Walking Safaris
Explore Africa on Foot
Walking is a wonderful way to explore Africa’s great wilderness regions and perhaps the purest form of safari there is.
Walking is a perfect way to explore Africa’s great wilderness regions, get to know its rugged topography and plant life, spot colorful birds, and slow down to the pace of the natural world. You won’t get quite so close to potentially dangerous animals, but on foot, that’s probably just as well.
Tanzania walking safaris: the best lodges and camps
Tanzania classifies its wild areas in different ways, each with different rules – meaning that the practices, and standards, of walking safaris differ widely. We have some first-rate walking safaris in Tanzania, with great guides – chosen, as usual, by seeing them firsthand. Some of the real stars are the walking safaris done on fly-camping trips.
Walks in the National Parks have to abide by the strict rules laid out by TANAPA; these rules have been put in place to make walking as safe as possible. No more than six guests are able to go on a walk at any one time; and they must be accompanied by at least one TANAPA-qualified armed ranger, who must stick to specific walking routes. These regulations are however relatively new to Tanzania’s national parks, and so we would only recommend walking from camps that we now have a consistent record for reliably good walking safaris and well-established guides.
Tanzania’s Game Reserves are run by a slightly more relaxed organization called the Game Division whose regulations are less clear – this has created a disparity in walking safari standards. Walking Safaris are hugely dependent on how experienced and knowledgeable the guide is – they can therefore be a bit hit-and-miss. All of our recommended Camps use their own highly qualified guides who stick to rules, which have been set by their specific camp – these walking safaris are very good. So do include some walking in your Tanzania safari, but do talk to us first as experiences can vary hugely between camps.