Description: This untouched uninhabited area is home to the biggest herds of elephant and other wildlife to be found anywhere in the world. The large meandering Rufiji River with its network of channels, connecting lakes and lagoons offers visitors the unique opportunity to go on safari by boat and experience the spectacular concentration of wildlife from an unusual perspective, especially during the dry season when animals congregate.
Game drives and walking excursions are also very rewarding. There are elephant, hippos and rhino (although few now remain). This reserve contains about one third of all the wild dogs (often called painted dogs), in the world.
Location: Southern Tanzania, between Ruaha and Dar es Salaam, usually reached by flight from Arusha or Dar es Salaam. Works nicely with a visit to Ruaha National Park. Can be reached by vehicle from Dar es Salaam and Arusha with long drives. It is also possible to arrive by train from Dar es Salaam.
Things 2 Do: Game Drives, Boat Safaris, Walking Safaris, Fly Camping
Time: Given the distance, spend at least 3 nights. Best during the dry season.
Animals: All the usual: Elephant, Nyassa Wildebeest, Crawshays Zebra, Masai Giraffe, several different antelopes, African Buffalo, Lion, Leopard and primates (Reddish-green Vervet Monkey, Yellow Baboon, Tanzanian Sykes Monkey and Peters’s Angolan Colobus). Tanzania as a whole contains approximately 20% of the overall wild dog population, with Selous having the largest single population in Africa.
Accommodations
$$$$
Jimbiza Selous Lodge
Lake Manze
Rufiji River Camp
$$$$$
Beho Beho
Serena Mivumo River Lodge
The Retreat Selous
Sand Rivers Camp
Selous Impala Camp
Selous Safari Camp
Selous Wildlife Lodge
Selous Wilderness Camp
“Very pleased. A2T clearly respects Africa (Tanzania) #1, and knows how to help first time travelers to Africa prepare to travel, respect local customs and enjoy a lifetime experience. I respect that your drivers are all A2T employees not contract guides. We asked them about working for A2T and they were enthusiastic about achieving a very good job with a good company. They were responsive to our group, personable in every way, and let us know through occasional humor that they enjoyed us and their work.
They really became the heart of the safari experience with their incredible skills and knowledge and ability to know where they were in what seemed to me like the middle of nowhere. I am one of those travelers that likes to know where I am on the planet, and I was totally in awe of driving around Nngorongor and the Serengeti without a sense of direction. I loved it.”