Big five destination – Tanzania

One of the main reasons people travel to Tanzania is the chance to see the Big Five. Tanzania is one of the few places in Africa where you can see all five of them, in their natural habitat of course! In this blog, we tell you which parks to visit to see them all!

What are the Big Five?

The term Big Five is used commonly and has been for a long time, but its background is less pleasant. It used to be very popular among hunters to shoot an animal from the Big Five. These would be the animals that are the most difficult to hunt. Fortunately, today these animals are not hunted anymore, and we only shoot beautiful photographs of them with a camera.
Many tourists, who come to Tanzania, have the goal to take home a lot of beautiful photos of each Big Five animal as a memory.

Why is Tanzania the best destination to see the Big Five?

Each animal lives in a certain environment. While in many other African countries, it is hard work to spot wildlife, it is somehow “easier” in Tanzania. This is because the concentration of wild animals in Tanzania is very high. Nature is still untouched and the conditions that the animals need are nowhere as good as in Tanzania. Your safari guide can tell you more about this during your safari.

See the animals in their natural habitat

While you are on safari in Tanzania, you see that this country gives you the real African safari experience because nature is still untouched. While tarmac roads have been built and fences have been placed around the parks in other countries, you will not encounter this in the Tanzanian national parks. This provides you with the ultimate safari feeling.

Which animals make up the Big Five

1. Leopard
2. Lion
3. Elephant
4. Rhino
5. Buffalo

No. 1: Lion

The lion is perhaps the most popular animal of the Big 5. You can find lions in groups of up to 25 individuals. You can find lions in most Tanzanian national parks, and Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, the Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park are no exception. The latter is the most famous national park in the world and is regarded as the best place to spot lions. Here you will find the highest concentration of big cats in the world. Big cats include: leopard, lion and the cheetah.

No. 2: Leopard

A leopard is one of the more difficult Big Five animals to spot. They mostly sit in trees and often hunt either early morning or evening. When they catch their prey, they take it up a tree. Many confuse a leopard with a cheetah, however, a cheetah is smaller, slimmer and much faster. Also, cheetahs don’t climb trees, because they have no claws. You can spot leopards in the same national parks mentioned for lions.

No. 3: Elephant

The elephant is a member of the Big Five that you can hardly miss in Tanzania. There are a lot of elephants in Tanzania. The best national park to spot elephants is Tarangire National Park. Here you can sometimes spot over a hundred elephants at once at the Tarangire River. Fortunately, the elephant population has grown in Tanzania over recent years. This is because illegal hunters are currently severely punished.

No. 4: Rhino

The rhinoceros is the most difficult to spot. It is an endangered species and therefore very rarely seen. Rhinos can be found in both Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater. Our customers see the rhino more regularly in the crater, and the population is slowly growing in numbers at the moment. Again, because illegal hunting is severely punished, and the focus is on conservation rather than hunting these days.

No. 5: Buffalo

The buffalo is a member of the Big Five that is easy to spot. It can be found in all Tanzanian national parks. Buffalos live in large groups. They are very strong animals but are also herbivores and only eat grass.

Would you like to see the Big Five after reading this blog? View our most fantastic Tanzania Safaris.