Trip details

This low-key town is the gateway to Tanzania’s safari gems and most itineraries include at least a night in Arusha. You’ll likely spend most of your time gathering your bearings before your safari adventure begins or taking things easy after an action-packed few days, both accompanied by the stellar views of nearby Mount Meru.

You certainly won’t get bored should you choose to venture out, however, and there are plenty of activities to keep you busy: enjoy a guided stroll between Maasai markets (for Tinga Tinga paintings, handmade jewellery and Shuka textiles), peruse the museums, or visit the bright green fields of the coffee farms and sample some of Africa’s finest beans. If you’re heading straight for the coast or just fancy an extra dose of wildlife, visit Arusha National Park, where monkeys, giraffes and a host of birdlife are all present and correct, and you can canoe, mountain bike and explore on game drives.

Home of squat baobabs and jumbo elephants, game drives in Tarangire are a mainstay of a safari. Usually conducted around the swamps in the south and east, you’ll see the famous herds of ellies, sometimes up to 300 strong, buffalo, wildebeest, zebra and eland. Predators are all present and correct but sometimes harder to find in the vegetation. Game drive sightings are arguably better in the dry season (June to October), as the grass becomes thick and wieldy in the wetter months - but on the other hand, there are less people! Year-round, the usual morning and afternoon game drive times apply and night drives can also be done from certain lodges allowing sightings of leopard, bush babies and honey badgers.

From June to October walking safaris are also on the cards, grass-height dependent. Walks tend to be done in the morning and last 3-4 hours and whilst there are usually elephants to be found, they are traditionally focused on the smaller flora and fauna of the ecosystem.

Famous for the mighty Great Migration, wildebeest-watching is high on the list of most who visit the Serengeti. The location of the herds differs by month but as a rough guide, you’ll catch the famous river crossings in the north from July to October and the calving and birthing season in the south from December to March. Visit at other times and the herds will be in the Western Corridor (April to June) or travelling back through the central areas.

Game drives are available from almost every lodge in the Serengeti. All offer camera-snapping sightings of four out of the Big Five (sadly rhino sightings are rare), as well as cheetah, zebra, giraffe and all the smaller game, whether you choose a morning or afternoon drive or an all-day expedition with a picnic. Night drives and walking safaris are less common but can be done from some camps, and other location-specific activities include hot air ballooning (usually the north), horseback safaris (west), cultural visits and community projects. If this list of activities doesn’t make you swoon…

Essentially a giant bowl filled to the brim with Africa’s most iconic wildlife, visiting Ngorongoro is a highlight. Game drives are a given and in most cases, you’ll rise with the sparrows to ensure you’re on the crater floor in time to catch all the action. Usually you will return in the mid-morning before heading out again in the afternoon, but some lodges have private picnic spots, allowing you to spend a whole day exploring with time for drinks and snacks. Wildlife-wise, expect to see the Big Five, including good numbers of black rhino (this is the best place in Tanzania to spot the Jurassic creatures) and plenty of plains game - but interestingly no giraffe.

Unless it’s a very short stroll, walking safaris aren’t possible in the crater itself. Instead, many lodges offer walks along the rim (spectacular views) and forest hikes in the wild and wonderful highlands, often with visits to local communities and the chance to explore the lesser-visited parts of the volcanic landscape.