Tanzania & Zanzibar Safari Destinations
We
are the Tanzania safari tours specialists. We are wild about wildlife, excited
about the natural world, and extremely proud to call Tanzania our
home. Your trip of a lifetime deserves the very best planning. We attend
to all of the details of your Tanzania safari touring with professional care.
You deserve to fulfill every desire on your safari bucket list. We offer a
unique selection of itineraries that turn your dreams into realities. Our
main specialities are wildlife camping, lodging, and luxury safaris, climbing
Mt. Kilimanjaro, treking Mt. Meru and Oldoinyo
Lengai, Zanzibar beach holidays, cultural
tours, cycling adventure tours and so much more!
Authentic Custom Tanzania Safari Tours Just for you
Tanzania
Safari Specialists: As a local Tanzania safari company, our in-depth
knowledge of the wild helps you get closer to the action. Traveling with local
experts gives you an insider perspective on the famous destinations and seeks
out Tanzania’s secret gems.
Professional
Safari Driver Guides: On our tours, you will receive complete and focused
attention by your professional guides, with the expert knowledge and skill
required to make sure you have the trip of a lifetime.
Wildlife
Viewing Maximized: All our tour itineraries are strategically designed on
a monthly basis to take advantage of seasonal wildlife concentrations, and all
safaris incorporate specific game drives to witness the great Wildebeest
Migration and other major wildlife attractions.
Best
Attractions
1 Mount Kilimanjaro
One
of the most frequented attractions in Tanzania, Mount Kilimanjaro National Park
is home to Africa's highest mountain peak. Unlike other parks in northern
Tanzania, this one is not visited for the wildlife but for the chance to stand
in awe of this majestic snow-capped mountain and, for many, to climb to the
summit. Mount Kilimanjaro can be climbed at any time, although the best period
is from late June to October, during the dry season.
Kilimanjaro,
a World Heritage Sites, was formed over 1 million years ago by volcanic
movement along the Rift Valley. Three points - Shira, Kibo, and Mawenzi came to
be about 750,000 years ago. The highest point is Uhuru Peak on Kibo, which is
one of the Seven Summits of the world.
The
mountain rises from farmland on the lower level to rainforest and alpine meadow
and then barren lunar landscape at the peaks. The slopes of the rainforest are
home to buffaloes, leopards, monkeys, elephants and eland. The alpine zone is
where bird watchers will find an abundance of birds of prey.
2 Serengeti National Park
Serengeti
National Park is a vast treeless plain with thousands, even millions of animals
searching for fresh grasslands. As the largest national park in Tanzania, the
Serengeti attracts thousands of tourists each year. The best months for
wildlife viewing are between December and June. The wet season is from March to
May, with the coldest period from June to October. The annual migration of
millions of zebra and wildebeest takes place in May or early June. This
migration is one of the most impressive natural events and the primary draw for
many tourists.
Large
herds of antelope as well as lion, leopard, cheetah, hyena, bat eared fox,
hunting dog and jackal are also found in Serengeti National Park. Nearly 500
species of bird have been recorded on the Serengeti. Many of these are
attracted to the swamp area. 'Serengeti' means an 'extended place' in the
Maasai language.
3 Zanzibar Beaches
The
Zanzibar archipelago consists of the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba. The island
of Zanzibar, also called Unguja, is a major holiday destination known for its
beautiful beaches. This island has some of the best beaches in the world with
varying surf depending on what side of the island you are on. Visitors will
find soft white sand and clear shallow water, along with traditional boats.
Stone Town is located in the heart of Zanzibar and features old Arabian
townhouses, narrow alleyways and a busy port.
4 Ngorongoro Conservation
Area
Located
between the Serengeti and Lake Manyara, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area is
home to the famous volcanic Ngorongoro Crater and one of
Tanzania's most popular wildlife viewing areas. This huge volcanic crater has a
permanent supply of water which draws all kinds of animals who stay in this
area rather than migrating. Visitors come here primarily for viewing large game
and bird watching, but also of interest in the conservation area is the Olduvai
Gorge. This important archeological site has revealed ancient skull and
bone fragments that have delivered critical information about early mankind.
The
Ngorongoro Crater is the largest intact ancient caldera in the world, nearly
three million years old. The Ngorongoro volcano was one of the world's tallest
mountains before it exploded and collapsed. Thousands of wild game can be seen
on the crater floor, including lions, elephants, rhinos, Thomson's gazelles,
and buffaloes, but wildebeests and zebras account for over half of the animals
that call the Ngorongoro Crater home. Bird watching is superb, especially
around Lake Migadi, which attracts flocks of flamingoes to the
shallows. Hippos are content to submerge themselves during the day and then
graze in the nearby grass in the evening.
Olduvai Gorge
The
Olduvai Gorge is an archeological site situated on a series of fault lines,
where centuries of erosion have revealed fossils and remnants of early mankind.
As early as 1911, a German professor found some fossil bones while looking for
butterflies in Olduvai Gorge. In a later expedition, the Leakeys collected
skull fragments, a skull, and bones determined to be approximately 2 million
years old. Tools and hunting weapons from 1 to 1.5 million years ago were also
discovered in Olduvai Gorge. Another exciting find were the famous footprints
of a man, woman and child at Laetoli, near Olduvai. These and other discoveries
provide more evidence to the theory that at least three hominid species were in
this region over 2 million years ago.
5 Lake Manyara National
Park
Lake
Manyara National Park is comprised of forest, woodland, grasslands, and swamps.
Two-thirds of the park is covered by water and Lake Manyara is host to
thousands of flamingoes, at certain times of year, as well as other diverse
bird life. The highlight of Lake Manyara Park is the large population of
elephants, tree-climbing lions and hippos that can be observed at a much closer
range than in other parks. This park is also home to the largest concentration
of baboons in the world.
Wildlife
drives, canoeing (when water levels are high enough), mountain bike tours and
bird watching are the most popular activities in Lake Manyara National Park.
6 Mafia Island
Mafia
Island draws divers and snorkelers from around the world to the undersea world
protected by the Mafia Island Marine Park. The best months for diving are
October to March but the best weather on Mafia Island is May to October, March
and April are months of heavy rain. Mafia Island Marine Park has excellent
coral gardens, an abundant variety of fish and a relaxed diving atmosphere.
Countless birds and over 400 species of fish can be seen in the area. Mafia
Island is also a traditional breeding site for the green turtle, which are
unfortunately close to extinction.
Mafia
is also a desirable location for deep-sea fishing, especially tuna, marlin,
sailfish and other big-game fish.
This
island paradise first saw settlers in the 8th or 9th C, but Mafia became a more
important settlement during the 12th to 14th C when it held a key position in
the East African trading routes.
7 Tarangire National Park
Tarangire
National Park was established in 1970 and is best visited in the dry season
from July to September when the animals gather along the river. During the dry
season, Tarangire National Park has one of the highest concentrations of
migratory wildlife. Wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and
eland crowd the lagoons. One of the most noticeable highlights of Tarangire
National Park is the baobab trees that dot the grassy landscape.
The
park is excellent for birdwatching, with more than 300 species recorded in
Tarangire. These species include buzzards, vultures, herons, storks, kites,
falcons and eagles.
8 Pemba Island
Pemba
Island is the northernmost island in the Zanzibar archipelago. Around Pemba are
many desert islands and some of the best scuba diving in the Indian Ocean, with
visibility that is unparalleled. Lush coral gardens, colorful sponges and sea
fans are all found in the underwater haven. The city of Chake Chake, the main
population center on Pemba, is a popular base for scuba divers.
Pemba
is less visited than Zanzibar and as a result has a more laidback atmosphere.
From December to February visitors can watch traditional bullfighting; a sign
from the days of Portuguese dominance in the 16th and 17th C. The island is
hilly with deep valleys so it has become popular with mountain bikers who are
drawn to the 1,000-meter peaks.
Pemba
is a major world clove producer and is also well known for the juju traditions
of medicine and magic. People come from throughout East Africa to learn from
the voodoo and traditional healers or seek a cure.
9 Stone Town
Stone
Town is the cultural heart of Zanzibar and little has changed in the last 200
years. The grand old Arabian homes lining the narrow streets and winding alleys
give the city its own unique charm. The majority of homes in Stone Town were
built in the 19th C when Zanzibar was one of the most important Swahili trading
towns in the Indian Ocean. Visitors will notice the bras-studded, intricately
carved wooden doors on many of the houses.
As
the world's oldest functioning Swahili city, many of the landmarks in Stone
Town have been restored to their original glory. Some of the historic buildings
are now museums which can be visited. The town also has a couple of interesting
old churches of historical significance. A walk along Creek Road takes visitors
to the original Stone Town area and the location of the Central
Darajani Market, Beit el-Amani, City Hall, and
the Anglican Cathedral. Some of the other key highlights include
the Forodhani Gardens, the Old Dispensary with its
carved wooden balconies, the former home of the sultans known as Beit
el-Sahel or the People's Palace, the Hamamni
Persian Baths built in 1888, and the oldest structure in Stone Town,
the Old Fort.
10 Selous Game Reserve
Selous
is the largest game reserve in Africa. Established in 1922, it covers 5% of
Tanzania's total area. The southern area is a forbidden zone that is
undeveloped, heavily forested, and contains a series of steep cliffs. Travelers
are limited to the area north of the Rufiji River. This area of the Selous Game
Reserve has large open grassland, woodlands, rivers, hills and plains. The best
time to visit is July through October.
The
Rufiji River bisects the Selous Game Reserve and has the largest catchment area
of any river in East Africa. The river is an important feature of the reserve
providing the opportunity to watch the diverse water-based wildlife. A broad
range of game can be found including elephants, hippos and rhinos as well as
buffalo, antelope, giraffe, warthog, wildebeest, lion, leopard and cheetah. The
diversity of bird life in Selous includes over 350 recorded species.
11 Arusha National Park
Arusha
National Park, although smaller than most in Tanzania, has a range of habitats
that consist of the forest of Mount Meru, Ngurdoto Crater in the southeast
section of the park, and Momela Lakes, a series of seven crater lakes. Black
and white Colobus monkeys are easily spotted in the forested area while the
marshy floor of the crater is dotted with herds of buffalo, zebra and warthog.
Momela Lakes is home to a large selection of resident and migrant waterbirds.
People come here to see wildlife and also to climb Mount Meru.
Mount
Meru is one of the most beautiful volcanoes in Africa and the second highest
mountain in Tanzania. The summit is reached by a narrow ridge, which provides
stunning views of the volcanic cone lying several thousand feet below in the
crater. The ascent is steep but the route passes through parkland, forest, a
giant heather zone and moorland.
12 Ruaha National Park
Ruaha
National Park is the least accessible park in Tanzania and as a result the
landscape remains relatively untouched. Birdwatcher's can enjoy over 400
species of bird that are not found in northern Tanzania, and the river,
spectacular gorges, and majestic trees are especially appealing to
photographers. As Tanzania's second largest park, Ruaha has large herds of
buffalo, elephant and gazelle. The concentration of elephants are some of the
largest in Tanzania. The Great Ruaha River is the main feature of Ruaha
National Park providing magnificent wildlife viewing on the banks. The river
also provides much of the electricity to Tanzania through a hydroelectric dam
at Kidatu.
13 Katavi National Park
Katavi
National Park is located in a remote location offering unspoiled wilderness. A
predominant feature in Katavi is the enormous flood plain, split by the Katuma
River and several seasonal lakes. The lakes support enormous groups of hippos,
crocodiles and over 400 species of birds. One of the spectacles in Katavi is
the hippos at the end of the dry season when as many as 200 try to squeeze into
a pool of water. The male rivalry heats up causing territorial fights.
The
dry season brings Katavi National Park to life, herds of impala, reedbuck,
lions, zebras and giraffes can be seen at the remaining pools and streams. An
estimated 4,000 elephants and several herds of buffaloes in the thousands also
converge on the park when the flood waters retreat.
14 Gombe Stream National
Park
Gombe
Stream National Park is primarily for those who want to get a little off the
beaten track and see chimpanzees. This is the smallest national park in
Tanzania and is famous for the work of Jane Goodall. This British researcher arrived
in 1960 to study the wild chimpanzees and her work turned into what would
become the longest running behavioral research program of its kind in the
world. Guided walks take visitors into the forest to observe chimps in the
wild. Many species of primates and mammals live in the park. Over 200 bird
species have been recorded in the tropical forest, including barbets,
starlings, sunbirds, crowned eagle, kingfishers and the palm-nut vulture.
Hiking
and swimming are other popular activities; a trail leads into the forest to a
waterfall in the valley.
15 Lake Victoria
Lake
Victoria is the largest freshwater lake in Africa and is bordered by Kenya,
Tanzania and Uganda. This lake is the source of the White Nile and provides an
income for millions of residents along its shores. The Tanzanian section of
Lake Victoria is one of the least visited regions in the country, however the
towns of Bukoba, Musoma and Mwanza have a number of attractions. Near Mwanza
and Musoma are many islands, some have become wildlife sanctuaries. Bird
watching and fishing trips are popular excursions, and boat trips or hikes can
be arranged around Lake Victoria.
Rubondo
Island National Park, which includes several other smaller islands, is on the
southwest shores of Lake Victoria.