They regulate ecosystems, disperse seeds and fertilise soils. Their seasonal movements connect distant landscapes, ensuring the renewal of grasslands, wetlands and oceans. Yet their importance extends beyond ecology: they support food security, safari tourism, and cultural identity for communities across the continent.
Some of these migrations are among the most significant natural events on Earth. From birds and bats to whales and wildebeest, the continent’s migratory species draw tourists who wish to witness these bucket-list spectacles in person. Ethical safaris can now bring travellers face to face with nature’s great journeys without leaving a heavy footprint.
Here are 10 great African migrations worthy of your bucket list:
1. Zebra migration – Botswana
Every year, Botswana hosts the longest land mammal migration in Africa: the zebra migration. Each year, tens of thousands of Burchell’s zebras travel more than 1,000 km between the Chobe River in Chobe National Park, Nxai Pan National Park and Makgadikgadi Pan National Park, following ancient routes reopened after veterinary fences were removed in the 2000s.
Two distinct migrations occur: one between Chobe and Nxai Pan, and another linking the Okavango Delta with the Makgadikgadi Pans. From December to March, rains turn the salt pans emerald-green, drawing zebras to graze and foal before they trek north as the land dries. Flamingos and springbok share these ephemeral plains, shimmering in heat haze and mirage.
Why they migrate: To follow the rains and access seasonal grazing, ensuring water and nutrition for the herds and their young.
Best time to go: December to March for the lush Makgadikgadi Pans and foaling season; May to July for returning herds and predator action.
Where to go: Visit Makgadikgadi Pan, Nxai Pan or the Boteti River area. One significant benefit of setting out on an African zebra migration safari is that it is most dramatic during Botswana’s low tourism season, meaning lower lodge rates and fewer safari vehicles. Experiencing the annual occurrence on a mobile safari is the quintessential migration experience, allowing travellers to trace portions of their long, wild journey.
2. The Great Wildebeest Migration – Tanzania and Kenya
Across the Serengeti National Park and Maasai Mara National Reserve, one of Earth’s greatest natural dramas unfolds: the Great Wildebeest Migration. Each year, over a million wildebeest, joined by zebra and gazelle, move in a circular rhythm dictated by rain and grass – travelling a total of 800km or more during each cycle. From January’s calving season on the southern Serengeti’s nutrient-rich plains to the perilous Mara River crossings in August, their instinct to follow renewal turns the landscape into a living theatre of survival.
The herds begin in Tanzania’s Ndutu area in January, sweeping northward through the Western Corridor and Grumeti, reaching Kenya’s Maasai Mara by midyear. Come November, they journey south once more, the cycle unbroken.
Why they migrate: To follow seasonal rains and fresh grazing across the Serengeti–Mara ecosystem, ensuring survival and reproduction in changing conditions.
Best time to go: February for calving in Ndutu; June–July for the Grumeti River crossings; August–October for the Mara River crossings drama.
Where to go: Join a mobile migration camp or stay in key locations – Ndutu, Grumeti, or the Mara Triangle – to follow the herds’ path. Balloon safaris, guided safaris and remote camps offer unforgettable front-row seats.
3. Liuwa Plain wildebeest and antelope migration – Zambia
Far from the crowds, on Zambia’s remote western horizon, Liuwa Plain National Park hosts Africa’s second-largest wildebeest migration – around 45,000 blue wildebeest sweeping across silvered grasslands, accompanied by zebra, oribi and red lechwe. Managed by African Parks and the Barotse Royal Establishment, Liuwa’s revival tells a story of conservation triumph. Once decimated by poaching, it now thrives with returning predators – hyena clans, wild dogs, cheetah and lion prides descended from the legendary Lady Liuwa.
Driven by November rains, the wildebeest and antelope herds move with the storms in search of grazing, echoing the seasonal pulse of the Zambezi floodplains. The park’s vastness – unmarred by roads or crowds – makes this migration an experience of pure solitude.
Why they migrate: To track seasonal rainfall and reach the nutrient-rich grazing that follows the first rains across the Zambezi floodplains.
Best time to go: November to April, when rains bring green grass, new life and the peak of the migration.
Where to go: Liuwa Plain National Park. Guided drives and walks offer exclusive access to this unspoiled wilderness – a rare place where solitude and spectacle still coexist. Liuwa Plain offers excellent wildlife safaris.
4. The Great Nile Migration – South Sudan and Ethiopia
In the vast, little-known wilderness of South Sudan and Ethiopia, a natural wonder long hidden by conflict and isolation has been revealed – the world’s largest land mammal migration. Each year, an estimated six million antelope – including white-eared kob, tiang, Mongalla gazelle and reedbuck – move across the Boma–Badingilo–Jonglei landscape, a 200,000 km² ecosystem (including Boma and Badingilo National Parks) that stretches east of the Nile and into Ethiopia’s Gambella National Park. This is the Great Nile Migration.
This immense migration, newly confirmed by aerial surveys led by African Parks and the Government of South Sudan, surpasses even East Africa’s Serengeti–Mara movement in scale. The herds follow ancient floodplains and seasonal rains between January and June, painting the plains in motion as they move north and east in search of fresh grazing. Among them, predators and scavengers shadow the flow.
Why they migrate: To track seasonal rainfall and the fresh grazing that follows the shifting floodplains.
Best time to go: The great herds cross the grasslands and wetlands from January to June
Where to go: The migration takes place across the Boma and Badingilo National Parks in South Sudan, and Gambella National Park in Ethiopia. The parks are not easily accessible to the general public, and the migration happens across vast, remote areas. Therefore, it is not possible to visit these parks to see the migration. The migration has only recently been surveyed from the air to confirm its scale. However, a pilot tourism project in Maruwa, in Boma NP, is currently being developed, and Gambella is accessible through exclusive chartered aircraft safaris.
5. Kasanka Bat Migration – Zambia
When dusk falls over Kasanka National Park, Zambia, the sky comes alive. From late October to December, around 8 million straw-coloured fruit bats – the largest mammal migration on Earth – descend upon a single patch of swamp forest. Drawn from across central Africa, these nocturnal nomads follow the ripening of wild fruits such as musuku, fig and mango.
The Kasanka Bat Migration unfolds in Kasanka’s evergreen mushitu forest. By day, the bats hang from the trees, cloaking branches in motionless mass. At twilight, they erupt in clouds, their flight paths carving ribbons across the sky. And at sunrise, they flock back to their roosts in a kaleidoscope of wing beats and sunrays.
Why they migrate: Food – their seasonal feast in the fruiting forests of Kasanka.
Best time to go: Early November to mid-December, when the colony is at its peak.
Where to go: Kasanka National Park. Visit the various hides in the park, where you can witness sunrises and sunsets silhouetting millions of wings against the miombo canopy.
6. Rift Valley flamingo migration – Tanzania and Kenya
Across East Africa’s ancient Rift Valley, shallow soda lakes shimmer pink with life. Here, millions of lesser flamingos gather in synchrony – their curved bills filtering cyanobacteria from saline waters. These ethereal birds drift between Lakes Bogoria and Nakuru in Kenya and Natron in Tanzania, migrating as water levels shift and feeding grounds bloom with microscopic algae. Lake Natron in northern Tanzania remains a regular breeding site, where the mineral flats harden into nursery islands safe from predators. Yet this fragile rhythm faces disruption – rising rainfall and dilution of the soda lakes threaten the flamingos’ delicate food balance and nesting zones.
Why they migrate: To feed on nutrient-rich cyanobacteria and to breed when lake chemistry aligns.
Best time to go: June to October, when dry-season mirages and reduced rainfall reveal vast flocks.
Where to go: Kenya’s Lake Bogoria and Lake Nakuru, or Tanzania’s remote Lake Natron. Travellers can fly over red waters and flamingo colonies on a helicopter safari. Witnessing massive flocks of flamingos taking flight against the backdrop of Ol Doinyo Lengai volcano is an experience for the books!
7. Whale Migrations – Southern Africa
Every winter, the Southern Hemisphere’s great whales journey north along Africa’s coastlines, tracing ancient “blue corridors” through the ocean. Southern right whales leave their Antarctic feeding grounds in June, seeking South Africa’s temperate shallows to calve and nurse. Humpback whales follow similar routes, travelling up to 25,000 kilometres from the icy Southern Ocean to the subtropical bays of Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya.
From Hermanus to Aliwal Shoal, these giants breach and tail-slap, echoing haunting songs that carry through the surf. But their journeys are fraught: shifting ocean temperatures and declining krill stocks threaten their feeding cycles and body condition.
Why they migrate: The whales head to warmer waters or their newborns, and the safety of calm coastal waters
Best time to go: June to November for humpbacks and southern rights along South Africa’s Whale Coast. Mozambique’s Inhambane and Zanzibar’s southern shores offer epic sightings from July to October.
Where to go: From land-based lookouts in Hermanus, Gansbaai, Plettenberg Bay and Zanzibar, or on ethical boat safaris in Sodwana and Watamu. False Bay and Kleinbaai, are also well known for land-based and boat-based viewing.
8. Migratory birds – across the continent
Each year, the skies above Africa become invisible highways for millions of migratory birds. Species such as barn swallow, steppe eagle, Amur falcon, European roller and white stork traverse thousands of kilometres. These journeys follow the shifting seasons – birds flying north to Europe and Asia to visit temperate climes, then south to escape the northern winter and feed in Africa’s rich wetlands, savannahs, and deltas. Around 185 species fly from Europe and Asia to southern Africa alone.
The East African Rift Valley and the Sahara are crucial corridors, while the Mediterranean bottleneck at Gibraltar channels flocks in waves so vast they seem to cloud the horizon. Some raptors ride thermals for hours each day; others, like the tiny willow warbler, could go 2 days without food or rest when crossing the sea.
Why they migrate: To seek out better food sources and optimal conditions for breeding. Some breed in their African destinations while others breed in the north. Most migrants are insect- or seed-eaters, travelling thousands of miles as the seasons change to seek out resources. Most Palearctic migrants breed in the northern hemisphere and spend the non-breeding season in Africa. A smaller number, known as intra-African migrants, breed and move within Africa following seasonal rains and food availability.
Where to go: Kenya’s Rift Valley lakes from September to April; Botswana’s Okavango Delta in summer; and South Africa’s wetlands and savannahs in the austral spring. The Zambezi floodplains also host large numbers of Palearctic waders and terns in the wet season.
9. Barbel Run – Botswana
When the Okavango Delta in Botswana absorbs the floodwaters each year, the underwater plains of the Panhandle erupt with life. The Barbel Run – Africa’s hidden migration – is a frenzy of silver and muscle as catfish (Clarias gariepinus) surge upstream, churning the shallows in pursuit of smaller fish fleeing the advancing waters.
The barbel creates an intense feeding chain. Tigerfish slash through the bait balls, birds dive-bomb from above, and tourists gather to witness the spectacle.
Why they migrate: Triggered by rising water and temperature, barbels move en masse to spawn and hunt as the delta floods.
Best time to go: August to October, when water clarity peaks and predator activity intensifies.
Where to go: The Okavango Panhandle. Guided mokoro or boat excursions offer front-row seats to this underwater carnival.
10. The Sardine Run – South Africa and Mozambique
Each winter, between May and July, South Africa’s eastern coastline hosts a dramatic natural display – the Sardine Run. Billions of sardines (Sardinops sagax) surge northward from the cold waters of the Agulhas Bank to KwaZulu-Natal and Mozambique, driven by seasonal currents and the promise of spawning grounds.
The sea churns with life as dolphins, sharks, gannets, and whales converge in a feeding frenzy. The sardines, forming shimmering bait balls up to 20 metres across, twist through turquoise surf under aerial and underwater assaults.
Why they migrate: A genetically distinct subpopulation follows the cooling winter currents to breed – an instinctive annual journey.
Best time to go: June to July, when the run peaks off South Africa’s Wild Coast.
Where to go: From a dive boat at Port St Johns or Coffee Bay (both in South Africa), where divers hover amid swirling silver clouds – a cathedral of movement beneath the waves.
