What it is
About 2,240 square kilometres of savannah and woodland in Bauchi State. Wikki Warm Spring, at the main camp, is a clear pool fed at around 31 degrees year-round, large enough to swim in.
Why go
It is the only reserve in Nigeria with reliable big-mammal viewing, and the elephants are the point. There are also baboon, waterbuck, roan antelope, bushbuck and hippo in the river. The park has had a difficult history of poaching and underfunding and has been rebuilt with outside conservation support; wildlife numbers are well below what the area could hold, and lion are functionally gone. Come for the elephant and the spring, not for a Big Five list.
When to go
November to April, when animals concentrate at water and the tracks are firm. Bauchi is in the north, so check current travel advice for the state and the route before committing. Access is via Bauchi town; accommodation is inside the park and basic.
Most people stay 2 nights.