15 Wildlife Safaris You’ll Want to Add to Your Bucket List

In many ways, hitting the road for a wildlife safari is like being transported into a live version of a nature documentary … but only better because you’re one with it. Imagine scanning a savannah for lions or elephants crossing a river, safaris guarantee that front-row seat to the wonderment of the animal kingdom. But they’re not only about seeing animals. Experiencing a safari is one of the only ways to really connect with nature — something so magnificent to behold.

If you’ve always wanted to see wildlife in its natural habitat, this guide is a goldmine of ideas. Take a look at some of the places where animals roam free and the natural order plays unabated around the world. Whether you’re new to it all or an old hand at the game, there’s extraordinary stuff to get the wild side of you out.

Serengeti Migration Safari, Tanzania

Imagine millions of wildebeests, zebras, and gazelles thundering across the plains in an epic migration visible from space. This awe-inspiring performance takes place on the Serengeti, with the best seats in the house from an open-top jeep or hot air balloon. It is a migration of over 1.5 million animals, a reminder of the rhythms of nature, experts say.

Tiger Safari, India

Looking for a tiger in India’s jungles is like stepping into a Rudyard Kipling story. They are best tracked at Ranthambore and Bandhavgarh National Parks. Fewer than 3,000 tigers remain in the wild, and this safari is a rare opportunity to glimpse a critically protected and equally critically vulnerable species.

Galápagos Islands Adventure, Ecuador

The Galápagos Islands are famously known as living laboratories of evolution where Charles Darwin studied. You feel as if you are looking through a wildlife documentary as you go from the blue-footed boobies doing their oddball mating dance to sea lions lying on the beaches. Snorkeling with marine iguanas is a trip that will have you wondering if you’re on another planet or Earth.

Kruger National Park Safari, South Africa

Kruger is the crown jewel of South African safaris, boasting the iconic Big Five: Lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos, and buffalo. It’s is one of the richest wildlife reserves in the world, with nearly 150 species of mammals.

Katmai National Park, Alaska

Bears fishing for salmon should be on your bucket list if it’s not already. The famous Brooks Falls is where you’ll find grizzly bears skillfully catching their meals mid-air at Katmai. Not only are these bears entertaining, but they do the ecosystem a huge service by redistributing nutrients from the ocean to land.

The Okavango Delta Safari, Botswana

The Okavango Delta is where water meets wilderness creating a showcase of Biodiversity. You can have a glide through its waterways in a mokoro canoe peering at hippos, crocodiles, and some interesting birdlife. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its incredible ecological importance, this wetland paradise.

Panda Trek, China

The Wolong National Nature Reserve in Sichuan’s bamboo-covered mountains is a place to get up close and personal with the giant panda. China’s conservation efforts are all about these gentle giants, and seeing them in the wild is as heartwarming as it gets.

Masai Mara Safari, Kenya

Every day nature’s drama unfolds in the Masai Mara. Lions and cheetahs are predators in the savannah and the maasai guides have a relationship to the land. The Great Migration, when herds cross the Mara River, dodging hungry crocodiles, is another spectacle to visit.

Antarctic Wildlife Cruise

Antarctica is home to penguins, seals, and whales all living in one of the harshest environments on earth, the icy wilderness of the Antarctic. Icebergs serve as backdrop and humpback whales haunting songs seem to follow you here as you listen to them sing across the waters; a cruise feels like stepping into a surreal world.

Chimpanzee Trekking, Uganda

In Uganda, Kibale National Park is famous for unforgettable wild chimpanzee encounters — a completely reasonable chance to connect with the closest human relatives. They are playful, have expressive faces, and are just like we are. The experience is all the more fascinating because studies show that chimps share about 98.7 percent of their DNA with humans.

Komodo Dragon Safari, Indonesia

The Komodo National Park is the only region in the world to see the brutal Komodo dragon, a reptile that can grow to a 10-foot length, that surely would rank within the top 10 most dangerous animals on Earth. While these “dragons” may look prehistoric, they’re very real and dangerous if you get too close.

Wolf Watching in Yellowstone, USA

Not only is Yellowstone America’s first national park, but it’s one of the best places to see wolves in the wild. These predators were reintroduced in 1995, and have revitalized the ecosystem. The best chance to see a pack roaming the park’s vast wilderness is on guided tours.

Borneo Orangutan Safari

Orangutans, one of the world’s smartest primates, depend on the rainforests of Borneo. Sightings of these gentle creatures swinging through the trees from Sepilok Rehabilitation Center or while trekking the jungle is an unforgettable sight.

Polar Bear Safari, Canada

The ‘Polar Bear Capital of the World’ is Churchill, Manitoba. Specially designed tundra vehicles allow you to safely observe these majestic animals, roaming the Arctic landscape here. As climate change will threaten their habitat, this safari has a poignant note regarding the delicacy of our planet.

Kiwi Encounter, New Zealand

If you want to see the kiwi bird in the wild, a rare sight indeed, tick it off on a guided night tour in the forests of New Zealand. These flightless, nocturnal birds are a national treasure, and seeing one in the wild is like finding a needle in a haystack, but with a lot more excitement.

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