Tsavo East National Park

Kenya's oldest and largest national park, Tsavo East's rugged volcanic landscape, is a haven for Kenya's northern and southern species.

Tsavo East National Park:
Destination Overview

 

Situated in Kenya's southeast, Tsavo is near the Tanzanian border and is close to the Kenyan coast. Named after the river that flows through the parks, Tsavo is split into two national parks, Tsavo East and Tsavo West, and is divided by the Mombasa-Nairobi highway. Tsavo East is one of the oldest, and is the largest national park in Kenya, and together with Tsavo West covers just over 20,000 square kilometres, or 4% of Kenya.

Spanning 13,747 square kilometres of pristine wilderness, it is also one of the most extensive protected areas in Kenya and has more biodiversity than any other park globally, as it marks the meeting point between northern and southern wildlife. It is 9 times bigger than the Maasai Mara and is well known for its mane-less lions, big herds of red dust-covered elephants, and cheetah.

Spotlight On:

The Maneless Lions of Tsavo East and the Man Eaters of Tsavo

Best time to Visit

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Visit Tsavo East National Park; What to see and do.

Tsavo East offers great wildlife viewing in pristine wilderness. All of the Big Five are here. Elephants are common, and their red dust coating makes them stand out against the arid environment. Of the big cats, lions are most easily spotted. Buffalo, zebra and plenty of Masai giraffes are some of the other animals you can expect to see. The park is a stronghold for elephants, and you’ll commonly find them with a reddish appearance from the distinctive red soil of the area. Tsavo is also famous for its maneless lions. Tsavo East has a good range of unusual antelope. This is one of the few places to see the fringed-eared oryx. The lesser kudu is very shy, but can sometimes be seen darting off into the bushes. The long-necked gerenuk can be found standing on its hind-legs to reach the sparse foliage of trees and bushes. With some luck, you might spot the critically endangered hirola or Hunter's hartebeest.

Birdlife

Tsavo East has an impressive checklist of over 500 bird species. It has many dry-country specials which are easy to spot, including the magnificent golden-breasted starling, golden pipit and vulturine guineafowl. The park is also the southernmost stronghold for the Somali ostrich. The park’s huge area is a significant wintering ground for migrant species from Europe. Migrant birds are present from November to April.

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