Tsavo East National Park is among the oldest national parks in Kenya together with Tsavo West National Park forming Tsavo National Park the largest wildlife sanctuary in Africa as well the world covering a total area of 80,382 square meters, Tsavo East National Park is separated from Tsavo West National Park by a road and a railway.
Tsavo East National Park is the largest of two national parks covering an area of 4,535 square kilometers, the park is situated in the Southeast of Kenya near the Tanzanian border and is close to the Kenyan Coast. The park is located 333 kilometers southeast of Nairobi – the capital of Kenya and 173 kilometers northwest of Mombasa Town, neighboring Mkomazi Game Reserve in Tanzania and Chyulu Hills.
Tsavo East National Park’s terrain is generally flat and comprises of dry plains, swamps around the river and thorny bushes. Other features found in Tsavo East National Park include the Mudanda Rock which is a 1.6-kilometer inselberg of stratified rock that serves as a water catchment area supplying one of the dams in the park. The water point in the park is the Aruba Dam that was constructed in1952 across Voi River, another attraction in Tsavo East National Park is The Yatta Plateau – the longest lave flow in the whole world running over the western boundary of the park covering 290 kilometers, the plateau was formed from the neighbouring Ol Doinyo Sabuk Mountain.
Tsav East National Park was established in 1898, initially the area was home to the maneless male lions that terrorized the area, supposedly these lions killed 135 workers who were constructing the Uganda – Kenya Railway. The construction workers established thorny fences locally referred to as Bomas around their sleeping areas, however the man-eating lions climb over the fence and drag their victims from their tents. These lions were very fearless that they would even evade traps and dodge ambushes until they were shot dead by Lt. Col John Henry Patterson.
Wildlife in Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is home to a huge population of wildlife thriving in the park’s different range of habitants from vast savannah grasslands, swampy vegetation to semi – desert vegetation covered with thicket vegetation and open savannah vegetation.
Animals in Tsavo East National Park include the aardwolf, yellow baboon, bat, cape buffalo, bushbaby, bushbuck, caracal, African wildcat, cheetah, African Civet, dik-dik, African hunting dog, African dormouse, Blue Duiker, bush duiker, red duiker, eland, African elephant, bat-eared fox, greater galago, gazelle, large-spotted genet, small-spotted genet, gerenuk, giraffe, African hare, springhare, Coke hartebeest, hunter hartebeest, East African hedgehog, spotted hyaena, striped hyaena, rock hyrax, tree hyrax, impala, black-backed jackal, side-striped jackal, klipspringer, Lesser Kudu, leopard, lion, banded mongoose, dwarf mongoose, large grey mongoose, marsh mongoose, slender mongoose, white-tailed mongoose, black faced vervet monkey, Sykes’s monkey, fringe-eared oryx, clawless otter, ground pangolin, crested porcupine, cane rat, giant rat, naked mole rat, ratel, bohor reedbuck, black rhinoceros, serval, spectacled elephant shrew, bush squirrel, East African red squirrel, striped ground squirrel, unstriped ground squirrel, ibex, suni, warthog, waterbuck, common zebra, and Grevy’s zebra..
Birdlife in Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is home to over 500 bird species including many dry – country species, these birds include African finfoot, Black-faced sandgrouse, Fischer’s starling, Golden pipit, Golden-breasted starling, Lesser kestrel, Martial eagle, Northern brownbul, Pangani longclaw, Red-bellied parrot, Rufous chatterer, Shelley’s starling, Slender-tailed nightjar, Somali bee-eater, Somali bunting, Somali ostrich, Taita falcon, Taita fiscal, Vulturine guineafowl among others
Kenya Safari Activities to Do in Tsavo East National Park
Game viewing
Game viewing is the remarkable Kenya safari activity in Tsavo East National Park done on several trails running through the savannah plains and other habitats dominating the park, game viewing experience in Tsavo East is done as morning, afternoon, full day game drives and Night game drives.
From the comfort of your safari vehicle, you will be rewarded with excellent sighting of many animals like lions, leopards, cape buffaloes, gazelles, elands, antelopes among others.
Game drives in Tsavo East National Park are best done in early morning or evening when it is not too hot and the animals are seen coming out of their hiding, game drives also include the Lugard Falls a series of white rapids on the Galana River and the Yatta Plateau for a picnic lunch.
Bird Watching
Tsavo East National Park is one of the great birding destination in Kenya with over 500 different bird species thus being a haven for bird enthusiasts, notable bird species to lookout for in Tsavo East on a birding excursion include Somali bunting, Slender-tailed nightjar, Taita falcon, Taita fiscal, Rufous chatterer, Pangani long claw, Northern brownbul, Fischer’s starling, African finfoot, Vulturine Guinea fowl, Somali Ostrich, Somali bee-eater, Red-bellied parrot, Martial eagle, and Black-faced sandgrouse, among others.
Cultural Tours
Tsavo East National Park is surrounded by the Maasai people who are visited for a cultural experience, the Maasai of Kenya have one of the world’s distinctive cultures with special dress codes in the colorful shukas and nomadic lifestyle. On your visit, you will be entertained by local dances and drama, get a taste of the local cuisine, visit the bomas among other activities which will give you a deeper insight in the lifestyle and cultures of the Maasai people.
Guided Safari Walks
Tsavo East National Park is an incredible site for guided safari walks which are a great way to explore the park and its various habitats, guided safari walks offer you a chance to explore parts of the park that cannot be explored by the vehicle and get a chance to get a close-up encounter with the wildlife and birds.
This activity also allows you to visit the Galana River which is a great sight to see Nile crocodiles and other animals which flock the banks of the river to drink water.
When to Visit Tsavo East National Park
The best time to visit Tsavo East National Park is during the dry season from July to September and December to March, these months provide excellent wildlife viewing opportunities as the vegetation cover is less and animals are drawn to water sources especially to the river.
It is recommended to avoid March to May which receive long rains and October to November with short rains, in this seasin the roads become muddy and viewing of wildlife is more challenging and the day’s activities might be affected by torrential rains.
Where to stay in Tsavo East National Park
In Tsavo East National Park there are different accommodation options ranging from budget, midrange to luxury.
- Kilalinda Safari Camp
- Kiboko Camp
- Satao Camp
- Ithumba Camp
- Voi Safari Lodge
- Impala Safari Lodge
- Kilalu Camp
- Ndololo Camp
- Ashnil Aruba Lodge
- Leopard Lodge
- Manyatta Camp
How to get to Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is accessed using air, train or road transport.
By Road – the park is accessed using several routes from Nairobi and Mombasa, from Nairobi it is a journey of 333 kilometers accessing the park through Voi Gate. From Mombasa it is a journey of 173 kilometers and enter the park from the Buchuma Gate, visitors from the North Coast and Malindi can access the park from Sala Gate.
By Railway – use the Nairobi – Mombasa raily which runs through the Tsavo East National Park.
By Air – there are domestic/chartered flights from Wilson Airport to several airstrips serving the park.
