I’ve been to Tanzania twice and enjoyed it both times.  The first time was on safari with my family as part of a luxury holiday.  The second time was on an overland truck tour.  Less known for its safaris than Kenya, in my opinion, it’s the better destination.  It’s not overrun with tourists (well, it wasn’t then) and you can see animals without being surrounded by 20 other safari vehicles.  Zanzibar island (Tanzania was formerly the two countries of Tanganika and Zanzibar) is a lovely mix of African and India – part of the Swahili corridor of traders and very much muslim.

When: Christmas 1996 and July 1998

Where: Arusha, Ngorogoro Crater & reserve, Serengeti National Park, Zanzibar

How: 1996 with my family through Abercrombie & Kent. We travelled around by truck and stayed in 4 different camps (some quite luxurious), in 1998 with Truck Africa, we changed to smaller trucks for the time in the parks, camped in the parks. To and from Zanzibar is a ferry (VERY rough seas, nearly everyone was seasick!)

Weather: Christmas was warm and sunny, July was overcast in the parks, but warm and sunny in Zanzibar (I got really badly burnt in half an hour on the beach without sun screen)

Food: the night market stalls in Stonetown, Zanzibar were amazing for fresh grillled seafood, otherwise pretty meat heavy as I remember.

Sights & Activities: the animals and safaris in the national parks.  Seeing the millions of wilderbeast on the Serengeti planes was amazing!  The Ngorogoro crater is a special visit.  The animals can’t get out of the crater so are used to safari vehicles, so you can get pretty close.  That said the park rangers stop you getting too close (it is an area of conservation), though we did manage to spot rhinos in the distance.  Meeting and seeing Maasai warriors dance at one camp, Stone Town in Zanzibar is wonderful, you can do a spice tour which is interesting and get a feeling of the trading history and influence of India on this island.

Tips:  Go into the Ngorogoro crater. Spend some time on Zanzibar as well as the safaris on the mainland.

Notes: It’s a muslim country so be prepared to hear the call to prayer in the cities.