10 days in Tanzania (with kids)
Gorgeous beaches of Zanzibar
Home to Serengeti national park, Mount Kilimanjaro, and the stunning turquoise colored waters of the Zanzibar archipelago. Tanzania is a popular vacation destination and has a ton to offer. We have spent two years living and traveling through East Africa, and this vacation was one of my all time favs in the region.
Fun facts about Tanzania:
It is the largest country in East Africa- about 4X the size of the UK!
30% of the country is made of National Parks, and it has the largest concentration of animals per square mile in the world.
There are around 25 islands off the coast of Tanzania.
National language is Swahili and English. A few key phrases in Swahili:
Jambo- Hello
Asante Sana- Thank you so much
Hakuna Matata- No prob (we all know this one)
Karibu- happily/gladly
pole pole- Slow down
Mt. Kilimanjaro is the largest free standing mountain, at almost 20,000 feet above sea level!
Every year an estimated 30,000 people attempt to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro and about 5-10 die attempting the ascent.
Traveling Tips/Info
Americans can get a visa on arrival or apply for an e-visa ahead of time. Don’t forget you need at least 6 months valid on your passport, and one blank page.
Yellow fever vaccine if coming from an endemic zone- even if you only have a layover or long transit in a YF zone.
Currently: 2,700 Tanzanian shillings are equivalent to 1 USD.
If you are at sea level or less than 6,000 ft anywhere in the country- there is a Malaria risk.
Ask your medical provider about one of these options: Atovaquone-proguanil, doxycycline, mefloquine. Don’t mess with Malaria! Kids can take these meds as well.
Bring inhalers and allergy meds if your family uses them! Controlled burns in the Serengeti made for some pretty bad air days.
10 days in Tanzania: Itinerary overview
Day 1-2 Dar es Salaam
Day 2- 6 Zanzibar
Day 6-10 Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater (flew into Arusha)
To start we flew into Dar es Salaam and spent two nights in the city, before taking the ferry to Zanzibar.
Quick word about Dar es Salam- I actually really enjoyed our two nights here, it may not be for everyone but we are into big bustling cities, and this one situated right on the Indian ocean is Gorg! We stayed in the city center for proximity to the ferry to Zanzibar and spent the day in Masaki at the Slipway and the waterfront.
Zanzibar
Zanzibar is an island off the coast of Tanzania with pristine white beaches and turquoise waters. It’s our second time here, and one of my all time favorite beach spots- it’s absolute perfection. Culturally it’s has a lot of Arabic influence, and because it was along the spice route it has great flavors, and that spicy Indian influence in the cuisine. The ferry was pretty easy, but the port itself can be chaotic. There are porters everywhere trying to assist with bags, and this is a shove your way to the front of the line kind of situation. Don’t be shy just get in there, and wedge your way to the front (I’m slowly learning- but I’m a line rule follower and it’s a struggle. V on the other hand… I blink and he is already at the front of the line.)
Pro tip for the ferry to Zanzibar: pay extra to get the VIP seats, they were $60 p/person and totally worth it. The ferry leaves about 4-5 times a day and is 90 minutes long. If you are in the VIP section it is easy peasy. If not- you may be standing for 90 minutes in a very crowded hallway. You can also take a 25 minute flight from Dar to Zanzibar, but honestly the ferry was really quite pleasant, and for us avoiding an airport was worth it.
Last time we were in Zanzibar we stayed in Jambiani (southeast coast), and Nungwi (north). Both places are stunning, and Nungwi has a bit more to do, and certainly more night life and tourist attractions. This time we wanted calm beach life, but also to be close to shopping and restaurants so we opted for Paje- just north of Jambiani.
We stayed at Kisiwa on the beach- a small resort where each room is a stand alone casita. Would absolutely stay here again. You can walk along the beach to a few other eateries, or dine in at the restaurant at the hotel.
This was a true beach vacation. We ate, swam, took walks on the beach, and marveled at the fact that we have less than a month left in East Africa before we head to Moldova! Chotu surprised us by jumping right into the pool and swimming like a pro- I don’t know when he learned to swim, but he is sans floaties now like a pro.
Kisiwa on the Beach
Swinging in front of The Rock restaurant- the infamous restaurant perched on top of a rock. It was about a 15-20 minute drive from Paje.
Serengeti National Park
For the second portion of our vacation we headed into the bush to catch the great migration.
From July to September million’s of Wildebeests and Zebra’s gather together to migrate from the Serengeti into the Masai Mara on the Kenyan side. It is a trek they have been doing for perhaps thousands of years. The sight of millions of Wildebeests and Zebra’s grazing and lining up for the journey was truly impressive.
We flew from Zanzibar to Arusha (1 hour flightlink flight), where our tour guide picked us up and the adventure began! We drove for about 4 hours, and stopped at heart and soul lodge for a night to break up the journey into the park.
There are about a million different Safari tour guide groups to choose from, we went with one that was a “friend of a friend” and so it was a discounted rate- honestly you probably can’t go wrong with most of these tour companies, just do some homework and check reviews. The safari business is a well oiled machine in Tanzania. Most hotels know the ropes, and to pack you a lunch to go so you can stop along the way and picnic.
Ngorongoro Crater
The crater is not part of Serengeti National Park, but it’s on the way from Arusha so you can easily stop on your way in or out. It is a volcanic caldera, home to the highest density of wild animals. Over 2 million years ago a mountain the size of Kilimanjaro erupted and collapsed into itself creating a crater nearly 2,000 feet deep. There is a lush and unique ecosystem at the base of the crater, and you can take a day trip driving through the base, or you can even stay at one of the many hotels on the rim of the crater. There are some luxurious options here. We kept this trip mid budget, but if you want to go all out- the options are there.
Safari with kids? Chotu is 4.5 and this was just fine for him, but it is ALOT of time in the car. Just getting out to the bush takes several hours. So bring snacks, and bring a device with movies/shows downloaded. We went with another family of two kids and it was prefect. The kids entertained each other and it was great. I think this trip would have been very hard to do with Chotu 1-2 years ago, as he was super restless at that age. BUT you can also take jumper planes from Arusha into the bush, so this will save you hours on the road and land you directly into a camp. THIS may be the way to go if you want to minimize time in the car for a restless toddler. The other option is Kruger National Park in South Africa- we loved it there as well. No need to drive 4+ hours to get to the Safari portion, you can fly directly in the park and do half a day drives if you like and still see plenty of animals. For me- the Serengeti was still worth it despite the long drives.
The backyard of our tent was the open fields of the Serengeti. True story: we heard lions in the middle of the night!
The inside of our tent was pretty cozy
Attack of the baboons…
Zip your tent they advised us, and don’t keep any food inside…. What we did not know was that a determined Baboon can get inside of even an ever so slightly unzipped tent. As we sat on the porch taking in the scenery and sipping on some wine, we heard blood curdling screams coming from the tent next door where the kids were playing- and a small furry tail hanging out of an unzipped opening CUE COMPLETE PANIC. V ran over with one shoe off, the other one in his hand to use as a swinging weapon. The baboon attempted to grab a makeup bag and run- honestly the baboon looked pretty traumatized himself. One kid emerged with a swollen bleeding lip- not from a rowdy baboon but for slamming straight into Chotu in the chaos. It was the talk of the night- and after that none of us forgot to zip the tent completely shut. So you have been warned.
The Baboon attack survivor
When people talk about Safari’s they often reference seeing “The big five” (elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino). We sadly didn’t see any leopards so we only saw 4/5 of the big 5. Although we did see leopards during our Kruger national park Safari- they are notoriously hard to spot!
Our wheels for the 3 days in the park
The Masai people are native to this land, and as you drive you will see them hearding their animals and wearing their brightly colored shuka cloth. They are known for being courageous warriors, and have a history of slaying a lion with a spear to truly enter Masai warrior status.
If you can’t climb it- drink it.
