Arusha Safari Tours

Surrounded by some of the most fascinating and varied national parks in Africa, Arusha sits snugly in a wide expanse of fertile volcanic land in the foothills of Kilimanjaro's little brother, Mount Meru. Arusha is the starting point for Tanzania's Northern Circuit safaris; many safaris start from here every day. But viewing Arusha simply as a safari centre is not doing it justice; it really is one of Tanzania's beautiful regions and the town itself has a very welcoming feel.

What to do in Arusha city?

Arusha is at the heart of Tanzania's safari industry – virtually everyone visiting Tanzania’s Northern parks will travel through this town. The streets are lined with tour operators selling safaris, and 4x4’s seem to be setting off at every turn. However, Arusha is definitely more than just a safari town; it has superb views of Kilimanjaro and with a number of coffee plantations situated around the edge of town, it is a great place to stay for a day or two before heading out on safari.

Arusha National Park is also a great distraction for a full or half day game drive. Although the park lacks predators, it is unquestionably beautiful. It is very quiet and has a wide variety of animals and superb birdlife. You can also spend an afternoon canoeing on the lake - a great thing to do if you have a late flight home! The main feature of the park is Mount Meru, which is much more of a technical climb than Kilimanjaro, and a great challenge for more experienced climbers.

There are hotels both inside the town centre and a number of coffee plantations set roughly 30 minutes drive outside. The Impala Hotel or Roy Safaris' African Tulip provides good budget accommodation. We prefer a more personal, atmospheric experience, and wholly recommend the four bedroom Onsea House - an instant hit at such a good price - followed closely by Rivertrees and Elewana’s luxurious, although pricey, Arusha Coffee Lodge

Arusha is a nice city, but in all honestly we would recommend not spending too much time here as the main draw of a trip to Tanzania is for the exceptional safaris and beautiful beaches. If you want to spend a bit of time in a city in a more interesting spot, take a look at Giraffe Manor which is in Nairobi, Kenya... This is a destination in itself for obvious reasons.. Could be a bit of time better spent than in a hotel just outside Arusha. However, it gets booked up very far in advance, so only consider this if you are booking at least a year ahead of your departure.

Arusha - Further Reading

We don't just know Arusha!
For more information on Arusha, the best thing to do is to give us a ring to chat through all the latest information. Although we love the North of Tanzania, we also love the rest of Tanzania, the south the west and the islands and have experts in all the different areas. If you are undecided as to when and where to visit, please do just drop us an email or give us a call!

Where to stay in Arusha and Dar es Salaam

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Client Reviews

[90% BASED ON 4 REVIEWS]

Machweo Retreat - Reviews

Machweo: 5/5 (Great dinner, view, and helpful staff)

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- T. Canals

Onsea House - Reviews

Excellent food, lovely staff - great stay!!

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- T. Perkins

Arusha Coffee Lodge - Reviews

Overall, absolutely fantastic property with a lovely, caring manager. The villas are huge(!) and the whole thing feels very personal and exclusive due to the maximum capacity of 12 guests in total. Beautiful private beach and great sun loungers, which we used all day. The amount and quality of food was great overall, you should be keen in sea food though, which we both luckily are. The waiting staff were all super friendly, but sometimes things took a little long to arrive (milk for coffee, coffee refill, olive oil etc.), however that should improve the longer they work there.

The one thing that takes off 0.5 points is the fact that our villa was right next to a building site where they are building more villas. We were warned before by the manager that we should let her know if there is noise during the day, but ultimately this meant that we never stayed on our terrace, as completely silent building work just does not exist. One night, we there was loud hammering until 8pm which made it impossible to relax in the villa and it was the managers day off, and the other staff needed us to come up to them to alert them of the noise although it was clearly noticeable everywhere and the builders knew there were guests staying next door... Our complaint was handled with the upmost professionality by the manager the next day and we received free massages in the Baraza Spa and one night off, as she was very sorry that it dampened an otherwise fantastic stay.

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- M. Zimadahl

Rivertrees Lodge - Reviews

Rivertrees was fantastic and I’d definitely rate it a 5. They allowed us to check-in early. The room was very comfortable and clean. The grounds were lovely to walk around and we saw loads of monkeys playing in the trees.The food was fantastic and had a lovely atmosphere around the fire in the evening. All the staff were friendly and helpful and could’nt do enough for us, from the reception, to the restaurant and the guys carrying our bags and the ladies cleaning the rooms.

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- V. Ralph

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Where to stay in Arusha and Dar es Salaam

Our clients also like

Client Reviews

Client Reviews

Machweo Retreat - Reviews

Onsea House - Reviews

Arusha Coffee Lodge - Reviews

Rivertrees Lodge - Reviews

TALK TO ONE OF OUR EXPERTS

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