Things to see and do Parc National Du Mago

Entrance fees and guides must be paid at the park office in Jinka. Scouts and guides are obligatory to accompany visitors (one of each per group) to the best wildlife observation sites and Mursi villages. The Mago Park headquarters, 30 km from Jinka, is located overlooking the Neri River. The Mursi villages located between 60 and 100 km from the park headquarters change location regularly. Once past the village gate, new arrivals are immediately snapped up by the Mursi, who are all looking to negotiate their image for 5 or 10 birrs! Unfortunately, this is the tribe most perverted by tourism. It's essential to agree on the price of each shot (you can negotiate for 5 birrs), and above all beware of trying to "steal" photos! If nothing seems to discourage tourists eager to discover this mythical ethnic group, it's not impossible that some feel uncomfortable faced with the ardor of these warriors with whom it seems pointless to establish any form of communication. It's best to leave your camera in the car for a while, and above all to visit the most remote villages, which are obviously the least visited, even if access to them means enduring particularly chaotic tracks. Despite the temperature, we advise you to wear long clothing to avoid being bitten by tsetse flies, which sometimes swarm in these parts during the rainy season. Their presence has the advantage of keeping natives and their herds away from the protected areas of the park. To avoid exiting the park via Jinka, it is possible to take the Murlé trail and visit the Karo villages along the way, and from there reach Turmi or Omoraté. Of course, this route can also be taken in the opposite direction. In both cases, it is advisable to check on the condition of the tracks, which are always very uneven, before embarking on this excursion.

Smart tip. The nearest Mursi camps are the most visited, and interaction is sometimes complicated because money is at the center of everything. Push on a little further to get to a little-visited village, even if it means losing a few hours - you haven't come this far to worry about that! If you continue even further, you can also visit the Bodi.