Best time to visit Serengeti National Park

Written by: Yuna Tiya, Local Expert

What time of year should I visit the Serengeti?

No matter what time of year you visit, the Serengeti offers an extraordinary and unforgettable experience. However, the absolute best time to visit Serengeti National Park is from January to February or from June through September. Ideally you should plan your trip around the movement of The Great Migration.

For example, winter is the best time to see the galloping wildebeest in the Southern Serengeti, however, the park’s western corridor and the Northern Serengeti are the best places to spend the summer and autumn months. A reputable tour operator will have a fairly accurate idea of where the animals are headed and when and will likely adjust their itineraries for your Serengeti safari based on the herd’s movement.

If you travel during the dry season, from June to September, the bush thins out and wildlife is easier to see on your game drives as it gathers around the rivers and waterholes. Serengeti weather is fairly predictable. Temperatures in the Serengeti are relatively consistent with bright days and plenty of sunshine.

Daytime highs are typically in the upper-70’s to upper-80s. What’s more, there’s less chance of contracting malaria during the dry season since there are fewer mosquitos. If you’re planning to visit Ngorongoro Conservation Area, you may find it a bit cooler there as a result of the higher elevation. April and May is the wet season which sees heavy rains, with many lodges closing for this slower season.

What can I expect when I visit the Serengeti?

Naturally, the main attraction in the Serengeti is the wildlife viewing. Serengeti National Park is home to the highest concentration of large mammals on the planet, so it’s a safe bet you’ll see the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and black rhino) as well as a range of plains game such as giraffe, Grant’s gazelle, impala, kongoni, topi, and eland.

In addition, the beautiful African wild dog was reintroduced to the Serengeti in 2012 after disappearing in 1991. You’ll also have the chance to spot more than 500 species of birds, including ostrich and flamingo.

But while this may seem thrilling, nothing is more exciting than The Great Migration: the journey of more than one million wildebeest, zebra and other hoofed animals heading north towards the Maasai Mara in Kenya from the Serengeti. In April and May, the migrating herds pass through the Serengeti’s Western Corridor. To get to the Maasai Mara, the herds have to cross the Grumeti River and the Mara River where around 3,000 crocodiles lie in wait. For every wildebeest captured by the crocodiles, 50 drown.

When the dry season ends in late October, the migrating herds start to head south, back to the Serengeti. Around 250,000 wildebeest and 30,000 plains zebras die annually from drowning, predation, exhaustion, thirst, or disease during the migration. It’s survival of the fittest during these dramatic river crossings and part of the circle of life, but it’s a bittersweet, beautiful event to behold.

How many days do I need to visit the Serengeti?

The Serengeti is a massive national park that spreads out over 5,700 square miles in northern Tanzania, with over 3,700,000 acres of virgin savanna. The very name of the park alludes to its grand scale: the word “Serengeti” is an approximation of the word siringet used by the Maasai, which means “the place where the land runs on forever.”

That said, a minimum of four days is the ideal number of days for sufficiently exploring the Serengeti and its wildlife. As it is so extensive, you’ll need this time to spend driving around with your guide in your safari vehicle, looking for the Big Five and other animals. Four days will also give you enough time to experience a variety of weather patterns. If you visit during the wildebeest migration, which is peak season, you’ll likely encounter crowds, which could mean that it takes even more time to travel around the park.

It’s advisable to spend at least three to four nights during the Great Migration, too, which will increase your chances of seeing as many animals as possible and making the most of your safari.