The Serengeti is always amazing, no matter the time of year.
When planning a trip to Tanzania, the main focus for most travelers is, understandably, the Great Migration experience.
However, we invite you to look beyond the ‘Great Migration alone’ (which, being a natural phenomenon, is not always predictable or guaranteed) and discover the Serengeti’s many other wonders.
To do that, let’s find out the best time to visit this magnificent park.
Serengeti National Park: here’s the best time to visit this Tanzanian park
Follow the Great Migration or avoid the Great Migration? That is the question (but not really)
Serengeti National Park offers extraordinary wildlife-viewing opportunities all year round—you just need to know when to go and where to witness one of the last true spectacles of nature: the Great Migration.
For example, winter is the best time to see the herds in the southern Serengeti, while the Western Corridor and northern Serengeti are the best places to spend the summer and autumn months.
It’s worth keeping in mind that, even in this part of the world, nature is unpredictable.
For this reason, luck plays an important role in witnessing the iconic phenomenon of two million animals crossing a river, with the rapids shaking their bodies and crocodiles lurking near their hooves. While some times are certainly better than others, sightings can never be guaranteed.
That said, if you choose the right area of the Serengeti and the right time of year, the large herds are usually easy to spot, and there is a good chance of witnessing a spectacular migratory movement.
To learn more, read this guide to the Great Migration.
Although most travelers can’t wait to catch sight of the wildebeest’s spectacular journey, Serengeti National Park has much more to offer.
Pride of lions sunbathing on a rock, a leopard lounging lazily on an acacia branch, and a cheetah chasing a gazelle at full speed (okay, okay—we may be aiming high here).
Keep in mind that choosing to follow the Great Migration can have a few downsides.
First, the areas where you can witness this phenomenon tend to be particularly crowded. Second, most predator species (and most other wildlife too, except zebras and wildebeest) are territorial and do not stray far from their territories, so there is no real need to follow the crowd.
Read also: Vaccines before a trip to India: everything you need to know
So, when is the best time to avoid the crowds?
Seeing big cats—whether it’s a leopard, a cheetah, or a pride of lions—attracts many safari vehicles. Most visitors are obsessed with big cats and the Big Five: they feel they’d be missing out if they didn’t join a sighting.
In fact, just a few minutes after a big-cat sighting is reported over the radio, all the vehicles gather at the indicated spot. And that’s when the chaos begins: crowded roads and safari vehicles stuck in unbelievable traffic jams.
And rightly so, you might think: if I wanted to sit in traffic, I’d have stayed in Milan. And you’d be absolutely right.
Seronera is home to many lodges and campsites and is the most accessible part of Serengeti National Park. As a result, within a 10-kilometer radius of Seronera, the road network is crowded with safari vehicles. In short, being in the wrong place at the wrong time might make you think the Serengeti is too crowded.
But that’s not really the case: you simply need to go farther afield—or rather, drive a bit more—to avoid these bottlenecks.
To get around the crowds, or to experience Serengeti National Park as it should be experienced, we recommend splitting your safari itinerary in two: one part of the trip in the heart of the migration action (and yes, vehicle traffic will be heavier), and the other part in a remote area, in the off-season.
The best options for the latter are the Western Corridor between August and October or the Mara Serengeti area between November and June. In these areas, visitor numbers are far lower, while the quality of wildlife viewing is almost as good—or just as good—as in the Seronera area.
If, on the other hand, you’d rather have the Serengeti all to yourself, the best solution is to travel in the low season. The periods when visitor numbers are low and campsite rates are significantly lower are:
- from mid-March to mid-May (long rains);
- from early November to mid-December (short rains);
- the last two weeks of January.
This is the best season to visit the Serengeti
Most travelers choose the dry season (from late June to October) for a safari in Serengeti National Park.
Animals gather around rivers and waterholes to drink. The Great Migration is at its absolute peak, and the chances of witnessing an iconic river crossing are at their highest.
So here are some pros and cons of choosing the wet season or the dry season to visit the park.
Advantages:
● dense vegetation thins out, making wildlife easier to spot;
● animals gather around rivers and waterholes;
● days are bright and very sunny, with afternoon temperatures around 25°C;
● there are fewer mosquitoes;
● it is easier to spot the Great Migration (including those iconic river crossings, if you’re lucky).
Disadvantages:
● the park is crowded, especially in the Seronera area;
● nights and early mornings are relatively cold, with lows around 14°C.
Now let’s look at the pros and cons of the wet season, from November to May.
Advantages:
● late January to early February is the best time to witness predator action;
● the landscape is green and lush;
● there are fewer tourists and lower rates, especially in April and May;
● birdwatching is at its best;
● from November to February, rainfall mostly comes in short afternoon storms and rarely interferes with travel.
Disadvantages:
● from March to May is the peak of the wet season; it tends to rain almost every day, although rarely for the whole day;
● it is often cloudy;
● from January to March, the Seronera area can be crowded.
Read also: Where to see penguins and the ocean’s other ‘Big 5’ on an unforgettable marine safari
Conclusions
Well, in this article we’ve gone on at length about the best time to visit Serengeti National Park. We hope you found it helpful!
If you don’t feel like dealing with all the planning on your own and would rather rely on someone who—believe it or not—organizes group trips to this very park… all you have to do is click the link below.
