Tanzania · East Africa
Tanzania
The northern circuit and then the Indian Ocean. Six nights tracking game across three parks, then a week doing absolutely nothing on Zanzibar. It is the best-structured trip we sell.
The short version
Safari first, beach second, never the other way round
Safari is early mornings, long drives and dust. Zanzibar is a hammock. Do them in that order and the beach becomes the reward you've earned; do it backwards and you'll resent the 5am starts. The internal flight from the Serengeti to Zanzibar takes about two hours and turns two trips into one.
Day three or four
The Ngorongoro Crater
A collapsed volcano twenty kilometres across with around 25,000 animals living inside it, including the best chance of black rhino in East Africa. Because it's enclosed, you see more in one morning here than in two days elsewhere. Stay on the rim and descend at dawn — the crater floor gets busy by nine and the light has gone.
The main event
The Serengeti, and where the migration actually is
Two million wildebeest move in a slow loop through the Serengeti and Masai Mara all year, so the question is never whether the migration is happening — it's where. Calving is in the southern plains in February. The Grumeti crossings are around June. The Mara River crossings, the ones from the documentaries, run roughly July to September. Your dates decide which camp you should be in, and it's the single most important thing we get right for you.
The northern circuit
Three parks, then the ocean
Elephants in extraordinary numbers, and baobabs. One or two nights, usually the first stop out of Arusha.
One night on the rim, one full morning on the floor. The densest game viewing in Africa.
Three nights minimum. Position the camp to the migration, not the other way round.
Six or seven nights. Stone Town for one, then the east or north coast for the rest.
When to go
Two dry seasons, and the migration moves
Tanzania has a long dry season from June to October and a shorter one in January and February. Both are excellent for game, and the difference between them is what the migration is doing. The long rains from March to May close many camps entirely.
July to September is the Mara River crossing season and prices reflect it. February gives you calving in the southern Serengeti — thousands of newborns and every predator in the ecosystem following them — for noticeably less money. It is our pick.
Worth the early start
What we'd actually book
July to September, and never on schedule. Budget three nights in the north to give yourself a real chance.
Serengeti cheetah on the open plains, lion everywhere, leopard in the riverine trees. Take binoculars.
One night before the beach. Carved doors, the old slave market, and the Forodhani night food stalls.
Zanzibar's red colobus live nowhere else on earth. An easy half day from the east coast beaches.
Before you book
Three things worth knowing
It is not a cheap holiday. Park fees alone run to well over $70 per person per day, before camps and vehicles. Anyone quoting you a bargain safari is cutting the vehicle, the guide or the park time — and the guide is the entire difference between a good safari and a disappointing one.
Fly between the parks if you can. The road from Ngorongoro to the northern Serengeti is seven hours of corrugated gravel. A light aircraft does it in fifty minutes. It costs more and it buys you a day and a half of your trip back.
Yellow fever and malaria. A yellow fever certificate is required if you're arriving from certain countries, and antimalarials are strongly advised throughout. Speak to a travel clinic six weeks before you fly — we'll remind you in good time.
Next step
Tell us your dates and we'll place the camps
Where you stay in the Serengeti depends entirely on where the migration is that month. Send your dates and we'll build the route around it, then add Zanzibar on the end.
Practical
Tanzanian shilling, but park fees and lodges are usually quoted in US dollars. Carry clean, recent dollar notes.
Applied for online in advance, or on arrival. We'll tell you which is safer for your route.
Drives on the left. Light aircraft between the Serengeti camps is standard — road transfers are very long.
Yellow fever certificate required if arriving from certain countries. Malaria prophylaxis usually advised.
Tanzania packages
Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.
7 nights in Tanzania
- Return flights and private transfers
- Full board throughout
- Financial protection confirmed in writing before you pay
10 nights in Tanzania
- Return flights and private transfers
- Full board throughout
- The extra nights cost proportionally less — fixed costs don't change
14 nights in Tanzania
- Return flights and private transfers
- Full board throughout
- Best value per night, and worth it on a longer flight
Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.
Packages that include Tanzania
Ready-built itineraries with flights, transfers and internal hops booked as one package, ATOL protected. Every one can be reshaped around your dates.
11 Night Cape Town, Winelands & Kruger
11 nights · Apr, Oct · from £2,699pp
12 Night Serengeti & Zanzibar
12 nights · Jun–Oct, Jan–Feb · from £3,399pp
12 Night Masai Mara & Zanzibar
12 nights · Jul–Oct · from £3,099pp
11 Night Doha & Zanzibar
11 nights · Jun–Oct, Dec–Feb · from £1,799pp
10 Night Marrakech, Atlas & Essaouira
10 nights · Mar–May, Sep–Nov · from £849pp
11 Night Dubai & Maldives
11 nights · Nov–Apr · from £2,199pp
14 Night Dubai & Mauritius
14 nights · Apr–May, Sep–Nov · from £1,999pp
11 Night Abu Dhabi & Seychelles
11 nights · Apr–May, Oct–Nov · from £2,449pp
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