Why Is Kilimanjaro So Special? Mount Kilimanjaro is located in the Northern part of Tanzania and what makes it more special is that it is known to be one of Africa’s tallest mountain which stands at an elevated area of about 5,895 meters (19,340 feet) above the sea level and this game park covers a total surface area of about 1,688 square kilometers. Mount Kilimanjaro national park was named by a UNESCO World Heritage site and it was officially as a national park in 1973 with the main purpose of upholding the mountains origin, its identity and reputation. this national park is being managed by the Tanzania National park Authority and it is commonly visited due to the fact that it is recorded that around a population of about 52,000 visit per year and Mount Kilimanjaro national park has so many wildlife species which also are considered to be among the tourist attractions found in the park but the tourists are always interested to marvel through the beautiful mountain “mount Kilimanjaro” which is a snow caped mountain that is found at the heart of the park. more so, mount Kilimanjaro national park is a home to over good natural habitats such as; montane forests, moorland, grasslands and stunning water bodies such as; Namwai rivers among others that all act as good natural habitats to many wildlife species such as; African bush elephants, grey duikers, tree hyrax, whilst leopards, blue monkeys, cape buffalos and many others.
Mount Kilimanjaro National Park Location.
Mount Kilimanjaro National Park is located within Kilimanjaro region, which is a few kilometers away from Moshi town hence, lies approximately about 300 kilometers from the south of the Equator. In addition, it covers a distance of about 128 kilometers from Arusha town and a drive of about one hour from Kilimanjaro international Airport to be able to access the park. More so, there are several entry gates that tourists can use to be able to access the park and some of these include; Lemosho gate, Machame gate, Londorosi gate, Marangu gate, Umbwe gate and many others.
Tour Activities to do in Mount Kilimanjaro National Park.
Community visits and Cultural Encounters.
For tourists exploring around Mount Kilimanjaro national park can choose to visit within the neighbouring communities where they get chances to interact with the people of different tribes such as; the Chagga tribe and Maasai tribe as they get opportunities to learn more about their history through paying a lot of attention while listening to their stories, they get to watch their exciting traditional dance performances, learn more about their culture and traditions and how they live their daily lifestyle such as; their dress code, watch and observe how they prepare their local meals and many others.
Game Viewing.
Mount Kilimanjaro national park is recorded to be a home to over 154 mammal species that are spotted in different areas around the park and some of these include; elephants, buffalos, giraffes and unique species like; porcupines, aardvarks, honey badgers, antelopes that are always seen clamouring up the mountain slopes, serval cats, tree hyrax, grey duikers, marsh mongoose, white necked raven, white tailed mongoose and many other.
Bird Watching.
Mount Kilimanjaro national park also harbours around 150 bird that are of different kinds like; migratory birds and permanent residents and therefore some of these birds include; hornbills, chats, cuckoos, white necked raven, turacos, klaas cuckoo, hartlaub’s turaco, grey crowned crane, sunbirds, bee eaters, greater flamingo, African pitta, shrikes, woodpeckers, Narina trogon, African emerald cuckoo, silverly checked hornbill, cinnamon chested bee-eater, schalow’s turaco,, white-browed coucal, bearded vulture, new world barbet, fierly necked nightjar and many others.
More so, apart from the above mentioned things, tourists can opt embark onto other activities like; mountain trekking whereby hiking to Africa’s free standing mountain and while at the top individuals get chances to capture classic views of other summits of the mountain, cool lush vegetation in the surrounding, nearby towns and many others. More so, there are several routes those tourists to use. More so, they can go for mountain biking where they can go through trails like; Kilema trail which leads you to the summit of the mountain and along the rides individuals get to capture stunning views of the gorgeous surroundings, farm lands of the Chagga people, guided nature walks, visit Lake Chala crater, visit the Olpopongi maasai village which is known to be a cultural village where they get to learn more about the Maasai family customs and many others, go for picnics, go for day trips to Mandara hut and shira plateau and many others.
