Source : http://realtalkng.com/best-national-parks-in-nigeria/

If you are looking for great tourist destinations in Nigeria, then you might want to visit some of the national parks across the different states. Nigeria is a land blessed with a great variety of of beautiful destinations that offer breath-taking scenery that will leave you captivated for a long period of time.

Seven Popular National Parks in Nigeria

Yankari National Park

Yankari National Park is Nigeria’s most popular park and is located in Bauchi State in North-Eastern Nigeria. It has been in existence for several years and it began to receive visitors as early as 1962. It is home to a large variety of wild animals such as elephants, lions, hippopotami, baboons, African buffalos, bushbuck, and waterbuck, etc.

It was initially created as a game reserve, but became recognized as a park in 1991. The landscape is made up of several springs and savannah grasslands and has a temperature from 18 to 35 degrees Celsius, making the weather cool to stay in. The park opens to visitors between July and November of each year.

Cross River National Park

This park, located in Cross River State, is situated on an over 4,000 kilometers square expanse of land, and is home to the many species of primates like gorillas and chimpanzees as it also houses other wildlife.
It is divided into two sections:

the Okwangwo Section , created in 1988 and
the Oban Hills Section , created in 1991


Gashaka Gumti National Park

This park is located in the Adamawa State and covers over 6,000 square kilometers of land, making it the largest park in Nigeria. It houses the tallest mountain in the nation and is also home to a lot of wildlife. The recent unrest in the state may have truncated all activities as only daring people will attempt to visit such a hot zone for any form of relaxation.


Old Oyo National Park

Old Oyo National park is located in Oyo State and covers over 2,500 square kilometers of land. It was created from combining two forest reserves; the Upper Ogun and Oyo-Ile forest reserves in 1952. It shares two boundaries. Existing in both the Northern part of Oyo State and Southern part of Kwara State in Nigeria. The location is good enough for people living in nearby states.


Kamuku National Park

This park can be found in the Northern part of Nigeria in Kaduna State and spreads across 1,100 square kilometers of land. It houses wildlife such as antelopes, hyenas, elephants, baboons, monkeys, and birds. It also boasts of several tourists’ attraction such as Tsaunin Rema Hills, The Ancient Parnomo Shrine and the Dogon Ruwa Waterfalls.


Chad Basin National Park

Chad Basin is located in Northern Nigeria in Borno/Yobe State and covers over 2,250 square kilometers of land.
It is divided into three sections:

the Bade Nguru wetlands section
the Chingurmi-Duguma section
the Bulatura section
It is also a home to a lot of wild and common animals such as elephants and birds. I don’t think anyone can dare this park now because of the activities of the insurgents in the State.


Kainji Lake National Park

The Kainji National park spreads over 5,300 square kilometers of land and is located in Niger/Kwara State.
It was established in 1978 and is divided into two sectors:

the Borgu Game Reserve

the Kigera Sector

So, if you are looking for a fun spot to visit wildlife in their natural habitats and also view some natural scenery, look no further than these seven parks. The location between these two states is worth mentioning as they are peaceful and violence-free.

Did I miss any? *_* Tell us if you have visited any of these beautiful places...