The Burigi-Chato National Park, established on 9th July 2019 traces its origin back to 1970s where it acquired the status of a National Game Reserve covering Kimisi, Biharamulo and Burigi. Administratively, Burigi – Chato National Park is located in Kagera region within Muleba, Ngara, Biharamulo districts while in Geita region, the Park is in Chato district.
The Burigi-Chato National Park has more than 2,200 square kilometres and is now ranking the third National Park in Tanzania after Ruaha and Serengeti National Parks which ranks number one and two respectively in terms of the size. The park is close to Lake Victoria on the border with Rwanda and is surrounded by the Kagera River and Burigi River.
Geographically
Burigi-Chato National Park is a typical grassland area of the African Savannah. It is set among the pictorial beauty of the lakes and riverside which is a delight for the eyes of the tourist. It has abundance and varieties of wildlife ranging from carnivores, herbivores to rare species of birds.
Burigi-Chato is also home to various lakes including the famous Lake Victoria which is shared between Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Equally important, Burigi–Chato National Park is a few kilometres away from Rwanda and Burundi. Therefore, one may drive from Burigi – Chato National Park to various East African destinations.
To visit Burigi – Chato National Park, one may fly from Dar es Salaam to either Bukoba Airport then drive to Burigi or fly from Dar es Salaam to Chato Airport then drive to Burigi-Chato National Park. Alternatively, one can drive from Serengeti to Burigi-Chato National Park through Mwanza. However, given the distance from Dar es Salaam to Burigi-Chato National Park (more than 1000 km), it is advisable to fly than to drive unless you wish to explore and get experience road trip in Tanzania.
Being the newly established National Park, there is a lot of potential in terms of the tourism value chain. The Park is still a virgin in terms of hotels and accommodation, souvenir shops and transport and transportation. More importantly, the Park is yet another avenue where East African Tour Operators particularly from Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi could see how they could jointly work together.
While at Burigi-Chato National Park, expect to see:
The natural landscape and magnificent mountainous sceneries;
Varieties of wildlife;
Preserved ecological system;
Amazing lakes;
Attraction
Vegetation:
In this National Park, there are attractive Miombo woodland and savannah woodland.
Animals:
The park is home to the wide collection of wildlife, including elephants, buffaloes, antelopes, lions, leopards, zebras, giraffes, chimpanzees and gorillas.
Birds:
Common birds at this National Park area are Martial eagles, Sacred ibis, Saddles, and Billed storks.