What is The Best Time To Visit Tanzania?

What is The Best Time To Visit Tanzania?  Tanzania is one of the great safari destinations in the world, the beautiful country is home to some of the most famous national parks and natural attractions in Africa including majestic Mount Kilimanjaro, wildlife including the Big Five among others which is why it is visited by millions of tourists a year. 

Tanzania is wonderful to visit all year round, this beautiful country has a tropical climate and has a dry and a wet period, each month of the year in Tanzania has its own characteristics for example in April and May nature is beautifully green and in June through October the grass actually turns yellow due to the little rain received as it is a dry season.  This article details various months of the year in Tanzania 

December – March

This time of the year is known as time for the baby boom in Tanzania’s national parks, during these months of the babies are born. It is wonderfully warm making it possible to travel in all areas of Tanzania for a safari experience and beach holiday. These months are the perfect time of the year to watch the calving season of great wildebeest migration which happens in the Ndutu plains, over 8000 calves are born in a duration of a week.  The baby boom in these months makes it a great time to visit Tanzania’s wildlife national parks including Serengeti national Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara National Park, Nyerere National Park for a game viewing experience.  December and January are high season in Tanzania so expect the parks to be a bit busier and you will encounter many tourists. 

April and May 

Though it is not normally recommended as the best time to travel, Tanzania is actually beautiful during the rainy season. April and May are rainy months with rain often falling at night and suddenly disappears again. The rain causes green and blooming nature in Tanzania’s national parks, even in this season there are still many young animals to be seen. In April and May, the northern region of Tanzania and Zanzibar are east to travel. In the west and south, the roads are largely impassable due to rain.  April and May which is a rainy season is considered low season in Tanzania with less tourists visiting for safari, so you will find cheap safari deals. Most safari lodges and hotels offer discounted rates, note that some lodges and camps also close up for renovation and due to bad weather conditions. 

June – October 

This is practically the best time to travel to Tanzania and it is possible to travel to all the parts of the country, the grass slowly turns from green to yellow and animals will have to make more of an effort to find water as most of the water sources dry out, meaning the can easily be found at the remaining water sources more often making wildlife viewing easy.  Around July and August, the Great Migration across the Mara River in Serengeti takes place. The Mara River Crossing is the sough for episode of the Great Migration as the herds make their way to Maasai Mara national reserve, the crossing is a nerve wrecking event as the wildebeest face off with Nile crocodiles and the high-speed water which washes away most of them. The brave ones make their way out of the river to get to the other side of the river – the pains of Masai Mara National Reserve.  November  November is a short rainy season and there may be a bit more rain than normal during this time of the year than normal, but in turn cause beautiful nature.  In Tanzania, November is not a busy season that is why it is recommended for visitors who prefer less crowd on their safaris and photographers.  November as well as April and May is definitely recommended for photographers and the rugged landscapes and the skies are at their best. 

Zanzibar and Kilimanjaro 

Zanzibar Island

Zanzibar is tropically warm all year round, however April and May are more likely see showers. The weather patterns in Zanzibar very closely follow that of Tanzania although always tend to be a little more humid and occasional rain in the dry season is less. The main rainy season and long rains are received in March, April and May, in these months afternoon tropical down pours are the norm and they are normally heavy. November and December are a short rainy season with rains being much lighter than in the long rainy season.  The humidity is high and daily temperatures reach the low-mid 30 degrees.  The long dry season lasts throughout June, July, August, September and October. These months experience fairly unusual rainfall and the temperatures vary hugely with altitude and location, the sky is clear and sunny weather is experienced.  The best times of the year to go to Zanzibar are the best time to visit as the weather conditions are perfect for long days offer activities such as exploring the Spice Island, swim in the clear waters and take a stroll along the white sand beaches.  Mount Kilimanjaro  Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro is a challenging adventure as you be conquering the tallest free-standing mountain in the world and the tallest in Africa, technically it is possible to climb Mount Kilimanjaro year-round however certain months are characterized by colder weather, more rain and potentially lots of the snow.  The best months to climb Mount Kilimanjaro is during the warmest and driest months of the year from December to mid – March and mid-June to the end of October.