Tanzania Voted the Best Safari Country of Africa in 2013

THE NETHERLANDS - SafariBookings.com conducted an in-depth analysis of 3,061 reviews of safari tourists and acclaimed experts and concluded that both have voted Tanzania as the best safari country of Africa.

Over the past two years a distinctive SafariBookings taskforce searched for those who have been on safari and invited them to write a review. As a result, over 1,000 people from 53 nationalities wrote more than 2,300 user reviews.

To complement these user reviews, reputable guidebook authors -working for Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Frommer's, Bradt and Footprint- teamed up in the SafariBookings Expert Panel and wrote 756 expert reviews.

The overall average rating of Tanzania in both the user and expert reviews is 4.8 out of 5 stars: the highest score of all 8 major safari countries.

7,185 Tanzania Tours

Why is Tanzania such a great safari destination?

• Superb wildlife viewing in top-class parks. Two are Unesco World Heritage Sites.
• The annual great migration where over 2.5 million wildebeest and zebra migrate from Serengeti National Park in Tanzania to Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.
• Authentic African wilderness with unfenced parks, dirt roads and endless plains.
• A wide range of budget, mid-range and luxury safari options.
• Beach holiday extensions on Zanzibar Island, including kite-surfing.
• Best chimp tracking of Africa in Gombe- and Mahale Mountains National Park.
• Extend your safari holiday by climbing Africa’s highest mountain; Mount Kilimanjaro.
• Direct flights from abroad make the northern and southern safari circuits easily accessible.
• Politically stable and generally safe country.

Ratings for the 8 major safari countries

When looking at the ratings above it can be concluded that all 8 countries are excellent safari destinations as they all have a rating of 4 stars and up. In general the experts were more critical than normal safari tourists, which is to be expected as they have visited far more countries and parks and have a better sense of what’s on offer. Of the user reviews 42% came from first time safari goers and, in general, they are more easily impressed.

What the experts say about Tanzania

• All Tanzania expert reviews

What safari tourists say about Tanzania

104 people from 23 nationalities

Tanzania’s top rated parks

Best time to visit Tanzania by user rating

The monthly user ratings show that Tanzania can satisfy safari tourists at any time of the year. The consistent high ratings were surprising, since we projected lower ratings for the wet seasons (the long rains in March to April, and the short rains of November and December). The occurring rains (often in the form of afternoon showers) don’t typically hamper a safari , yet wildlife viewing in Tarangire, the southern and western circuit parks is considerably less rewarding during these times and could, therefore, effectively lower ratings.

Our point of view lends itself to the dry-season (June to October) being the best time to visit Tanzania. Wildlife viewing in the northern safari circuit is good at any time of the year. The best chance to see the wildebeest migration in the Serengeti is during June and July, while January to February is the time to see the wildebeest calving.

Please read our ‘Best time to visit Tanzania’ page for a more in dept recommendation.

Demographics of the reviewers (interactive charts)

User reviews: 2,305
Expert reviews: 756
Nationalities: 53

By Wouter Vergeer

NL

Wouter found time to combine his professional expertise with his greatest passion- the African Safari. In this union of business and leisure, SafariBookings was born.

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