The Serengeti Park in Hodenhagen has long been on our bucket list of travel destinations in Germany. We were all the more pleased that we found two days to visit the animal and adventure park before the Easter holidays. You can read all about what we experienced and discovered in the park in our detailed travel report.
Table of contents
Things to know about Serengeti Park Hodenhagen
Serengeti Park Hodenhagen was opened in 1974 and is now the largest safari park in Europe with wild animals, rides, shows and attractions as well as several places to stay overnight. The park is located in Lower Saxony in the Lüneburg Heath, near the town of Walsrode (location in Google Maps), and covers an area of around 220 hectares. The Serengeti Park was designed along the lines of African national parks and combines nature conservation with leisure activities.
More than 1,500 animals from over 100 species live in over 15 themed areas, including lions, elephants, giraffes, rhinos and zebras. Visitors can experience the animals up close in extensive enclosures on a safari in their own car or on the Serengeti bus. Serengeti Park is also actively involved in species conservation, in particular by breeding and releasing endangered species such as the white rhino into the wild.
Opening hours, admission & parking
Opening hours
The park is open daily from 10 am to 5 pm during the summer season (usually from April to the beginning of November). Opening hours are extended in summer and during school vacations. Exact details can be found on the park’s official website. The park is normally closed during the winter months, except for certain events. The “Fantastic Worlds” light festival was held for the first time in the 2024/2025 season. Here you could visit the park Thursdays to Sundays from 5 to 9.30 pm. The animal areas and rides were closed during the Festival of Lights. Instead, visitors were able to marvel at over 1,000 light objects on a two-kilometer circular route.
Admission prices
The current admission prices for Serengeti Park Hodenhagen vary depending on the season, time of day, age of visitors and additional services selected. A day ticket for adults costs EUR 47.50, an afternoon ticket (from 1.30 p.m.) costs EUR 37.50. For children (3-12 years) the day ticket costs EUR 37.50, the afternoon ticket EUR 27.50. Infants under the age of 3 are admitted free of charge. All prices are as of 2025.
Our tip: It’s always worth searching the internet for“Serengeti Park free ticket” or“Serengeti Park promotion“. During our visit, for example, there was an offer directly on the official Serengeti Park website: “Children’s free ticket 2025 – The free safari for little adventurers! We’ll give you a free children’s ticket for the 2025 season worth EUR 37.50. Simply download it, print it out and bring it with you.” So you can definitely save something 🙂
The entrance fee includes a visit to the park. Safari with your own car and all rides such as Ferris wheel, bumper cars or roller coaster.
Parking
Parking costs EUR 4.50 per day.
A map of the Serengeti Park
On the following map you can see the size of the Serengeti Park. This map with much more information can be downloaded here free of charge as a .pdf version.
A map of the Serengeti Park Hodenhagen
The areas of the Serengeti Safari
At Serengeti Park Hodenhagen, the Serengeti Safari is the heart of the park. On a route around 10 kilometers long, you cross 15 different areas in your own car or a safari bus, which are divided into geographical regions and animal species. You will encounter around 1,500 wild animals from all over the world, including lions, giraffes, rhinos, zebras and many more.
If you don’t want to drive the circular route in your own car, you can also book a guided tour. The Serengeti bus safari, for example, takes place several times a day and in all weathers. It lasts one hour and costs EUR 7.50 per person (children under 3 years are free of charge).
We first did the Serengeti safari in our own car and then again the next day with a guided VIP jeep safari 🙂
Map of the Serengeti Safari
These are the individual areas of the Serengeti Safari with the animals you can see there:
East Africa & Central Africa
❶ & ❷ The Serengeti Safari journey begins here with a vast savannah landscape where you can spot giraffes, elliptical waterbuck, sable antelope, South African gemsbok, eland, ring-tailed lemurs, vervet monkeys and blue wildebeest.
Europe
❸ Here you can get an insight into the local wildlife with fallow deer, red deer, mouflons and wild horses.
West Africa (Angola country)
❹ In this area you will find lychee waterbuck, lowland nyala, roan antelope, blesbok, pygmy hippopotamus and guereza.
North America (Prairie of America)
❺ This section is home to dwarf donkeys, bison and wapitis.
Australia
❻ The Down-Under continent is home to water buffalo, pigmy deer, emus, giant kangaroos and Bennett’s kangaroos.
South America (Amazonia)
❼ In this section you will find animals such as llamas, alpacas, nandus and capybaras. The landscape is open and slightly hilly, giving the impression of a South American pampa.
Asia (Jungle Land)
❽ An exciting section with camel species (Bactrian camels, dromedaries), yaks and Asian hoofed animals such as the deer goat antelope and Axis deer.
Predator areas (Kingdom of the Lions)
❾ & ❿ Here you will find the king of the animals, the lion. Really impressive, as the lions can actually theoretically get right up to the car – they are not cordoned off separately. But of course a ranger always makes sure that the windows and doors of the cars remain closed, for example. White tigers can also be seen here.
Desert habitat
❶❶ & ❶❷ Then you drive through another piece of Africa with Somali wild asses, mantled baboons, African ostriches, kulans, dromedaries, maned leopards, scimitar-horned antelopes, Arabian oryx and Kordofan giraffes.
Kenya
❶❸ In the Kenya area you can see cheetahs and flamingos.
Southern Africa (Botswana)
❶❹ One of the last areas is Southern Africa (Botswana). Here you can find white rhinos, wadu cattle, steppe zebras, ostriches and mendes antelopes.
Ivory Valley
❶❺ The Ivory Valley is one of the most impressive areas of the Serengeti Safari in the Serengeti Park Hodenhagen. Majestic African elephants live here, including the famous elephant cow Nelly, who became famous for her “oracle” appearances at soccer tournaments. In addition to the gray giants, this area is also home to brush-eared boars – striking wild boars with characteristic facial tassels. The area is designed to offer the animals plenty of space and natural structures, similar to the wet savannahs and riverine landscapes of West and Central Africa.
In the ivory valley, you can even get out and feed the elephants in their enclosures 🙂
Self-Drive Safari
On our arrival day, we arrived at the park at around 3 pm. So there was still enough time to go on the self-drive safari through the 15 different areas. It was really exciting for our two kids to keep on the lookout for new animals.
Some animals are so curious that they even come right up to the car 🙂 By the way, feeding the animals is strictly forbidden – this is only possible as part of a tour.
We took about 1.5 hours to complete the entire circular route. But we also have to say that there was very little going on at this time in the late afternoon. The next day we saw that there can sometimes be long queues of cars – so you definitely need to allow more time for the circular route.
So our tip: the safari is best done in the late afternoon 😉
Activities & Rides
In addition to its fascinating animal world, the Serengeti-Park Hodenhagen also offers over 100 rides and attractions. Adrenaline junkies get their money’s worth with roller coasters such as the Gozimba Coaster, the Victoria Freefall Tower and the Jungle Pendulum. Jet boat rides such as the Black Mamba or the Aqua Safari with original airboats provide thrilling experiences, while the Mokora white water ride provides wet surprises. Off-road adventures such as the quad safari or the big-foot tour with monster trucks are also particularly popular.
Families with children will find numerous age-appropriate attractions such as the Guru Guru kite ride, the Ngoko swing boat or the Samburu Moto motorcycle ride. Even in bad weather, the 1,000 m² indoor safari ensures fun and exercise.
We – and our children – thought the 100-meter-long suspension rope bridge in Serengeti Park was pretty cool. It leads through a section of forest and connects different areas of the jungle safari.
Guided tours through the park
Would you like to get a little closer to the animals and learn more about the animal world? Or even feed the animals? Then you can book one of the various guided safaris in the Serengeti Park. There are currently 10 different safaris for visitors to choose from, all with a different focus. There is currently the Unimog Safari, VIP Jeep Safari, Giraffe Selfie, Predator Safari, VIP Big Foot Safari, VIP Quad Safari, VIP Ranger Safari, Safari Express, Big Five Express and the Elite Safari.
But beware: the contingent for these tours is limited and the few places can sell out quickly! Tickets for the guided tours are available in the online store the day before and any remaining places are offered on the day at the VIP safari cash desk on site. You should also always check whether the safaris are suitable for small children. Some have no age restrictions, some (such as the VIP Big Foot Safari) are only for children aged 6 years and over and 1.30 m tall.
We opted for a VIP jeep safari.
VIP Jeep Safari
On our 2nd day in the park, we went on a one-hour guided VIP jeep safari at 10am, for which we paid EUR 29.50 per adult and per child (aged 3 and over). Children under the age of 3 pay EUR 3.50. The food is included in the price. The safari takes you in an open jeep with an experienced ranger across the vast landscapes of the park. You can feed selected animals such as giraffes, tarpans, Scottish Highland cattle, bison, wapitis and Bactrian camels.
And we were really lucky, because all the animals incl. The giraffes came to the jeep curiously and ate the food out of our hands. A really great experience – especially for the children 🙂
Feeding the giraffes on the VIP jeep safari
Overnight stay at Tongasoa Lodge
As we had a longer journey and were only able to leave at lunchtime, we wouldn’t have managed to explore the park completely on the day of our arrival. So we decided to spend a night right in the park and explore everything at our leisure the next day.
The Serengeti Park offers 6 different accommodation options: Masai Mara Lodge, Jambo Lodge, Jungle Lodge, Tongasoa Lodge, Ranger Lodge and the Tented Lodges. We decided to spend the night at the Tongasoa Lodge.
Tongasoa Lodge (glamping) in the Serengeti Park
The Tongasoa Lodges in Serengeti Park offer visitors a unique glamping experience. These spacious canvas tents are idyllically situated in the forest near the Ivory Valley and can accommodate up to seven people. With separate sleeping areas, a fully equipped kitchenette including induction hob, microwave, dishwasher and a modern bathroom with shower, they are ideal for families. Particularly noteworthy is the underfloor heating, which ensures a feel-good atmosphere even in cooler weather. As the outside temperature at night was only around 5 degrees, we even got a fan heater at reception 😉
For one night at the Tongasoa Lodge, we paid a total of EUR 210 for 2 adults and 2 children. The accommodation price includes breakfast, bed linen, towels and final cleaning. Of course, you don’t have to stay overnight directly in the park, but can also look for accommodation in the surrounding area.
Overall, we really liked the Tongasoa Lodge. Unfortunately, the weather was quite rainy and, above all, very cold. The additional fan heater really helped. At night it poured down like a bucket and when you’re lying directly under the tent roof, it’s really loud. But somehow that’s just part of camping or glamping. The children definitely had a lot of fun 🙂
As mentioned, the breakfast buffet in the Manyara restaurant is automatically included in the overnight price. Here you will find a large selection of hot and cold dishes, including fresh bread rolls, croissants, cold cuts, cheese, fruit, muesli, egg dishes as well as coffee, tea and juices.
Even though the weather didn’t quite play along with us and it was pretty cold, we had 2 great days in Serengeti Park Hodenhagen🙂