Tourists approaching buffalo on a walking safari.
An analysis of more than 2500 reviews from safari travelers and African travel experts have rated the following parks as the best for safaris on the continent: Serengeti National Park, MalaMala Game Reserve and Mana Pools National Park.
SafariBookings.com, an online marketplace for African safari travel, has published a definitive ranking of the 10 best safari parks in Africa. The analysis was based on more than 2500 reviews – a total of 1670 reviews were contributed by safari-goers from 72 countries; another 860 park reviews were written by renowned industry experts. This experts include guidebook authors from Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Frommer’s, Bradt and Footprint. Reviews from both first time and experienced safari-goers make up the results.
Sweeping first place was the people’s favorite, magnificent Serengeti in Tanzania – it polled an impressive rating of 4.9 out of 5. It was followed by South Africa’s MalaMala Game Reserve, and Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe. Oddly, Kruger National Park didn’t feature in the Top 10 despite South Africa holding two of the top 10 spots. This was surprising given how highly regarded Kruger is in the safari industry.
Serengeti thoroughly deserved first position in our study as it is universally loved for its wildlife, profusion of predators, and astonishing wildebeest migration. MalaMala Game Reserve is popular for the rich and famous, offering luxurious accommodations and some of the best wildlife viewing in Africa. Watching wildlife while bobbing down the Zambezi in a canoe, with the unspoiled wilderness of Mana Pools on either side, is an unforgettable experience.
Remarkably, Kenya’s only foray into the top 10 is on the back of the Masai Mara National Reserve (despite the country having 9 parks that rank in the top 50). The park really on the move is South Luangwa in Zambia which jumped from 11th in 2015 to 5th place in 2018.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
