Best Things To Do in Tanzania – Our Expert’s Choice

21-30 of 50 Best Things To Do in Tanzania

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    21. Mix Boat, Foot and 4x4 Safaris in Nyerere NP

    Nyerere is the only major Tanzanian park suited to boat safaris

    It’s difficult to absorb the sheer scale of Nyerere National Park (formerly Selous Game Reserve). Extending across southeast Tanzania for 30,893km²/11,928mi², this vast park is larger than Belgium or Rwanda, and it provides sanctuary to some

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    of Africa’s most substantial populations of elephant, buffalo, lion, hippo and African wild dog.Nyerere stands out for its exceptional variety of wildlife-viewing activities. Game drives here are always rewarding, and most lodges and camps also offer quality guided walking safaris. But the defining Nyerere experience is a boat safari, which can be undertaken on the Rufiji (Tanzania’s largest river) or a network of associated lakes. Hippos grunt loudly in the shallows, massive crocodiles show off their fearsome teeth as they bask on the sandbanks, the birdlife is dazzling, and you might well see giraffes coming down to drink or elephants crossing between riverbanks. It’s a magical experience.

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    Nyerere Safaris About Nyerere NP

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    22. Go Local on a Cultural Tourism Outing

    Many enjoyable community tourism programs operate around Arusha and Moshi

    Experience a different side of East Africa on a day excursion to one of the community-based projects overseen by the Tanzania Cultural Tourism Programme. Some projects focus on natural features such as Materuni Waterfalls, Lake Duluti

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    or Kikuletwa Hot Springs. Others are more about cultural interaction – for instance, with Maasai cattle herders at Longido, or Chagga subsistence farmers at Marangu, or a Wa-arusha women’s group at Ng’iresi. More active overnight options include a camelback safari at Mkuru or a remote mountain hike at Monduli Juu.Whichever cultural project you visit, you can be sure it will be fascinating – and fun – to interact with local Tanzanians outside the mainstream tourist infrastructure. Just as importantly, these projects play a vital role when it comes to empowering and providing work opportunities to women and young people in rural areas.

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    Day Trips From Arusha & Moshi

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    23. Take a Safari in Arusha NP

    This underrated park is the closest wildlife destination to Arusha town

    Arusha National Park packs plenty of variety into a smallish area. Focused around the 4,562m-/14,967ft-high Mt Meru, this well-watered park protects a green mosaic of grassland, forest and wetland habitats. Scenic landmarks include Ngurdoto Crater (which

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    resembles a scaled-down version of Ngorongoro) and the pretty Momela Lakes. There are also close-up views of Mt Meru and more distant ones of Kilimanjaro.The wildlife doesn’t compare to Tanzania’s big-name parks, but you could see elephant, buffalo, giraffe, hippo, warthog, black-and-white colobus and blue monkey. Forest and wetland birds include the dazzling Hartlaub’s turaco and large flamingo flocks. Game drives can be combined with canoeing on the lakes or guided hikes into Meru or Ngurdoto Craters. Because Arusha NP is less than an hour’s drive from Arusha town or Kilimanjaro International Airport, a day trip there is a perfect itinerary filler at the start or end of an extended safari.

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    Arusha NP Safaris About Arusha NP

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    24. Explore Pristine Beaches and Reefs on Pemba

    Pemba Island, Zanzibar’s neglected twin, remains unspoiled and idyllic

    The Indian Ocean island of Pemba shares many attractive features with its more celebrated neighbor Zanzibar, 80km/50mi farther south. Along the coast, you’ll find long sandy swimming beaches, traditional Swahili fishing villages and crumbling medieval ruins,

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    while the hilly interior is planted with aromatic spices and tropical fruits. When it comes to snorkeling and diving, Pemba’s extensive offshore coral gardens and reefs have few peers anywhere in East Africa. There is also Ngezi Vumawimbi Forest Reserve, which is home to the outsized Pemba flying fox and four endemic bird species. Despite all this, tourist development is restricted to a handful of small resorts, making Pemba a great uncrowded alternative to Zanzibar.

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    Safari & Pemba Packages

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    25. Look for Lions up Trees in Lake Manyara NP

    This scenic park on the Northern circuit is home to tree-climbing lions

    Everybody knows that lions don’t climb trees. Indeed, in most parts of their range, you could encounter these determinedly earthbound cats on a daily basis for years and never see one in a tree. Not so

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    at Lake Manyara National Park. Here, the lions have thrown out the rule book and they routinely laze on acacia branches in the heat of the day; truly a sight to behold!If you only do one or two game drives in Manyara, there’s no guarantee you’ll encounter lions. But the park is also notable for the lake’s plentiful waterbirds and scenic location below the Rift Valley escarpment, while common wildlife includes elephant, buffalo, giraffe and hippo. And if you do miss out on tree-climbing lions, don’t despair. Assuming you’re heading on to the Serengeti, this unusual behavior is now also seen with increasing frequency there, especially in the central Seronera Valley.

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    Lake Manyara Safaris About Lake Manyara NP

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    26. Meet Hadzabe Hunter-gatherers at Lake Eyasi

    Tanzania’s last hunter-gatherers live around this remote Rift Valley lake

    The Hadzabe people of Eyasi are among the last adherents to the hunter-gatherer lifestyle, which sustained the world’s entire human population for 99% of our existence. Traditionally, they live in nomadic family groups and subsist on

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    a combination of roots, fruits and other vegetarian fare collected by the women, while meat is hunted by the men with a bow and arrow.A cultural tourism program in Mang’ola, the area’s largest settlement, arranges guided visits and hunting excursions with Hadzabe clans who choose to maintain a seminomadic lifestyle, despite repeated government attempts to settle them. The other attraction of this area is Lake Eyasi itself. Set below a dramatic 800m/2,625ft escarpment, the soda-crusted shallows of this vast Rift Valley lake usually support large flocks of flamingos and shorebirds.

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    Safari & Hadzabe Tours

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    27. Head West to Africa’s Remotest Safari Circuit

    Tanzania’s Western circuit includes Katavi, Gombe and Mahale Mountains

    You need to dedicate significant time or money, or both, to exploring Tanzania’s remote Western safari circuit. But if you’re willing and able to do so, the rewards are incredible. Vast and little-visited Katavi National Park,

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    renowned for its large herds of buffalo and elephant, is perhaps the last place in Africa where you’re likely to see lions more often than you encounter other vehicles.Often visited on a fly-in combination safari with Katavi, Mahale Mountains National Park is arguably Africa’s premier chimp trekking destination. It also boasts an idyllic forested setting on the remote mountainous shore of beautiful Lake Tanganyika. Farther north on the same lake, the smaller Gombe National Park is famed for its association with Jane Goodall, who launched a pioneering chimp research project there in 1960.

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    Western Circuit Safaris

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    28. Swim With Whale Sharks in the Indian Ocean

    The world’s largest fish thrives in the Mafia Channel and Archipelago

    It sounds like a scary prospect. Whale sharks can be three times as heavy as an elephant bull and they belong to a notorious group of marine carnivores. In reality, however, these handsome spotted fish are

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    one of the ocean’s gentlest giants. Placid filter feeders whose main diet consists of plankton and other microscopic organisms, whale sharks also tend to be slow-moving and relaxed when approached carefully by swimmers.The channel that divides Mafia from mainland Tanzania is one of the best places in the world to swim with whale sharks. A seasonal population of around 200 individuals usually arrives here in October, feeding on nutrients washed down by the floodwaters of the Rufiji River, and departs again in February. It’s a thrilling experience, and very safe, provided you go with an ethical operator who ensures their clients don’t crowd the fish.

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    Safari & Mafia Island Packages

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    29. Enjoy Stirring Views of Kilimanjaro’s Snowcap

    You don’t need to climb Africa’s most iconic mountain to see its lofty peak

    The snowcapped peak of the world’s tallest freestanding mountain is – unsurprisingly – a prominent landmark for miles around. Or at least it would be if it didn’t spend most of its time shrouded in the

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    clouds. Still, when the skies clear (usually in the late afternoon or early morning) to reveal Kilimanjaro’s distinctive rounded peak and glistening snowy crown, it’s a genuinely breathtaking sight.There are many places in northern Tanzania that offer superb views of Kilimanjaro, weather permitting. These include the towns of Moshi and Marangu on the mountain’s southern footslopes, as well as more distant Arusha National Park and the many upmarket lodges scattered around Usa River. To get up really close, however, nothing beats an off-the-beaten-track safari in the Maasai concessions of West Kilimanjaro or an early morning guided walk above the 3,500m/11,483ft contour on the Shira Plateau Day Trail.

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    Shira Day Hikes

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    30. Stretch Your Legs in the West Usambara

    Picturesque Lushoto is the base for guided hikes into these green mountains

    Lushoto is an instantly likable town. Founded by German colonists in the 1890s, it stands at a cool elevation of 1,400m/4,600ft in a river valley enclosed by lush cultivated slopes. The town center is dotted with

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    century-old buildings and focused around a colorful market, where local Shambaa women sell fresh produce grown in the surrounding West Usambara Mountains.Lushoto is a great base for affordable guided walks deeper into the West Usambara. Guides can be arranged at a well-organized community tourism office. Options range from a relaxed half-day stroll to the sensational Irente Viewpoint to a multiday hike to Mambo, 55km/34mi to the north. A highlight for wildlife enthusiasts, Magamba Forest Reserve is home to a wealth of rare birds, reptiles and monkeys, including the endemic Usambara weaver and West Usambara two-horned chameleon.

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    Safari & Usambara Packages