Safari in Tanzania

Tanzania

is the richest and most diverse

safari country in Africa

safari, trekking, chimps, history, culture, tropical beaches

Tanzania is a truly remarkable country, which contains far more than its fair share of Africa’s crowned jewels.

The country is best known for safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro, treks on Mount Kilimanjaro and the beaches of Zanzibar.

Other fabulous locations include the savanna reserves of Ruaha, Selous, Katavi and Tarangire, the amazing chimpanzee area of Mahale Mountains and the remote tropical beaches and diving spots of Pemba, Mafia and Fanjove islands.

Tanzania is a very cool country to visit and is one of the most popular choices amongst our guests, not least because it’s a prime location for classic ‘bush and beach’ combinations.

Trips typically run to 10-18 nights, but can easily be extended to three or four weeks and continue to deliver varied and interesting experiences.
The most common combination is with the gorilla areas of Uganda and Rwanda, which are easily reached from Serengeti.

The main potential downsides are that travel in Tanzania is unavoidably expensive these days and the tropical climate makes it less suitable for younger children.

Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa and the leading location for safari and tropical beach combinations.

Although best know for Serengeti, the country also contains a huge range and of quality safari locations.

Whilst Kilimanjaro is the largest and best known summit, the country contains several fascinating mountain ranges.

In between there are some gorgeous rural areas, notably in the tea and coffee plantations.

The country also has 700km of tropical coastline with the most remarkable beaches and reefs.

No wonder so many people continue to find Tanzania so alluring, despite the ever increasing prices.

Take a look around the key areas of Tanzania ...

The northern safari region is centred on the fabulous Serengeti with its incredible migration.

Close by and usually visited in combination is the awesome Ngorongoro Crater.

Of the reserves in the south of the country, Ruaha is by far our favourite.

Whilst in the remote west, the chimpanzee experience at Mahale Mountains is second to none.

In the northeast, Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest walkable mountain in the world.

Down on the tropical coast, the most popular location is the island of Zanzibar.

Access is primarily by air to Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar and Kilimanjaro international airports.

The Northern Parks are usually best visited by overland safari ...

... but most other locations are more easily connected by internal flights.

Browse our collections of sample trips ...

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Tanzania is generally best visited during the Jun-Oct dry season, but there are major reasons to visit at other times of year. In fact, the Serengeti is good year round.

Getting there

Tanzania is usually accessed via Kilimanjaro International Airport (for the Serengeti region and Mount Kilimanjaro), Dar es Salaam International Airport (for Selous and Ruaha and the coast) and Zanzibar International Airport (for the coast).

Whilst it is possible to arrive into any of these airports and connect to anywhere in the country, there are definitely some connections which are easier and cheaper than others, so it’s usually best not to book your international flights before contacting us.

If you are combining with neighbouring countries like Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, then it may be possible to fly directly into the national parks rather than detour back through these big airports. For example there are excellent flights from Entebbe and Kigali which head into the airstrips of Serengeti.

Once in the country, the majority of locations are best connected by light aircraft services, which are generally arranged to seamlessly route between the key areas.
The major exception to this is when travelling between the various reserves in the north (Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire) which are usually best connected by means of guided overland safaris.

Within each location it is usual to travel around with a guide and a vehicle. Self-drive is definitely not recommended, not even in somewhere as popular as Zanzibar Island.

Where to stay

The usual way to go about choosing where to stay during your trip is to start by selecting the areas you would like to visit, then looking at the various options in each area.

But if you would like to browse all of the various lodges and camps in Tanzania, then you can use this link. If you change the month in the search sentence then the lodge ratings will reorder appropriately to show you the very best options for that period. That should help.