1 day Mikumi in a Day, by Train
The six o’clock train to Morogoro, a full day of game drives on the Mkata floodplain, and the evening train home. No overnight, no long drive.
Wildlife
Mikumi by Train — a Weekend
Out on Saturday’s train, back on Sunday’s. Two days in the Mkata floodplain without taking leave, and no eight-hour drive at either end.
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At a glance
- Destinations
- Mikumi National Park
- Best for
- Wildlife safari
- Travel style
- Mid-range · SGR train, Drive
- Activity level
- Easy — most of the day is spent in a vehicle or on a boat
- Best time to travel
- Mikumi is accessible year-round, with June to October generally offering drier game-drive tracks. For a short train weekend, confirm departure times and the road transfer as well as the park conditions; wetter months favour greener scenery and birds.
- Start and end
- Starts and ends in Dar es Salaam
Why this journey
- Train to Morogoro, then a short drive to the park gate
- The Mkata floodplain, which reads like a small Serengeti
- Afternoon and morning game drives at the right hours
- Elephant, buffalo, zebra and lion on open ground
- Back in Dar by Sunday evening
Day by day
Mikumi is the closest of the southern parks to the coast, and the SGR removes most of the journey. The Mkata floodplain gives open, easy game viewing — this is the weekend version of it.
Day 1 — Dar es Salaam to Morogoro to Mikumi NP
Early morning airport or agreed-point pickup, then transfer to the train station for the morning SGR service departing at 06:00 and arriving Morogoro at 07:40. A driver-guide meets you for the 2-hour drive to the park. After checking into the bandas and breakfast, a game drive runs until sunset. The park hosts Elephants, buffaloes, Lions, leopards, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, Impala, Eland Worthog and about 300 species of birds.
Stay Camp Bastian Meals Lunch & Dinner
Day 2 — Mikumi NP to Morogoro to Dar es Salaam
An early morning game drive to see active wildlife at the scenic waterholes. After breakfast and a short lunch break, return to Morogoro for the return SGR train. On arrival at Dar es Salaam station, staff arrange transport to your airport or hotel.
Meals Breakfast & Lunch
Stay and travel
Comfortable mid-range lodges and tented camps, inside the parks wherever the route allows.
The standard-gauge train for the long leg out of Dar es Salaam, then a 4×4 with a roof hatch.
Camps fill, and roads change with the rains. Where something has to change we substitute at the same level and tell you before you travel, not after.
Included and excluded
What is included
- Every activity named in the day-by-day
- Accommodation as listed, or a similar alternative if a camp is full
- Meals as noted against each day
- Transfers between the agreed pick-up and drop-off points
- Park, reserve and conservation area fees
- An English-speaking Tanzanian driver-guide
- A 4×4 with a roof hatch, or the vehicle the route calls for
- Drinking water through the day
- Government taxes
- Boat safari and transfers
- TANAPA armed ranger where the park requires one
Not included
- International flights, airport taxes and visa fees
- Travel, medical and baggage insurance
- Personal spending — drinks, laundry, telephone
- Tips for your guide and crew
- Anything not listed as included
Practical information
- Visas, insurance and tipping
- A visa is arranged before travel or on arrival. Travel and medical insurance is a condition of booking. Tipping is customary and we will suggest a range rather than set one.
Related journeys
1 day 2 days Mikumi & the Chizua Waterfall
A game drive on the floodplain and a walk into the Uvidunda hills behind it, where the Chizua falls come down through the forest.
Wildlife & Hiking
3 days Mikumi at the Top End
The train out, a private vehicle at the other end, and a lodge worth staying in. Three days in Mikumi with nothing shared and nothing rushed.
Wildlife
Every route here can be changed
Tell us what you would keep, what you would drop and how long you have. We will send back a version that is yours.