Groundwater forest
Baboons.
Gaurav Pandit — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — CC BY 2.0 · Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — CC BY 2.0 · Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — CC BY 2.0
A small park on a narrow strip between the wall of the Great Rift Valley and the alkaline Lake Manyara, covering about 325 square kilometres, most of it lake surface. Small as it is, it packs a lot of scenery into a little space. You first enter a dense groundwater forest home to baboons and blue monkeys, then come out onto open grassland and the lake shore with buffalo, zebras, giraffes and hippos, and in some seasons flocks of pink flamingos on the water. Manyara is famous for lions that climb trees and rest on the branches, though sightings are not guaranteed. The park records more than 350 bird species and has a treetop canopy walkway. It is usually visited for half a day or a full day on the way from Arusha to Ngorongoro, and bike and village walks set off from the nearby town.
Baboons.
On the lake.
Among the treetops.
Near Mto wa Mbu, about 125 km west of Arusha
Yes, the park is known for lions resting in trees, but sightings are not guaranteed on every visit.