Arusha National Park is located in the north eastern part of Tanzania, about 55 kms from Kilimanjaro International Airport.  The bustling town of Arusha is often an initial destination for weary travelers who happen to have just landed at JRO (Kilimanjaro airport) after several hours of travel. The town of Arusha sees loads of tourists as they pass through on their way to various parks and so there is a wide-range of lodging and dining options. There are also several good markets where people can haggle alongside locals for handmade souvenirs.  Mount Meru which is the second highest mountain in Tanzania at 4566 m (14,980 ft) is located inside Arusha National Park. Here, walking and hiking safaris are possible with a ranger guide.  As you ascend the slopes of Mt. Meru, you can be sure of some stunning views of the neighboring Mt. Kilimanjaro. 

Arusha is a great park for those who are seeking to engage in an outdoor activity. In addition to game drives, there is the option to do canoeing and mountain biking. Mount Meru receives a very small portion of visitors as most opt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.  A wide-variety of animals can be found in Arusha National Park from small colobus monkeys to giraffes, hippos and zebra. There are very few elephants here and lions are no longer found in this park.  A few leopards are purported to remain in the park, but they are very rare to see. There are quite some bird species too amongst of which are Flamingos.