Saanane Island National Park
Saanane Island National Park
4
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Duration: 2-3 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
59 reviews
Excellent
17
Very good
24
Average
11
Poor
3
Terrible
4
Catherine S
10 contributions
Jan 2024 • Family
Saanane island is a short boat ride from Mwanza and is a hidden gem. Our enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide took us around the whole island and we saw many types of birds and lizards, including swimming monitors, as well as impala, zebra, wildebeest, dik dik and tortoises. The views of Lake Victoria were stunning, with the stone paths through the bush constantly presenting new vistas. A highlight for me was the tiny baby impala walking calmly through our group to get to its mother. Our guide showed us a safari tent almost ready for guests which included solar electricity, bath and shower, an adventure for another day.
Written January 11, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kyara Kalulu
9 contributions
Aug 2021 • Couples
This island is one of the best places for a night camping. Nice camping site and incredible service.
I organized a trip with Brilliant Adventures and Safaris for a couple Love Revival and spent a wonderful night over here with all things inclusive.
Lusubilo who was our guide and companion made it even much better.
Thanks to all Saanane management for their cooperation.
I organized a trip with Brilliant Adventures and Safaris for a couple Love Revival and spent a wonderful night over here with all things inclusive.
Lusubilo who was our guide and companion made it even much better.
Thanks to all Saanane management for their cooperation.
Written August 29, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Queen F
5 contributions
May 2022 • Friends
A nice gem hidden in the city of mwanza. Did the tour with Tanzania solely tours . The views are enchanting and the animals really exciting to watch . Saw a lot and really enjoyed the whole arrangement
Written October 1, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Adventure West Mongolia
Olgiy, Mongolia30 contributions
Dec 2019 • Friends
I really enjoyed walking around the island and learning some history of Mwanza. It was great fun seeing some animals up close. I could have done without the lion in a cage though. I think noones can.t do better than miraclewildlifesafaritours. Thank you.
Written December 27, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Imperialafrocompany
Zanzibar Archipelago, Tanzania13 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
Saanane is a smallest national park in Tanzania, an island in lake Victoria. They are well coordinated and affordable trip as an escape of city life in Mwanza. Their guides and general management are well, stunning environment and well kept sites. Very nice and cool place especially with low budget and day trip, there are also camping options which I didi not utilise. I recommend the park for those want to kill time especially when found yourself in Mwanza while trying to map out the next big plan.
Written November 27, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Clarel F
2 contributions
Jun 2018 • Business
Stunning!!!! Really enjoyed the boat trip on Lake Victoria!!! that was a great experience to be on the second greatest lake in the world. The exotic animals were so beautiful!
Written June 11, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ioana
8 contributions
Oct 2018 • Friends
I really enjoyed the park even if it is quite small. It is very adequate for a sunday afternoon, there are a few zebras, impalas and monkeys and many birds and lizards. The vegetation is also amazing! But me and my friends were completely disappointed to see that they have 2 lions in a cage! This is totally inapropriate and can be considered animal abuse. Lions should be free in bigger parks, this park is very beautiful and attractive WITHOUT animals in cage. If I wanted to see lions I would go to Serengeti and see them free, but Saanane is supposed to be a place for relaxing, admiring the nature and the animals that can be free there.
If you decide to visit the park please consider spreading the word about those lions, maybe in the future they will not still be there. I also found out that they used to have gorillas in cages but not anymore so maybe if we spread the word they will give up having animals in cages. I sent an e-mail to the park about this. You can do the same: saanane@tanzaniaparks.go.tz and info@tanzaniaparks.go.tz.
Thank you!
If you decide to visit the park please consider spreading the word about those lions, maybe in the future they will not still be there. I also found out that they used to have gorillas in cages but not anymore so maybe if we spread the word they will give up having animals in cages. I sent an e-mail to the park about this. You can do the same: saanane@tanzaniaparks.go.tz and info@tanzaniaparks.go.tz.
Thank you!
Written November 4, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Louise L
London, UK108 contributions
Sep 2018 • Solo
I had some time spare during a work trip to Mwanza, it was intrigued by the island and decided to pay it a visit.
You can only pay by card (like all national parks in TZ). Cost was $35 for the boat return and $30 for park fees for a tourist. It was pretty steep, considering the boat trip is like 5 minutes but I knew I would regret not going.
You get a guide, mine was called Nuru, quiet young man but he knew his stuff about animals. We walked all the trails on the island and it probably took 2 hours. It was quiet steep at times and uneven ground so definitely wear trainers! I really enjoyed the walk, the area is very beautiful and peaceful and there are some amazing rules of Lake Victoria!
The animals are quite random, 2 zebras and alot of Impala roam around freely. There are lots of amazing birds and lizards around. We also saw a crocodile and a monitor lizard. The one very sad thing here, is there are 2 lions in a cage, they looked well cared for and the cage is clean but very small. Apparently they were brought from the Serengeti. I am going to write to the tourism board here to complain. There is no need for a lion to be here, it is an amazing place without them. They should be in the wild.
You can only pay by card (like all national parks in TZ). Cost was $35 for the boat return and $30 for park fees for a tourist. It was pretty steep, considering the boat trip is like 5 minutes but I knew I would regret not going.
You get a guide, mine was called Nuru, quiet young man but he knew his stuff about animals. We walked all the trails on the island and it probably took 2 hours. It was quiet steep at times and uneven ground so definitely wear trainers! I really enjoyed the walk, the area is very beautiful and peaceful and there are some amazing rules of Lake Victoria!
The animals are quite random, 2 zebras and alot of Impala roam around freely. There are lots of amazing birds and lizards around. We also saw a crocodile and a monitor lizard. The one very sad thing here, is there are 2 lions in a cage, they looked well cared for and the cage is clean but very small. Apparently they were brought from the Serengeti. I am going to write to the tourism board here to complain. There is no need for a lion to be here, it is an amazing place without them. They should be in the wild.
Written September 12, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
wangomafr
Zanzibar City, Tanzania9 contributions
Dec 2017 • Business
I was amused by the way through which animals came to be on that 0.5Sq Km island, for them it was more of a transit destination to the Rubondo National Park. seeing them at such a close proximity makes it worth a visit, a boat ride on the Lake Victoria to the Island adds zest to the experience. I loved it.
Written July 14, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
rafi r
Tel Aviv, Israel43 contributions
Feb 2018
one of the only safaris you can walk in
dont expect lots of wildlife- but it is a great 10 minutes boat ride and a really nice walk with monkeys, impala hyrax, birds, lizards, and a small herd of zebras. so close but so serene, if you have a few hours free in mwanza- go there!!!
dont expect lots of wildlife- but it is a great 10 minutes boat ride and a really nice walk with monkeys, impala hyrax, birds, lizards, and a small herd of zebras. so close but so serene, if you have a few hours free in mwanza- go there!!!
Written February 18, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Being part of government run reserves/parks, then you pay an entrance fee at the gate that includes a boat and an allocated guide...they take you to the island and give you a number to call once done and the boat comes to pick you up from the island.
Written March 13, 2018
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