Lake Manyara: worth a half day, not a full one

The smallest park on the northern circuit and the one most often added for the wrong reason. Here is what it genuinely offers and where it sits in a sensible itinerary.

Where it is

On the road between Arusha and the Ngorongoro highlands, at the foot of the Rift Valley escarpment, about two hours from Arusha. It is directly on the way to everywhere, which is both its strength and the reason it gets misused.

The park is narrow — a strip between the escarpment and the lake — and only about 330 square kilometres, two-thirds of which is water.

What it is genuinely good for

Birds. Over 400 species, and the lake holds pelicans, storks and, when conditions suit, large numbers of flamingo. For anyone with an interest in birds this is the best two hours on the circuit.

The groundwater forest. Fed by springs at the base of the escarpment, it is dense, green and completely unlike the open country everywhere else. Blue monkey and baboon troops are abundant and easy to watch.

The escarpment views, particularly from the southern end of the park.

Manyara is a good half day and a disappointing full one.

The tree-climbing lions

The park’s marketing rests on them and it should not. Lions in Manyara do sometimes rest in trees, as they do in several places in East Africa. They are not numerous, they are not reliably found, and a great many visitors leave having seen none.

Book Manyara for the forest and the birds. If a lion is in a tree, treat it as luck.

Why it gets over-sold

It is on the road, the park fee is lower than the Serengeti‘s, and adding a night at a Manyara lodge is an easy way for an operator to lengthen an itinerary. A day here costs you a day that Tarangire or the Serengeti would use better.

Where it fits

• As a half day on the drive between Tarangire and the Ngorongoro rim.
• As a morning for anyone specifically interested in birds.
• As a first stop for a very short trip where Tarangire does not fit.

It does not warrant its own night in most itineraries, and we will say so when it appears in someone’s draft plan.

What you will see

Reliable: baboon and blue monkey in numbers, hippo at the pools, elephant in the forest, buffalo, impala, giraffe, and a great deal of birdlife.

Possible: lion, leopard, and flamingo on the lake, which depend entirely on water levels.

Not present: rhino, cheetah, and the open-plains species that need country Manyara does not have.

The honest summary

A lovely small park in a spectacular setting, badly served by being compared with its neighbours. Give it a morning on the way past and you will be glad you did. Give it a night and you will wonder where the day went.