52 km²
Size
20-30°C
Temperature
770-1,500 m
Altitude
Lakeshore forest, hot, humid
Climate
Gombe is tiny, famous, and still about chimps: Jane Goodall's stream valleys on Tanganyika, reached by boat from Kigoma, with steep forest paths and a daily visitor cap.
At 52 square kilometres, Gombe is a pocket of research history rather than a wilderness the size of Mahale. That can mean a shorter hunt for the chimps and a more crowded trail on a busy day. Permits are limited. We book them before we sell the nights.
You stay in simple park or tented rooms, you climb, you come down, you swim with caution (the lake is beautiful; crocs and storms are real). Kigoma is the gateway town, not Arusha. If your Tanzania trip is otherwise northern circuit, Gombe is a detour we only add when chimps are the point, not a souvenir.
Things to See & Do
Getting There
Flight
Scheduled flights to Kigoma, then a boat. We do not route this through JRO as if it were a day trip from Arusha.
Boat
The lake boat from Kigoma is the access. Schedules are practical, not touristic. We hold you in Kigoma if the lake is un...
Wildlife you can see here
All 5 speciesPrimates
Chimpanzee
Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii
Our closest living relative, found in the forests of western Tanzania.
Mahale Mountains, Gombe Stream
Fish
Lake Tanganyika Cichlids
Cichlidae
Hundreds of colourful, endemic fish, found nowhere else than the world's deepest African lake.
Mahale Mountains, Gombe Stream
Primates
Olive Baboon
Papio anubis
A big, bold monkey that lives in large troops and eats almost anything.
Lake Manyara, Mikumi +5 more
Raptors
African Fish Eagle
Haliaeetus vocifer
A white-headed eagle whose ringing call is the sound of the African waterway.
Nyerere, Serengeti +5 more
Lizards
Nile Monitor
Varanus niloticus
A large, strong-swimming lizard often seen beside water.
Serengeti, Lake Manyara +4 more
Best Time to Visit
FAQs
Gombe or Mahale?
Mahale if you want beach camp, space and a longer wilderness feeling. Gombe if the Goodall history matters and you are already in Kigoma. Both require the same respect around illness and distance.
How do we get there?
Fly to Kigoma, boat north along the lake. There is no safari vehicle circuit.
Add Lake Manyara National Park to Your Safari
The route is ours to design — you just pick the places that call you.
Prefer to talk? Call +255 754 123 456