrecorded
• Bird species: 440
• Big 5 reserve: Yes

Activities

• Game drives
• Walking safaris
• Boating safaris
• Fishing
• Fly camping

Highlights

• World-leading motorboat safari
• Exceptional camps
• A variety of guided activities
• Good wild dog populations
• The largest wildlife sanctuary in Africa with low visitor numbers

The enormous Selous Game Reserve is the largest wildlife sanctuary in Africa. With a land mass of more than 50,000 km² it is larger than the European nation of Switzerland. It dwarfs its more illustrious contemporaries, being four times larger than the Serengeti National Park  and almost 3 times larger than Kruger National Park.

It is situated in the southern part of Tanzania. Its geographical proximity to and relatively short flight duration from Dar es Salaam, and therefore the Zanzibar Archipelago ensures it is an ideal destination when designing a safari and beach combination package. It also forms the so-called southern circuit with little visited but mightily impressive Ruaha National Park.

The Selous Game Reserve, although immense in size, only offers a relatively small amount of its land to photographic safaris. The area north of the Rufiji River is known as the photographic area and is open to tourists for regular safari activities. A much larger area of the reserve south of the river remains divided up into hunting concessions. This is something we do not support or feel comfortable about.

The Selous is an excellent choice for those wanting an authentic safari without the throngs of tourists that blight some of the more famous parks across the continent. It supports large numbers of wildlife, however due to its sheer size the densities may not appear as impressive as the parks in the north of the country, namely the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. The experience here is more about diversity than abundance, although you certainly won’t be disappointed with the numbers you do manage to see. The reserve is a Big 5 destination and also has all the usual suspects present such as cheetah, giraffe, and the antelope species. The reserve’s real draw is its reputation as being one of the best places on the continent to see African wild dogs. Their densities are greater here than in many other reserves. It is recognised as arguably having the greatest diversity of any other reserve in Africa. This is likely due to its position in an ecological transition zone where the vast open plains of Northern Tanzania and Kenya meet the more woodland type habitats of Zambia. This attracts rarer species such as roan , sable, puku, lesser kudu, and greater kudu.

The presence of the Rufiji River bisecting the reserve lends itself well to water-based activities. The Selous arguably does motorboat safari better than anywhere in Africa. It is this perspective that brings guests up close to huge pods of hippopotamus and Nile crocodiles.

Although geographically close to the international airport at Dar es Salaam guests overwhelmingly elect to fly-in to the Selous due to poor road infrastructure.

Best Time To Visit

The climate of the Selous Game Reserve can be simplified by dividing it into the dry season and wet season. Each season, and indeed the months within each season, offers you a different experience. There is no time of year that offers you the best of everything so we provide you with a balanced account throughout the year so you are able to make an informed decision on the best time to visit based on your preferences.

The dry season runs from June to October with the wet season beginning in November and lasting until May. Selous is located close to the equator ensuring temperatures and humidity remain consistently high throughout the year. There is a slight variation leaning towards cooler temperatures and less humidity from June to August with the warmer and stickier months occurring between November and April.

Rainfall is at its highest from December to May with a significant peak in March and April. There is a sharp reduction of rainfall in May before the rains give way to sun and clear skies to mark the dry season in June. The dry season lasts through October until the weather breaks in November. However, this month will often only see short, sharp showers and won’t disrupt your safari in any way.

Wildlife viewing, as with most locations, is more prolific in the dry season and this improves month on month as the season wears on. The dry landscape exposes wildlife and their behaviour becomes predictable as they congregate around water sources.

Unfortunately, the best time to view wildlife coincides with the highest prices of the season. The high season is generally considered to be July to October with the remaining months being considered the low season. All camps close in the wettest part of the year, usually from mid-March through May.

Selous is blessed with extremely low tourist numbers throughout the year, therefore crowding around sightings is unheard of. Even encountering other safari vehicles is a rarity.

The bush is at its most lush during and soon after the rains. This time is usually the best time of year to visit for those wanting to see a large abundance of migratory birds. As the dry season wears on the vegetation dies off and the land takes on a parched appearance.