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Safiri Tanzania
Nyerere (Selous)

Destination guide

Nyerere (Selous)

A vast wilderness of the Rufiji River's channels and lakes, Tanzania's finest boat safari and the heart of the former Selous.

Nyerere National Park is one of Africa's largest protected wilderness areas, carved in 2019 from the northern, game-rich sector of the former Selous Game Reserve and named in honour of Tanzania's founding president, Julius Nyerere. Threaded by the mighty Rufiji River, whose maze of channels, lakes and sandbanks defines the landscape, it offers a safari experience unlike the classic northern parks: boat safaris past hippos and crocodiles, walking safaris through miombo woodland, and sightings of elephants, lions, buffalo and endangered African wild dogs. Remote, wild and refreshingly uncrowded, Nyerere is the jewel of the Southern Circuit.

By the numbers

2019

Established

from the former Selous Game Reserve

UNESCO 1982

Selous heritage

World Heritage Site

Rufiji

River

channels, lakes & superb boat safaris

~30,000 km²

Size

one of Africa's largest parks

Key stronghold

Wild dogs

for endangered African wild dogs

Boat safari

Signature safari

on the Rufiji, rare in Tanzania

Best time to visit

The dry season from June to October is the best time for game viewing, when wildlife concentrates along the Rufiji River and its lakes and the bush is thin. The green season from December to April brings lush scenery and superb birding, but heavy rains often see many camps close from around March to May.

Common questions

Nyerere National Park was created in 2019 from the game-rich northern part of the former Selous Game Reserve, north of the Rufiji River, and is now a full national park run by TANAPA; the reduced Selous Game Reserve continues in the southern sectors.
Nyerere is famous for boat safaris on the Rufiji River, a rare experience in Tanzania, alongside walking safaris and fly-camping, all in a vast, uncrowded wilderness that feels wilder than the northern parks.
June to October is best for wildlife along the drying river; December to April is lush and excellent for birds, but heavy rains around March to May flood tracks and close many camps.
Most visitors fly from Dar es Salaam to the park airstrips in under an hour, or take a road transfer of about five to six hours to the Mtemere or Matambwe gates.