Tarangire National Park

Tarangire was my favorite park, rather unexpectedly.  I feel like it's the unsung hero of Tanzania; the little brother to the Serengeti.  It's vast -- not nearly as vast as the Serengeti, but it almost felt bigger because we hardly saw another game drive vehicle in two days.  It made me feel incredibly small to be out for an entire day and see only animals and maybe 2 other vehicles.  Other than rhino, we saw every wildlife species I could imagine, including 2 cheetah on a kill.  

Tarangire has seen a bit of rain in the past year, so what is marked as "swamps" on the map are currently more like shallow lakes.  These team with birdlife and attract herds of zebra, elephant, wildebeest, buffalo and more.

Tarangire National Park also offers bushwalks, canoeing, night game drives, and hot air balloon safaris.  So if you like to stay active while on safari and have a variety of activities to choose from, it might be wise to spend 2-3 nights here.  I had two nights at Honeyguide Camp and had wished for at least three.  The full day game drive was an experience I would recommend to most people planning a Tanzania trip.