Safaris, Kilimanjaro and all the things you can do in Arusha and around
Ngorongoro Crater
Arusha is a city that you´ll most likely visit if you go to Tanzania. Not for the city itself, but because it´s the main place to start a safari to Ngorongoro Crater or Serengeti, and also a good place to start climbing Kilimanjaro or Mount Meru.
A thing I didn´t like about the city are the fly catchers and the people that keep following you (mzungu – white people) all around, trying to sell you safaris, paintings, t-shirts, souvenirs, and offering to “help” you wherever you go.
They are very pushy, and don´t go away even when if you keep repeating “No” many times… Btw, Hapana Asante means No, Thank You – something you´ll say repeatedly when walking around… haha…
Apart from that, the city is ok, and can be visited in one day. So let´s talk about what you can do there, and also around it.
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CENTRAL MARKET
It´s a place you should totally visit. It´s a local market, not touristy (though you can see tourists around), where they sell fruits, vegetables, spices, meat, live chicken, fabrics, utensils etc.
Be aware when someone starts talking to you. They pretend to just be nice and friendly, but when you realize, they are showing everything around, like a mini tour. You´ll have to pay something for it in the end – it´s not totally bad, though. Sometimes they also want you to buy fabrics or something else in the end.
This happened to me, at first I accepted it, but afterwards I just wanted to walk by myself. When another guy came, I just told him that I already had walked around with someone, and that I wanted to be by myself. It worked, finally.
Also, if you leave the market and keep walking in the opposite direction of the clock tower, you might end up at another “street market” – lots of shops selling clothes, shoes, fabrics and lots of things.
To get to the Central Market, when you arrive at the Clock Tower, get Sokoine Street and keep walking for about 10 minutes. It´s at your right side (about 3 blocks from Sokoine).
Btw, you can bargain there, especially if you feel they are giving you Mzungu price (white tourist price).
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CLOCK TOWER
The Clock Tower is the heart of downtown, is where you usually get off the dalla dalla when coming from somewhere else.
There you´ll find lots of fly catchers offering everything to buy, such as safari tours, art, shirts, belts, and they´ll be pushy and annoying. Someone will try to keep walking with you. Just get rid of them, for your own sake.
Btw, it´s a small tower. Around it you can find lots of Bureaus de Change, Banks, Tour Companies and also Cellphone companies, such as Airtel (in case you want to buy a local SIM card).
MASAI MARKET
There´s also a Maasai Market, where the Maasai people sell souvenirs made by themselves, such as necklaces, bracelets, key holders, sculptures, typical maasai blankets etc. Nice art, the problem is that they are very pushy and always overprice it – bargaining is a must!
SAFARI
The main reason for going to Arusha is to do a Safari, it´s the starting point for the game drives to the main parks (Serengeti, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater).
You can find many tour companies offering it, and also many people at the streets – don´t even bother talking to them about it, they are mostly from non-official agencies, that shouldn´t be trusted.
I did a two days safari to Tarangire Park and Ngorongoro Crater, with Greg Adventures, and I would highly recommend it. The tour was great, we saw lots of wildlife at the parks, and had a blast at the beautiful crater!
I booked it through the hostel I stayed (Villa Poa), it was very practical. Greg, the owner of the company (and the hostel), can make a tailored tour to you if that´s what you want. He also organizes hikes.
KILIMANJARO
Definitely another highlight of Tanzania! If you have the time, the money, and if you´re fit enough, climbing Kili it´s something that you should totally do.
You can start your hike from Arusha or from Moshi, and you can choose between different routes – the most known ones are Marangu, Machame and Umbwe.
Unfortunately I didn´t have the money to do it (it costs about 2,000 U$ dollars, plus around U$ 300 as tips), but one day I hope I can climb it. The company I hired for the safari, Greg Adventures, also organizes hikes to Kilimanjaro.
MOUNT MERU
Alternatively to Kilimanjaro, you can climb Mount Meru, the second highest mountain in Tanzania (and the fifth in Africa) – it has 4,566m.
From there you have beautiful views of Kili. Also, you see lots of wildlife on the first day of the hike, it´s a real walking safari.
You can do it by yourself, there´s no need of a guide, but you do have to hike accompanied by a park ranger, that goes armed and can protect you from the wild animals, in case anything happens.
It´s way cheaper than Kili, but it´s still expensive – the 4 days hike costs about 700 dollars if you do it with an agency. If you go by yourself, you´ll still spend at least 500 dollars, as the park fees are really expensive (45 dollar per each 12 hours inside the park).
HOT SPRINGS
Not so far away from Arusha you can visit beautiful hot springs, with turquoise blue water, where you can swim and also play Tarzan! They´re the Kikuletwa Hot Springs, also known as Chendwa. There at the hot springs, if the sky is clear, you can see both Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru!
It´s is located about 35 km from Moshi, and 60 km from Arusha. To get there, you have to go to Boma N’Gombe village (just take the bus from Arusha to Moshi, and stop on the way – there are buses every hour). Once you are in Boma N´Gombe, you gotta take a 10km bumpy road to the hot springs (by tuk tuk, car, motorbike or bike).
If you have a bicycle, it´s a cool way to spend the day, going to the hotsprings. In case you hire a tuk tuk or motorbike driver, apart from the regular price to take you there, you´ll probably have to pay an extra fee, for the driver to wait for you there (so that you have a way to go back)!
How about you? Have you already been to Arusha and do you have some cool tips about the city? Or do you plan to visit it and have some doubts? Share your ideas leaving a comment here!
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Planning your trip:
– Travel Insurance: travel safe using the best travel insurance that covers even adventure sports – get a quote here
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The blogger did the game drive by invitation of Greg Adventures. I’d like to thank again for the opportunity, and also make it clear that all the opinions present here are independent and personal.
