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AfriGuide🇳🇬 NigeriaYankari & Wikki Springs — 3 Days
🏞️ NIGERIA'S BIGGEST SAFARITop-ratedGame drives · Wikki springs · cave artLocal guides

Yankari & Wikki Springs — 3 Days

★ 4.6 · 140 reviews· Yankari NP, Bauchi State· English, Hausa· Fly Abuja (ABV) → Bauchi or drive
Duration
3 days · 2 nights
👥
Group
Max 8
Start
Abuja (ABV)
Includes
Game drives · Wikki springs · cave art
🏠
Stay
Wikki Camp inside park
🛡
Wildlife
Elephant · roan · baboon · hippo

About this trip

Three days at Yankari National Park, Nigeria's largest wildlife reserve — 2,244 km² of woodland savannah in Bauchi State, with ~350 elephants (the largest population in West Africa), roan antelope, hippopotamus, baboon troops, and ~50 species of mammal. The headline beyond game drives is Wikki Warm Springs — a crystal-clear 31°C natural pool, 200m long, lit underwater at night and open 24 hours. Plus the Marshall Caves with prehistoric rock paintings. Fly to Abuja, drive 5 hrs (or charter Bauchi airstrip), stay inside the park at Wikki Camp.

Highlights

Yankari elephant game drives
Dawn & afternoon drives along the Gaji River · 350 elephants · roan, hartebeest, baboon.
Wikki Warm Springs
Crystal-clear 31°C pool · 200m long, 13m wide · open 24/7 · underwater lights at night.
Marshall Caves
Prehistoric rock paintings · cave network used by hunters 3,000+ years ago.
Tomberi viewpoint
Tonga rock outcrop · panorama over the park · sunset over the Gaji.
Birdlife · 350+ species
Rare martial eagle, saddle-billed stork, Abyssinian roller in the dry season.
Bauchi market visit
On the way back · indigo dyers · Hausa leatherwork · Adamawa beadwork.

Day-by-day itinerary

01
Day 1
Abuja → Bauchi → Yankari
  1. 07:00 — Abuja hotel pickup.
  2. 12:30 — Lunch in Bauchi city.
  3. 14:30 — Continue to Yankari.
  4. 16:00 — Check into Wikki Camp · first afternoon game drive.
  5. 19:30 — Dinner at camp · night swim at Wikki Springs.
02
Day 2
Full Yankari day
  1. 05:30 — Dawn game drive · 4 hrs · big elephant chance along the Gaji.
  2. 10:00 — Brunch at camp.
  3. 12:00 — Wikki Springs swim · siesta.
  4. 14:30Marshall Caves excursion · 2 hrs.
  5. 16:30 — Afternoon game drive · Tomberi viewpoint at sunset.
  6. 19:30 — Boma dinner.
03
Day 3
Last drive · back to Abuja
  1. 06:00 — Final dawn drive.
  2. 09:30 — Brunch · pack.
  3. 11:00 — Drive back to Bauchi · indigo dyer market stop.
  4. 14:00 — Lunch.
  5. 19:00 — Drop at ABV airport.

What's included

  • ABV pickup & drop
  • 2 nts Wikki Camp inside the park
  • All meals + bottled water
  • All park entry + Wikki Springs access
  • Game drives ×3 with armed ranger
  • Marshall Caves guided excursion
  • Bauchi market stop

Not included

  • × International flights to ABV
  • × Nigeria eVisa ($160)
  • × Tips · ranger $20/day
  • × Travel insurance
  • × Bauchi charter flight (+$390 instead of drive)

Cancellation

100%
21+ days before.
50%
21–7 days.
0%
Inside 7 days.

140 reviews

4.6
★★★★★
Nigeria's best-kept safari secret
★★★★★
"Night swim in Wikki Springs at 11pm, 31°C water, stars overhead, the bush silent — surreal."
Tunde A.
London · Mar '26
★★★★★
"Saw 80 elephants in one afternoon. The park is genuinely wild, very few other vehicles, the antithesis of crowded Kenya."
Sarah O.
Cape Town · Feb '26

Common questions

Safe in Bauchi State?

Yankari itself is safe with strong park security. We use a known driver, stay inside the park, and travel daylight only. Talk to us about current advisories — we won't run the trip if conditions tighten.

Best time?

December–April (dry season) — animals concentrate at the Gaji River. Avoid July–September (heavy rain, roads bad).

Add Lagos Detty December?

Yes — fly ABV → LOS for our Lagos Detty December. Combined 6-day from $1,490/pp.

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