Tanzania Safari Travel Advice

Tanzania Safari Travel Advice

At Mtoto Safaris, we live and breathe providing our clients with unbiased advice and extraordinary safari experiences. Our Tanzania Safari Experts are permanently based in Tanzania, are well travelled, and have extensive first-hand knowledge of the destinations they recommend. They regularly inspect new lodges, experiences and activities to ensure these offerings meet our clients’ expectations.

There's nothing like up-to-date, relevant travel information direct from someone who’s been there.

Tips for Planning Your Tanzania Safari

• Plan your timing carefully: if you want to see the Wildebeest Migration on your safari or enjoy the best beach weather in Zanzibar, make sure your itinerary matches your travel wishes.
• Book early for high season: Tanzania’s sought-after safari destinations and well-located camps at Wildebeest Migration hotspots get booked out early, often a year in advance.
• Choose your activities: morning and afternoon game drives are standard safari activities, but excursions like night game drives, guided bush walks and hot-air balloon safaris are only allowed in certain areas or camps.
• Expect other visitors in high season: Tanzania’s heavyweight national parks like the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and Tarangire can attract a lot of visitors from about June to October. Consider visiting during low or Green Season (about November to March) if you want to escape the crowds and still enjoy great game viewing.
• Go private: if it’s exclusivity you want, then head for one of Tanzania’s private reserves. The accommodation is superb, game viewing is as good as the main parks, and extra safari activities (see number 3) are occasionally offered.

Tanzania's unit of currency is the Tanzanian Shilling, but our advice is to use US Dollars only – and in cash: credit cards and traveler’s  Cheques (although accepted in most establishments) incur transaction fees. ATMs are found throughout the major towns and cities in Tanzania, but not in the national parks and game reserves.

Note: US Dollar bills printed before 2006 are not accepted in Tanzania.

Tipping lodge staff and drivers/guides is customary for good service on a Tanzania safari, but check first to see whether a service charge has been added to your bill. Tipping is always in addition to the price quoted by your operator and the amount varies depending on the size of your group, the level of luxury of the safari and whether you thought an exceptionally good job was done. When travelling in the major Tanzania cities, a 10% tip is customary in restaurants and bars when a service charge is not included.

Main International Airports

Kilimanjaro International Airport – Tanzania's second international airport – serves the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire and Lake Manyara. However, you need to transfer to nearby Arusha Airport for charter flights to these safari destinations. International flights often arrive at Kilimanjaro Airport late in the day, so an overnight stay in Arusha is usually necessary.

Dar-es-Salaam International Airport – Tanzania's main airport – is the gateway to the Indian Ocean coast and Zanzibar, as well as Nyerere National Park (previously Selous) and Ruaha National Park.

Regional Airports

Arusha Airport – the gateway to northern Tanzania's safari airstrips – is located about 30 kilometres (18.5 miles) from Kilimanjaro International Airport.

Did you know you can book your flights through Go2Africa? For more information and frequently asked questions, please see our Flights page.

Safari Vehicles

Guided road transfers and game drives in Tanzania are conducted in closed 4x4s with big windows and pop-up roofs, although visitors to destinations like Mahale will enjoy a boat transfer across Lake Tanganyika. Most safari destinations have extensive road networks and closed vehicles are therefore the norm when doing long-distance road transfers between airstrips, camps and lodges in Tanzania. A closed 4x4 game drive vehicle generally has three rows of seating and features a pop-up roof hatch that can be raised for game viewing and taking photographs.