When it comes to big game and specifically, the notable “Big 5″ – lion, leopard, black rhino, elephant, cape buffalo – wildlife parks in the continent of Africa win out every time. With safari tours more popular than ever, reserves from Namibia to Gabon and Botswana to Uganda have all gone public with efforts to lure more visitors and compete with South Africa and Kenya.

Here are some of the best safari destinations outside of the top two in Africa – Masai Mara in Kenya and Kruger National Park in South Africa.

Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

The Serengeti ecosystem evokes a ton of romantic sentiment among those who long to visit Africa. The national park that bears the same name in Tanzania is the ideal place to touch down and take in all the splendid landscape has to offer. The traditional home of the Maasai people covers almost 15,000 km2 of savanna grassland and contains, in addition to the Big 5, a huge population of endemic bird life, giraffe, gazelle and cheetah. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Serengeti National Park is a treasure in lush Tanzania.

Loango National Park, Gabon

Relatively obscure by comparison, Loango National Park in beautiful Gabon is a coastal reserve for native fauna and flora. A peerless lagoon system in the park provides a phenomenal natural wonder for visitors. With a reputation as the “last Eden” on the continent, Loango boasts mangrove forests, a playful hippopotamus population, gorillas, elephants, leopards and even diverse whale life off a pristine span of white sand beach. With a mindset toward conservation via tourism investment, Loango National Park is model to follow.

Etosha National Park, Namibia

With a history that dates back over one-hundred years when Namibia was a colony of Germany, the massive 22,270 km2 Etosha National Park is part salt pan desert in the Kalahari Basin. The vast majority of tourism to the park centers around the small and fragile black rhinoceros population, in addition to impala, flamingo and pelican. The paramount preservation area has a fortuitous location on the southern Atlantic coast in Namibia, where the landscape is particularly brilliant.

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest provides Uganda with terrific allure in only 331 km2. The foremost sanctuary is home to a dizzying array of wildlife, with 346 species of birds, 120 species of mammals and myriad reptiles, insects and plant life. Bwindi is most famous however, for mountain gorillas, chimpanzees and colorful colobus monkeys, whose populations teeter on the brink of extreme vulnerability. While animal preservation is key in the park, protection of the biologically rich and rare primary forests is perhaps the most fundamental mission in Bwindi.

Chobe National Park, Botswana

Botswana has famously, one of the most dense confluences of game on the entire continent of Africa. The 11,700 km2 Chobe National Park was the country’s first, and with four precise ecosystems, offers superlative biodiversity to safari tourists. In addition to wildlife, actual towns reside in the massive conservation area. Genuine bushmen history and tours are on tap for those who want to explore attractions beyond elephant, warthog, wild dog, antelope, lion, zebra and crocodile populations.

Kafue National Park, Zambia

At 22,400 km2, Kafue National Park is about the size of Wales. Rather remarkable if you think about it. As a result, the colossal swath of wildlife preservation ground is about as good as a safari holiday can get. The namesake of the Kafue River, the park spans three provinces in gorgeous Zambia, where pristine Zambezi flooded grasslands provide a verdant and lush environment for herbivore herds and hungry predators. From cat-like caracals to otters, cheetahs and steenboks, in addition to reptiles and birds, Kafue National Park puts city zoos around the world to shame.

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