Everything you need to explore Tanzania.

June to October is the classic window: dry, cool, thin vegetation, and animals concentrated around the remaining water. January to early March is the second window, when the southern Serengeti plains are green and the wildebeest are calving with predators in constant attendance. April and May are the long rains — cheapest, greenest, some camps close, and roads in the south and west can become impassable.

Late July to October, in the northern Serengeti at the Mara River, and to a lesser extent at the Grumeti in the Western Corridor around May to July. Crossings cannot be scheduled. Herds will mass at a bank for two days and not cross, then cross three times in an afternoon. Anyone who guarantees you a crossing on a specific date is selling you something they cannot deliver — we position you in the right sector for several days and improve the odds honestly.

Roughly late January to March, on the short-grass plains around Ndutu in the southern Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Around eight thousand wildebeest are born per day at the peak. It is the best predator viewing of the year by a wide margin, and it is far less busy than the river-crossing months.

For a second safari, or for photographers, yes. The light is dramatic, the landscape is transformed, migratory birds arrive, prices drop substantially, and you share sightings with far fewer vehicles. The trade-off is thicker vegetation, so animals are harder to spot, and afternoon downpours that usually pass within an hour. For a first safari where you want reliable Big Five sightings, the dry season is the safer choice.

Wake around 0530 with coffee, out of camp by 0615 while the light is low and predators are still active. Game drive until mid-morning, back for brunch and a rest through the hot middle of the day when animals are inactive too. Out again around 1600 until the park gates close at 1800. Dinner, then bed early because tomorrow starts at 0530 again. Full-day drives with a packed lunch are an option when you are covering distance.

Closer than you expect. Wildlife in the parks is habituated to vehicles and largely ignores them — lions will walk past your wheel arch without lifting their heads. That only holds while you stay inside the vehicle, stay quiet and follow your guide. Standing up through the roof at the wrong moment, or making noise, changes the animal's read of the situation.

Lion, elephant, buffalo and leopard are all likely across a well-planned week. Rhino is the difficult one — the Ngorongoro Crater is the most reliable place in Tanzania for black rhino, and even there it can be a distant sighting. Any operator promising all five is guessing. We will tell you which parks maximise your chances and let the animals do what they do.

Neutral colours — khaki, olive, grey, brown. Avoid dark blue and black, which attract tsetse flies badly in Tarangire and the west. Layers, because dawn is cold and midday is hot. Wide-brim hat, sunglasses, high-factor sunscreen, insect repellent. Binoculars matter more than most people realise; a camera with real zoom matters more than a phone. Soft duffel bags for light aircraft, which have strict weight limits and no space for hard cases.

Yellow fever is required if you are arriving from, or have transited for more than twelve hours through, a country with yellow fever transmission — including if you are combining with Kenya, Uganda or Rwanda. Malaria prophylaxis is strongly recommended for the whole country. Talk to a travel clinic six to eight weeks before you fly. We are not doctors and will not pretend otherwise.

Yes, across most of Tanzania including Zanzibar. The Ngorongoro Crater rim and higher Kilimanjaro slopes are low risk because of altitude. Take prophylaxis, use repellent at dawn and dusk, and sleep under the net your camp provides. Any fever within a year of travel should be reported to a doctor with the fact you were in a malaria zone.

This is worth understanding properly before you travel. Tanzania has no government emergency ambulance service in any region, and the 112 line does not connect reliably outside Dar es Salaam. In practice, the fastest response is a private vehicle to the nearest major hospital combined with a call to a local contact who knows which hospital handles what. Private medical evacuation exists — Arusha Medivac operates 24 hours — and comprehensive insurance with evacuation cover is essential rather than optional.

Drink bottled or filtered water. Every camp and lodge provides it, and most now use refill stations rather than single-use plastic — bring a reusable bottle. Ice in reputable lodges is made from treated water and is fine. Salads and peeled fruit in established camps are safe; roadside food is a different calculation.

Most nationalities do. You can apply online in advance through the official immigration portal, or obtain one on arrival at Kilimanjaro, Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar airports and at the main land borders. Apply in advance if you can — the arrival queue after a long flight is not the way you want to start. Some nationalities, including Chinese citizens, must obtain the visa before departure.

Kilimanjaro International (JRO) for the northern circuit — Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire, and Kilimanjaro climbs. Julius Nyerere in Dar es Salaam (DAR) for the southern circuit and the coast. Zanzibar (ZNZ) if you are starting or ending on the islands. Arusha Airport (ARK) is the small strip used by light aircraft to the parks, not international flights — people confuse the two constantly.

US dollars for park fees, tips and larger payments — bring notes issued after 2009, as older ones are often refused. Tanzanian shillings for markets, small purchases and local transport. Cards work in Arusha, Moshi, Dar and Zanzibar but rarely inside the parks. ATMs dispense shillings and are reliable in the towns, not in the bush.

230V, and sockets are usually the UK-style three-pin Type G, though you will encounter Type D as well. Bring a universal adapter. Camps in remote areas run on solar and generators, so charging is often limited to certain hours and may be at the main building rather than in your tent. Bring a power bank and spare camera batteries.

Because we are here. The company you book with in London or New York subcontracts the actual driving, guiding and problem-solving to someone in Arusha — usually to someone like us. Booking direct removes a margin and, more importantly, removes a layer between you and the person who can actually fix things when a road floods or a camp overbooks.

A person reads it, usually within a few hours, and replies with questions rather than a template. Once we understand what you actually want we build an itinerary with real camps and real costs, and we will tell you where your budget is not going to stretch to what you have described. No deposit is requested until you have seen the full plan in writing.

That is the main reason to use a local operator. Every guest gets a 24-hour number that reaches a person in Arusha. We handle hospital runs, lost passports, police reports, replacement flights, and the mundane things — a chemist run, a phone repair, groceries to a lodge. It is the same network we open to volunteers, NGOs and film crews through Africa Connect.

Almost everything we run is custom. The itineraries on this site are starting points that show what is realistic in a given number of days. Tell us your dates, your budget, and the two or three things you would be disappointed to miss, and we will build around those rather than around a package.