Despite its name, which means “abode of peace” in Arabic, Dar es Salaam is Tanzania’s largest and busiest city. It is the country’s most important business and commercial hub and is situated right on the Indian Ocean.

Dar es Salaam is the main port of call for most visitors, as it is an ideal location from which to access both the wilderness areas and the beaches of Tanzania and Zanzibar.

Tsavo East National Park is home to most of the larger mammals, vast herds of dust –red elephant, Rhino, buffalo, lion, leopard, pods of hippo, crocodile, waterbucks, Lesser Kudu, Gerenuk, and Hirola.

Officially Tanzania's smallest national park, tiny Rubondo Island in the heart of Africa's largest lake packs a lot into its 240 square km. Known as the Jewel of Victoria, Rubondo Island National Park boasts a unique diversity of flora and fauna, including the endemic Sitatunga.

The Samburu National Reserve lies on the hot and arid vast desert once known as the Northern frontier district. It is a less crowded reserve but offering great encounters. The heat scorched scrublands extending all way to the waters of Lake Turkana and beyond are the home to Samburu people who are cousins to the Maasai.

Weighing in at over four times the size of the Serengeti, the wild frontiers of the Selous Game Reserve are home to a dizzying number of animals, including over 200,000 cape buffalo, 80,000 wildebeest, 30,000 elephants, and the country's most stable African wild dog population. The park is also home to Tanzania's largest hippopotamus and crocodile populations.

Gombe Stream National Park is a great place to see chimps up close and personal, as many of the family groups are habituated to humans. With the possible exception of Mahale Mountains National Park, no other park in Africa can offer such a magnificent experience with chimpanzees.