Lake Manyara 365
The vast Lake Manyara encompasses about two thirds of Lake Manyara National Park and forms part of a system of four lakes within the Great Rift Valley, which together sustain the entire flamingo population of East Africa, as well as an impressive concentration of bird species.
Although the park is known best for its flamingos, which come to feed on the algae, if you’re lucky you’ll also get a glimpse of the tree-climbing lions (notoriously hard to find), and the prolific leopards. The remaining part of the park offers a range of habitats, from grassy flood plains to dense acacia woodlands, each offering its own unique wildlife-spotting opportunities. Expect to see herds of zebra and wildebeest, elephant, impala, warthog and giraffe, while further out in the lake, you’ll find pods of hippo.
The park is small enough to be explored in a day, and combines well with a safari in one of Tanzania’s bigger parks, like the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire.