Due to Nyerere National Park being a vast, remote wilderness area, there is no airport as such to fly to in Nyerere or the neighbouring Selous Game Reserve. The region is instead served by a network of all weather gravel airstrips. There are daily scheduled flights from Dar es Salaam or Arusha to Nyerere National Park that stop at several airstrips per flight. Additionally there are several airlines that serve this route including Regional Air, Coastal Aviation, Safari Air Link and Auric Air. The nearest international airport to Nyerere National Park is the Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam, a flying distance of one hour.
Travelers would need to know which airstrip in Nyerere National Park they should use when booking their flights as there are quite a number of airtsrips in Nyerere, including the Selous Game Reserve. It is imperative to fly to the airstrip nearest to your accommodation to avoid unnecessarily long transfers which also happen to be rather expensive. Some of the most common airstrips include Mtemere, Matambwe, sumbazi, Kiba, Beho beho and Siwandu airstrip and we have detailed below which lodges and camps are served by each airstrip.
Mtemere Airstrip is the most frequently used airstrip serving guests visiting both Selous Game Reserve and Nyerere National Park in Southern Tanzania. The geographical coordinates of this airstrip are: 07 45 01S 038 12 47E. Read more about Mtemere Airstrip in detail at this page.
Selous Matambwe Airstrip, also known as by its IATA Code SE3, is a regional airport located in the Selous Region in the Southern Circuit part of Tanzania.The Airstrip serves tourists visiting both Selous Game Reserve and Nyerere National Park. Read more about Matambwe Airstrip in detail at this page.
Sumbazi Airstrip is situated within the Selous Game reserve. The airstrip serves camps and lodges inside Selous reserve and Nyerere National Park such as The Retreat Selous camp. The airstrip is served by several scheduled flights from Arusha, Zanzibar, Dar es Salaam and Ruaha. Read more about Sumbazi Airstrip in detail at this page.
Kiba Airstrip Kiba Airport, also known as by its IATA Code SE2, is a regional airport located in the Selous Region in the Southern Circuit part of Tanzania. The airstrip serves camps and lodges inside Selous Reserve and Nyerere National Park such as Kiba Point Selous Camp and Sand River Camp. There are daily flights to the Kiba airstrip from Dar es Salaam, Ruaha, Zanzibar and northern Tanzania. Read more about Kiba Airstrip in detail at this page.
Beho beho Airstrip is located inside Selous Game Reserve. The airstrip mainly serves guests visiting Beho beho camp. The Airstrip Coordinates are: S 07 40 25.9 E 037 55 14.1. Read more about Beho beho Airstrip in detail at this page.
Siwandu airstrip is located on the shores of Lake Nzerakera in the northern section of the Nyerere National Park (formerly knowns as Selous Game Reserve), Southern Tanzania. GPS coordinates of Siwandu Airstrip: 7° 41 '27 " S - 38 ° 08 '21 " E. Rwy 1200m, elev SL, 18/36. The airstrip mainly serves clients staying at Siwandu Main Camp. Read more about Siwandu Airstrip in detail at this page.
Stieglers Gorge Airport, also known as by its IATA Code STG, is a regional airport located in the Selous Region in the Southern Circuit part of Tanzania. The airstrip mainly serves clients staying at Steigler's Gorge Camp, Selous Serena Camp and Serena Mivumo River Lodge. Read more about Stiegler's Airstrip in detail at this page.
Julius Nyerere International Airport ( DAR ), is the international airport of Dar es Salaam, the largest city in Tanzania. It is located approximately 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) southwest of the city centre. The airport has flights to destinations in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. The airport also has a terminal specifically set aside for all the domestic and regional flights. It has a capacity of handling 1.5 million passengers.
Typically all the main airlines have morning and afternoon flights, with the same aircraft turning back to Dar es Salaam after every flights. The flight time is approx. 1 hour though actual time depends on how many stops the flight will make, ( known as ''hops'') as they land to drop or pick up passengers from various airstrips in the reserve. Most flights limit stops to the fewest possible so the timing of an hour to Nyerere is practially fairly accurate. See the schedule below.
| Daily Flights to Nyerere National Park ( Approximate Timings) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | From | To | Dep | Arr |
| Morning Flight | Dar es Salaam | Nyerere | 10:00 | 11:00 |
| Nyerere | Dar es Salaam | 11:00 | 12:15 | |
| Afternoon Flight | Dar es Salaam | Nyerere | 14:45 | 15:45 |
| Nyerere | Dar es Salaam | 15:45 | 17:00 | |
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High Season: 16 December - 31 March & 1 July - 31 Octomber Low Season: 1 April - 30 June & 1 November - 15 December |
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Due to the sheer volume of passengers flying to Nyerere National Park during the peask season months from July to October, the local airlines place an additional midday flight service to handle the passenger numbers. During these months we recommend booking early enough to secure seats.
As mentioned above these include Regional Air, Coastal Aviation, Safari Air Link and Auric Air. These airlines generally have an excellent safety record and operate to high standards with professional staff.
Enquire for Flights
Flying Safari package to Nyerere are convenient due to the short one hour flight versus the 5 to 6 hour road journey from Dar es Salaam. Flights to Nyerere National Park being readily available, a flying package safari is possible to book for most Camps and Lodges. Flying to Nyerere is also recommended for those who want to enjoy game drives in Open sided safari vehicles.
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