Tsavo East National Park

Tsavo East National Park located in southeastern Kenya near Voi in Taita Taveta County is part of Tsavo national park which is divided into Tsavo East and Tsavo west national park by a railway line. Tsavo national park is named after Tsavo River which flows through the national park. The outlook of Tsavo east national park is generally flat with savannah grasslands and it is also semiarid. Tsavo east national park is endowed with a variety of wildlife and bird species.

The park can be accessed through Manyani gate, Voi gate, Buchuma gate, and Sala gate. The park is bigger compared to Tsavo west national park though both national parks offer great opportunities for wildlife viewing and other activities in the wild.

A trip to Tsavo east national park for a wildlife experience is often accompanied by trips to the coastal areas of Kenya for an experience on the Kenyan beaches. Tourists also make stopovers at Tsavo east national parks before proceeding to other tourist destinations on their itineraries.

The park offers great photography spots due to its landscape and the different wildlife and bird species that roam around the semiarid grasslands.

The park is accessible by road, railway and by air/ flight making it easy to journey to this national park to view its attractions. Airstrips in Tsavo east national park include; Voi airstrip, Aruba airstrip, Satao airstrip, Sala airstrip, Ithumba airstrip, Sangayaya airstrip, Mopeo airstrip, Bachuma airstrip, and Cattar airstrip. These airstrips offer charter flights that connect from Jomo Kenyatta international airport and Moi international airport since scheduled flights to Tsavo east national park are not available.

The park is located east of the Nairobi- Mombasa highway and road access to Tsavo east national park can be made from the following areas;

Malindi through Sala gate
Mombasa through Voi gate

The park is the best choice of a tourist destination for a safari to sight the man-eating lions from the stories told about these lions during the construction of the railway through Tsavo national park. It was said that during the construction of the railway line, two man-eating lions attacked the railway construction workers and killed many before they were shot down. This, however, should not worry tourists as the lions are less likely to strike as they are viewed from a safe distance in Tsavo east national park.

Elephants can also be sighted easily in Tsavo east national park due to its wide plains which makes them stand out from the rest of their surroundings. Other wildlife species include; aardwolf, yellow baboon, caracal, African wild cat, cheetah, dik-dik, blue duiker, eland, hartebeest, jackals, leopards, rhinos, buffalo, giraffes. Different bird species such as kestrels, buzzards, starlings, kingfishers, hornbills, secretary birds, and herons can also be sighted in Tsavo east national park.

The park is crossed by different rivers which act as water points for the different wildlife species. During the dry seasons in Tsavo east national park, these rivers are the perfect spots to view the wildlife as they gather around to quench their thirst due to the heat. The rivers which flow through Tsavo east national park include River Athi and Tsavo River which combine to form River Galana. Voi River also crosses through Tsavo east national park.

Tourist activities in Tsavo east national park include;

Game drives in Tsavo East national park through the grasslands offer a view of different wildlife species as they graze such as elephants, buffalos, baboons, zebras, warthogs, waterbucks, impala, hyenas, marsh mongoose, giraffes and many other species of wildlife. Game drives are available at different times of day that is morning game drives, evening game drives, and full-day game drives. Morning and full-day game drives are recommended as they offer wider chances of catching sight of the wildlife species as they graze and go about their usual ways of life that are; how they feed and survival mechanisms. Night game drives are also allowed in Tsavo east national park and tourists are advised to stay in their cars and avoid going off the set trails for game drives.
Birding is another tourist activity that attracts tourists to visit the park as different bird species can be spotted such as; ostriches, starlings, marabou storks, and many other bird species can be sighted with the right equipment at the right birding spots.
Camping at different designated camping spots in Tsavo east national park allows a tourist to spend the night in the wild and enjoy the African night and sounds of nature in their surroundings.

Attractions in Tsavo national park include;

River Galana acts as a water point for different wildlife species in the park and is also a habitat for crocodiles. The source of river Galana is in the southeastern Kenya highlands and river Galana flows through Tsavo east national park and pours its water into the Indian Ocean north of Malindi.
Yatta plateau lies between river Athi and river Tiva and is the main relief feature characterized by plain wide and shallow spaced valleys. Yatta plateau was formed as a result of lava flows from Ol donyo Sabuk Mountain.
Lugard falls is a scenic stretch along Galana River characterized by rock patterns of cooled lava. Lugard falls was named after Lord Fredrick Lugard who was making his way through this region to Uganda. Lugard falls is an attraction within Tsavo east national park with sculpted channels and rocks through which interrupt the flow of the river and form rapids. At the bottom of the falls is a pool where crocodiles can be seen as well as buffalos and hippos.
Mubanda rock is a stratified rock that stands out from the rest of the scenery in Tsavo east national park located near Manyani gate. It is a water catchment area that attracts wildlife species to drink from it during dry seasons and this offers the tourists chance to view these wildlife species such as they drink water and bathe.
Aruba dam is found east of Voi gate and it acts as a drinking point for the wildlife species in Tsavo east national park. This dam was built by park authorities to supply the wildlife species with water during the dry season.
Kanderi swamp is found close to Voi gate in Tsavo east national park and it provides fresh water all year round for different wildlife species such as elephants, buffalos, antelopes, hartebeest, lesser kudu, and many other wildlife species.
Tsavo River runs through Tsavo east national park as well as Tsavo west national park and connects with River Athi to form Galana River.

Accommodation

Explore the hospitality that the park has to offer in the different accommodation facilities classified into luxury, mid-range and budget accommodation. They include;

Luxury accommodation; Kilalinda safari camp, Kiboko camp, Satao camp.
Midrange accommodation; Ithumba camp,Voi safari lodge, Impala safari lodge, Kulalu camp, Ndololo camp.
Budget accommodation; Nguthuni lodge, Voi wildlife lodge, Man eaters safari camp, Ashnil Aruba lodge, Leopard lodge, Manyatta camp, Red Elephants safari lodge.

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