The Arusha National Park map shows a compact yet captivating mosaic of ecosystems spanning 137 square kilometres (though some sources cite up to 552 km² including buffer zones). Just 25 kilometres east of bustling Arusha town—and a mere 35 kilometres from Kilimanjaro International Airport—it’s an ideal day-trip gateway to Tanzania’s safari circuit, linking the vast Serengeti to the west with Kilimanjaro to the east. The park’s map reveals a diverse layout shaped by volcanic forces: the towering stratovolcano Mount Meru (4,566 meters, Tanzania’s second-highest peak) dominates the west, while the southeast’s Ngurdoto Crater echoes long-extinct eruptions, and the northeast’s shallow Momella Lakes shimmer with algal hues. Roads, trails, and circuits weave through montane forests, acacia-dotted grasslands, and papyrus-fringed wetlands, offering game drives, hikes, and canoe outings. Entry fees grant access to this “gem among national parks,” but the real magic unfolds as you trace the paths from the gates inward.
Entering the Park: Ngongongare Gate in the South
Most visitors arrive via the Ngongongare Gate, the park’s primary southern entrance, perched on the southeastern border about 35 kilometres from Arusha along a smooth tarmac road.
This gate serves as the bustling hub for day-trippers and serves TANAPA (Tanzania National Parks Authority) functions like permit issuance. Flanked by picnic sites with shaded tables and ablution blocks, it’s a practical starting point for acclimating to the park’s altitude (around 1,500–2,000 meters). From here, the map’s southern quadrant opens into Little Serengeti (or Serengeti Ndogo), a grassy plain alive with herds of zebra, giraffe, buffalo, and warthog grazing amid scattered acacias.
This open savanna, just a short drive north from the gate, is prime for introductory game drives—spot dik-diks and waterbucks quenching thirst at seasonal streams. The main park road, a well-maintained gravel artery labelled as ANAPA Roads on official maps, veers northward from Ngongongare, curving gently through undulating terrain.
En route, you’ll pass the Fig Tree Arch, a natural wonder where a massive Ficus thoningii tree forms a leafy tunnel over the track—perfect for photos and a reminder of the park’s lush understory. To the east, side loops branch off toward Public Campsite No. 1 and the brackish Ngarenanyuki River (Engare Nanyuki), where hippos wallow and birds like the African fish eagle perch on fever trees. These early stretches emphasise the park’s accessibility: within 10–15 minutes of the gate, you’re immersed in wildlife viewing without the dust of larger reserves.
North of Arusha Park: The Heart of the Momella Lakes and Circuits
As the road climbs slightly (gaining about 500 meters in elevation), it transitions into the park’s central “Momella Circuit”—a network of interconnected loops ideal for 2–4 hour game drives.
Here, the map fans out like a neural web, with spokes radiating to the park’s alkaline lakes, formed by underground streams rich in minerals that tint the waters green, blue, and pink from algae blooms. The Momella Lakes cluster in the northeast, a chain of seven shallow basins (Momella No. 1 through No. 7, plus Big and Small Momella). Small Momella Lake, the gem of the group, invites canoeing amid hippos and waterbirds—rentals are available at a jetty just off the main loop.
Flamingos flock here in September–October, turning the shallows into a rosy spectacle.Branching west from the lakes, a short detour leads to Uwanja wa Mbogo (Buffalo Glade), a marshy clearing where buffalo herds congregate, their grunts echoing across streams lined with reeds. Picnic Site No. 2 overlooks this spot, offering a safe vantage for lunch amid colobus monkeys swinging in the canopy. The circuit’s eastern arm circles back toward Ngurdoto, but for deeper exploration, the map highlights walking trails—mandatory with armed rangers—starting from informal points along the road. One popular 1–2 hour path hugs the lakeshore, revealing black-and-white colobus and giraffe weaving through fever trees.A secondary entrance, the Momella Gate, lies embedded in this northern zone, about 32 kilometers from Arusha and serving as the launchpad for Meru-bound trekkers.
It’s less trafficked than Ngongongare, with its own picnic area and ablutions, and connects seamlessly to the lakes via a short eastern road. From either gate, the Momella area feels like the park’s verdant core: forests thicken here, with mahoganies and podocarps shading the tracks, and the air hums with cicadas.
Eastward to the Craters:
Ngurdoto’s Ancient RimSwinging southeast from the Momella hub (a 20–30 minute drive from Ngongongare), the map guides you to Ngurdoto Crater, a 3-kilometer-wide, pear-shaped caldera that’s the park’s geological star—often called the “Black Lake” for its swampy floor.
The access road climbs steadily through Ngurdoto Forest, a montane haven for blue monkeys and elusive leopards, before ringing the crater’s 100-meter-high rim. Five viewpoints punctuate the 3.5-kilometer loop trail: Mikindu (entry point with a small museum), the Rock (panoramic overlook), Buffalo (steep drop to the floor), the Glade (forested notch), and Leitong Peak (highest at 2,400 meters, framing distant Kilimanjaro snows).
Descending the rim on foot (2–3 hours) feels like stepping into a lost world—swamp grasses sway below, dotted with buffalo and bushbucks—but note: the floor isn’t accessible to protect the fragile ecosystem. Nearby, the Ash Cone—a smaller volcanic plug—rises like a sentinel, accessible via a short side trail from the crater road. This eastern sector contrasts the park’s open plains with dense, misty woodlands, where the map marks seasonal streams feeding into the crater’s mire.
Westward Ascent: Mount Meru
The park’s western flank, as depicted on the map, is Meru’s domain—a horseshoe-shaped caldera channelling the Jekukumia River and cradling the peak itself.
From Momella Gate (or a junction 10 kilometres north of Ngongongare), the Mount Meru Trailhead launches the 3–4 day summit trek, a rite for Kilimanjaro acclimatisation.
The path ascends through fig-shaded foothills to Miriakamba Hut (2,500 meters, first night’s camp amid buffalo trails), then zigzags to the Saddle (3,500 meters, a lunar landscape of giant heathers), before the final push to Socialist Peak at dawn. Shorter day hikes branch off: the 4-hour Tululusia Waterfall Trail from Momella Gate plunges to a 28-meter cascade in a gorge, alive with red-winged starlings; or the Kitoto to Njeku Viewpoint loop (2 hours), offering Meru vistas and elephanthide orchids.
Campsites dot this route: Public No. 3 near Tululusia Hill (a viewpoint sweeping across the park to Kilimanjaro), Special Campsite at Ngongongare Spring (southwest, with thermal pools), and Itikoni (mid-altitude, seasonal). The map also notes Maio Waterfalls and the poignant Nagy Grave (a colonial-era marker) along lower trails, blending history with habitat.
Beyond the Main Paths: Hidden Corners and Practical Notes
Arusha’s map isn’t rigid—six natural walking trails (e.g., Momella Gate to Itikoni or Ngurdoto Rim to Buffalo) encourage off-road discovery, always ranger-guided for safety.
Lodges like Momella Wildlife Lodge perch near the lakes, while Hatari Lodge evokes 1960s film fame in the glades. The park’s boundaries, etched by rivers and ridges, enclose it all without fences, letting wildlife roam freely.In essence, Arusha National Park’s map is a blueprint for intimacy: from Ngongongare’s welcoming plains, spiral north to the lakes’ serenity, east to Ngurdoto’s drama, and west to Meru’s heights. It’s a park that rewards the unhurried explorer, where every fork reveals a new layer of Tanzania’s wild heart.
Pack binoculars, water, and a sense of wonder—your adventure starts at the gate, but the park’s soul lies within.