Background Information

The remote and magnificent Mahale Mountains National Park is situated 300 km down the eastern shores of Lake Tanganyika and is the home to the world’s largest known population of chimpanzees; without a doubt one of the most beautiful national parks in Tanzania. Mahale Mountains National Park is only accessible via fly-in safari or private motor boat. The remoteness of this park is the very reason the chimpanzee population is still so unaffected by human familiarity. Most guests will see the chimpanzees at least once in a 3-4 day stay; however, sightings cannot always be guaranteed. Whilst chimps could be right behind the camp one day, the next they could be high in the mountains. This is a unique landscape whereby the mountainous land is covered in rainforest right up until the beach front.

Accommodations are located on these secluded beaches and are a mere walking distance from the shoreline of Lake Tanganyika. Walking safaris in the beautiful, lowland forest allow close encounters with a vast array of birds and animals, as well as the habituated chimpanzees. The chimp viewing is unpredictable as they can move quickly, but it is expected that they will be seen at least once in a 3-4 day stay. Lake Tanganyika, upon which this national park lies, contains more than 250 species of cichlid found nowhere else on earth, many of which can be viewed by snorkelling in the shallows along Mahale’s shoreline.