Taking a Tanzania Safari is the main interest of most travelers looking for the country for a vacation. Tanzania 's parks are among the best in all of Africa, due to the diversity of animals and the high probability of encountering the Big Five (lion, buffalo, rhino, leopard and elephant). Another major attraction is the migration of wildebeests (Wild Beasts in English), who cross the Serengeti National Park in search of a better place to eat. 

The Tanzania Safari may be out of most budget travelers, especially backpackers, as there are intermediate and most of the agencies offer luxury packages with scary prices. I wanted to have this experience here, especially after the safari in Kruger Park, which I did during my time in South Africa. I did a lot of research to make a Tanzania Safari, but I only managed to understand how it all works.

How To Do A Tanzania Safari

Taking a cheap Tanzania Safari is not easy, as most agencies offer prices and packages that are unrealistic for most travelers. There are several companies and the story is always the same: luxury accommodations, flights and frightening prices that can exceed $ 10,000. Even the most economical safaris cost about 2 thousand.

I think it is worth doing everything with comfort and guarantee that everything will go as planned, especially after the experiences I had. I decided to do everything on my own, travel with local buses and try to find a way to do the safari without having to spend so much. I did it, but the sausages were big.

The great thing is to find a safari company that has all the means to organize the trip, all located in Arusha, the city closest to the main parks. Most agencies only do the middle field between tourists and these companies, earning good money for that.

I found Bobby Tours searching the internet and I already knew that their prices were the cheapest. I did everything on my own until I arrived in Arusha, from buying the bus tickets on the busy road spending 14 hours on the bus, booking the hostel and negotiating the safari itinerary.

I stayed at Arusha Backpackers, a modest hostel right in the center of the city. I knew that going on safari alone would be more expensive and there would be no way to negotiate prices. I ended up meeting three travelers who were also there for the same reason and after a night of many beers, laughter and common plans, we decided to try to haggle until we found the best price.

The next day we went to the Bobby Tours office and started to bargain, especially since it was still low season. In short, a 3-night / 4-day safari in camps cost US $ 500.00 / person (the normal price was 750 - April / 2012), plus expenses to arrive in Arusha and my food, which did not exceed the US $ 100.00.

Serengeti National Park

The Serengeti is one of the most famous national parks for a safari in Africa. The main attraction of the park, besides the possibility of seeing the Big Five, is the migration of the Wild Beasts, who migrate through the park every year in search of water and better pastures. June is the best month to travel through Tanzania and go on a safari in Serengeti, as it is the beginning of the dry season and migration begins. If you have more time and a little money left, reserve at least a week for the safari.

Ngorongoro Crater

The immense crater is also part of the Serengeti National Park, being one of the most sought after safaris in Tanzania, as the density of animals is one of the largest in the world, in addition to having incredible landscapes.

Lake Manyara

On the way between Arusha and the famous Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara is located. Due to its location, most safari agencies include the park in the package, so the trip is less tiring since the distances are quite large. Although rare, it is possible to see lions resting on the tree trunk, which happens only in a few parks in Tanzania.

Looking for a cheap Tanzania Safari?

Despite the rush to organize everything, more than 24 hours on the bus between Arusha and back and the nights camping during the safari, were spectacular days and I certainly made the safari as cheap as possible.