Sweden and Tanzania 23/24

[Seat0B]

As an aside, I will add that while all the fruits on Zanzibar are great, the pineapple in particular is just sublime. Ridiculously juicy, sweet and tasty. We all agree they are substantially better than anything we have had at home. Best pineapples ever.

I know what you mean @ShelleyB - there is something amazing about tropical, naturally ripened pineapple, isn't there. I first experienced this awakening in Fiji - and I've never managed to come back to Aussie supermarket pineapple since.

 

[ShelleyB]

Another day, another snorkel adventure. For our last full day in Zanzibar we arranged another snorkel day with Scubafish. Not really much to add here as it was quite similar to the first, although we were aboard the Caroline this time. Weather was better, with no rain, which allowed ShelleyB-son the opportunity to practice diving off the boat.

 

[ShelleyB]

A big travel day which will require a few posts. The ultimate destination for the day was Moshi, in northern Tanzania, which was our jump off point for a trip to Lake Chala, on the border with Kenya. The nearest airport to Moshi (besides Moshi itself which doesn’t have any scheduled commercial links) is Kilimanjaro international. As most people seem to do safari then Zanzibar, the flight times are much better that direction. There are of course better links from Dar es Salaam, with more times to choose from. We therefore decided to take the ferry from Stone Town to Dar es Salaam, have lunch there, then fly to Kilimanjaro. All good, ferry booked online in advance, and boarding passes acquired (thanks to the advice of @kpc ) and our man Ali booked to pick us up from Kena Beach hotel at 7.30am to make the 9.30 ferry. We’d even checked in with reception at the hotel the evening before to check reception would be open to allow us to finalise our bill. Well the best laid plans of mice and men….

At 7am there was no-one at reception. We finally got someone to come by 7.10. Still plenty of time right? All we had to do was pay the balance of accommodation plus some meals and drinks. I even had paperwork indicating the balance. However, this all proved too challenging for reception and necessitated calls to managers. 40 minutes later, with me telling them that I had to go (Ali had been waiting 20 minutes by this time), manager finally turned up and sorted it - to the exact amount I had been telling them for 40 minutes.

Worse yet, the initial transaction did not work, so they used another machine. As it turned out later I had duplicate transactions on the card (for a reasonable amount of money too). Emails, Whatsapp have been unanswered and calls not returned. So I have had to initiate a dispute with my bank, which is very disappointing.

Anyway, 30 minutes later than planned, we were on our way.

 

[ShelleyB]

Ali our drivr assured us we should still make the ferry, although it might be tight and depending upon traffic he might not be able to get us close to the gate. As it transpired Ali was able to drive right to the gate. We were very tight on time, so decided to use the porters. They are exceptionally overpriced, but did shepherd us through to all the right desks and into the VIP lounge (as we had VIP tickets), and certainly made life easier given how tight for time we were. Altogether it was not quite the experience we wanted, but I did get some photos of the lounge and the ferry.





The ferry trip itself was smooth and ontime, and in the VIP seats included some refreshments. We were mostly just grateful we had made it.

 

[ShelleyB]

Upon arrival in Dar es Salaam, our plan was to head to the Hyatt for lunch, then get a taxi to the airport. After running the gauntlet of porters (no we don’t need one), taxi and tuk tuks (ummm - I don’t think the 3 of us and our luggage will fit in your tiny tuk tuk), we made the short hike to the Hyatt and settled into the Flame Tree Cafe for a very agreeable lunch. Our flight was not scheduled until 4.20, but we were ready to go about 1pm and decided to head to the airport anyway. Ultimately not a bad decision, as traffic was truly awful. We saw the Emirates crew for the flight that I think departs around 3.10 for Dubai stuck in the same traffic, and it would not surprise me if they were late. We ultimately arrived just after 2pm - ie over an hour for a journey of 12km!

Our timing in the end was good. After going through security to get into the airport (all watches off, shoes off) check in opened 10 minutes after arrival. We were flying with Precision Air (PW) and for the first time ever I was asked to show the card I used to book the flights. Luckily I had it with me.

After check in there’s another security check (ditto) before you enter the tiny domestic gate lounges. Which are right next to the international and only separated by glass partition. And many of the flights have both domestic and international passengers but rather than make the domestic passengers go through the international security requirements (a la say QF9), we are only recombined on the plane.

Basic terminal facilities:






Our flight was ulitimately delayed slightly, as was another. The schedules are a bit confusing, as Precision Air have one flight heading to Zanzibar then Nairobi (which was relatively full) and our our flight (PW721) heading to Kilimanjaro then Nairobi (which was quite empty and did not appear to collect too many in Kilimanjaro. I can only assume they have a requirement for 2 planes in Nairobi the next day.

 

[ShelleyB]

Finally the time came to board which, given we were on a small prop plane (ATR 72 twin turboprop), unsurprisingly boarding was off the tarmac. It would be ShelleyB-son’s first time in a prop plane and he was very excited.



We were seated right near one of the propellers.



Very empty flight. Which to my surprise included a drinks and nibbles service (alcohol too).



Flight was uneventful and ultimately only about 30 minutes late. Sunset on arrival.

 

[ShelleyB]

But the day was not over yet and involved another travel mistake, this time for which I probably need to take some responsibility. I had booked our accommodation some time ago, at a small place called The Secret Garden Hotel. I had of course checked out their website and Tripadvisor reviews and they seemed basic but nice with a good location in town. However, as our driver headed to the hotel and I rechecked google maps it became evident that it had moved to out of town. Bugger. And upon arrival it was clear it was nothing like the photos, which were clearly of the old place. Overall it was not a happy choice. The bathroom had some sort of unidentified leak, the room was not well laid out, and the pillows seemed to be made of rocks.

Although we had booked for 2 nights there was no way we were staying. I didn’t even like going into the bathroom without thongs and if we had attempted a shower I think the whole bathroom woud have been wet as the toilet was right next to the shower and not even a shower curtain provided. It was too late for that night, but I did spend some time researching alternatives, which I promptly phoned and booked the next morning and made our escape.

 

[ShelleyB]

The site of our escape was the Kibo Palace Hotel, a multi-storey hotel in the centre of Moshi. Given the last-minute timing of our booking, there were no family rooms remaining, so we needed to book 2 rooms which made it slightly pricey. However, if we had only needed one room, the price would not have been miles away from the cost of The Secret Garden, and the hotel was substantially better. It was in fact a very nice hotel, with views across the town, and some with views towards Mt Kilimanjaro. We were also lucky in that even given our quite early arrival to the hotel, rooms were available right away allowing us to have longed-for showers before heading out to explore Moshi and conduct the usual business of a long trip (banking, snack purchases for ShelleyB-son etc).

Moshi itself to be honest is a little boring, as for locals it’s a place to conduct business, get supplies etc, and for tourists it’s almost exclusively a jump off point for Kilimanjaro treks. Kilimanjaro itself towers over the town, but as is common with big mountains, often hides behind cloud. Locally it’s known as the shy mountain. However, in the afternoon the clouds briefly parted and we got a brilliant view of the mountain.





The evening we spent in the hotel’s rooftop bar, an excellent place for watching the town, with acceptable pizzas and cheap coughtails, although I personally remain wary of one called Spewy.

 

[ShelleyB]

Back online! Just back from our safari, where internet was ok for looking at things but no good for uploads. Now to resume the travel report where I left off.

From Moshi we headed out to Lake Chala. This lake is situated north east of Moshi on the border with Kenya, and although not particularly far the last bit of driving is all on not well maintained unpaved roads. We’d organised a driver on the recommendation of the lodge we were staying at (via Whatsapp, natch). The driver messaged on the morning of departure to say he had an emergency and could not make it, but he’d organised a replacement. The replacment duly turned up early (as drivers here tend to do), and off we went. As an aside our experience of drivers in Tanzania has been nothing but good. None are ever late, and cars are always very clean, no matter how old the vehicle. Drivers are very friendly, and although some minor negotiation might be required, prices are very fair.

Anyway, a few hours later we arrived at the lodge (the only show in town) and were shown to our luxury tent.





A few surprises awaited us. Firstly, our tent came with a waiter, and we could have our meals served at the tent if we wanted. I think this was mainly because the main restaurant was being renovated and no matter what the food would need to be served away from the kitchen. And we were also provided with our own guide for the 2 days. With our guide we agreed on a short walk for today down to the river, then tomorrow a longer walk around the crater rim followed by some kayaking after lunch.

Here are some photos from the walk:

 

[ShelleyB]

After a good night’s sleep (despite the noisy baboons) we breakfasted at our tent with our personal waiter service (!). We then commenced the walk which would take us around the ridge of the crater to the Kenyan border. The walk was hot, but with views well worth it. Part way around the crater we reached the Kenyan border, idenified only by a stone marker. As it is not an official crossing we could go no further although it may be that a naughty foot, and possibly a leg, may have momentarily crossed the border. But who can say? There’s no actual line drawn in the soil after all. We made our way back by a different route, which our guide pointed out was covered in many motor bike tracks. These apparently are evidence of illicit border crossings, to buy things on the Kenyan side and return them, free of import tax, to the Tanzanian side.













In the afternoon we descended down a very steep trail to the lake itself, where there was a small jetty with some kayaks. We were sent on our way by our guide, with no particular instructions as to which direction to head. We mainly kept to the shore, watched over by an African Fish Eagle. There were plenty of monkeys in the trees, and a few locals fishing on shore, despite the fact that fishing is not allowed on the lake (at least on the Tanzanian side). The lake has a number of fish species, all introduced bar the Lake Chala Tilapia, which is endemic to Lake Chala. The Kenyan side does allow fishing, which I gather is rather a sore point for Tanzanian wildlife authorities. Tanzania puts a lot of effort into wildlife preservation, with a remarkable 30% of the country under some sort of wildlife protection, mainly in national parks or wildlife conservation areas. This protection extends well beyond the well-known tourist parks to smaller areas such as Lake Chala. Part of our accommodation costs included park fees. As a comparision, South Africa has around 8% of its land under protection, Australia around 22%.

 

[ShelleyB]

After two enjoyable days we departed for Arusha. Our Lake Chala sojourn represented the last of our independently booked travel with the upcoming pre-safari and safari accommodation organised by our safari tour company, Lion King Adventures, although we selected the accommodation in conjunction with the safari company. Our driver to Arusha was the same lovely man who transferred us to Lake Chala from Moshi. It was all fairly straightforward until the very end when our driver was misled by Google maps and ended up down some very potholed backroads but like cabbies everywhere was reluctant to admit an error and kept pushing ever onwards. A broken axle was at various points a very real possibility. In the end we made it to our accommodation, Planet Lodge Arusha. A very nice mid-range place, just outside of Arusha, but of which I unfortunately have no photos.

On arrival, we treated to the first of what would become something of a theme - which was surprise that we had travelled there independently, and not just arrived off a flight. Although we had stayed in Arusha previously it was 26 years ago when our budget was distinctly more limited than for this current trip, so we just assumed it was the nature of the clientele of a hotel that is frequently used by safari companies. We were sure we would find more independent travellers when we headed into Arusha the next day.

 

[ShelleyB]

Well the next day arrived, and after breakfast we looked to head into Arusha to do a little banking, revisit the sights of the town, and also do a little shopping. Planet Lodge is a little out of town, but my (mis)reading of the website had me believing there was a free shuttle into town from the hotel. As it turns out they wanted to charge for the shuttle - a princely $15 USD per person (so $45 USD for all of us) for a 6km journey. Mmmm - no thanks. Promptly looked at alternatives, and found Arusha is served by two rideshare apps - Uber and Bolt, with the latter apparently more popular with local drivers. Posted the job on Bolt, with an almost immediate taker of the job for 8500 Tsh (or about $3.50 USD). Much better. Driver was prompt, car was clean and the drive uneventful, and even with a decent tip substantially better than the hotel offer.

After doing the banking, we enjoyed a coffee in one of the many lovely cafes in town, but did find the Arusha CBD nothing at all like we remembered. To be honest we found we could not remember much at all. Some things have clearly changed a lot. 26 years ago as backpackers, we did what anyone did who wanted to go on safari, and walked around town looking at the prices and dates in the many safari offices. In these days of online booking, there are many fewer safari offices in town, and consequently an apparent absence of backpackers or other travellers. So we gave up on the CBD and looked to head out to the Arusha Cultural Centre. The centre is about 6km out of town (on the opposite side of town to our hotel), so seemed a good opportunity to arrange a first tuk tuk ride for ShelleyB-son. After a little negotiation with the tuk tuk driver (ummm - no I won't be paying the equivalent of $30 AUD for 6km up the road), who very quickly came down to a more sensible price once he realised it was not my first rodeo, ShelleyB-son was able to enjoy the (dubious) pleasures of tuk tuk transport.



The cultural centre turned out to be excellent. It was a large establishment, with an art gallery, multiple knick-knack shops, a restaurant, clothing shops and a new research centre under construction which is named after and endorsed by Jane Goodall. We walked around 6 floors of local art, sculpture and photography, before making a purchase. To this we added some knick knacks and clothing before enjoying a late lunch in the restaurant. Amusingly we were asked by various of the staff which tour company brought us there. Ahhh - we brought ourselves in a tuk tuk. This generated both disbelief and in one case - applause. I have no idea where the independent travellers have gone...are they on safari elsewhere these days? Somewhere cheaper? If they are looking for cheaper they probably are not in South Africa which I gather is quite pricey (not that I know from personal experience). It's a mystery.

 

[LDN via BNE]

If they are looking for cheaper they probably are not in South Africa which I gather is quite pricey (not that I know from personal experience). It's a mystery.

South Africa is now widely considered to be the cheapest country in Africa for safari, and the reason is simple - park entry fees (along with budget accommodation in the parks and a weak rand).

The daily fee for Kruger is around USD$25, which is about 1/3 of the price of the Serengeti. With the huge increase in park fees in Kenya (in 2024 the daily cost for the Masai Mara is increasing to USD$200 per person in high season, with secondary parks such as Lake Nakuru increasing to USD$100 per person), South Africa will become even more appealing for budget travellers.

 

[kpc]

South Africa is now widely considered to be the cheapest country in Africa for safari, and the reason is simple - park entry fees (along with budget accommodation in the parks and a weak rand).

The daily fee for Kruger is around USD$25, which is about 1/3 of the price of the Serengeti. With the huge increase in park fees in Kenya (in 2024 the daily cost for the Masai Mara is increasing to USD$200 per person in high season, with secondary parks such as Lake Nakuru increasing to USD$100 per person), South Africa will become even more appealing for budget travellers.

Having done safaris in both Kruger (actually private game reserve) and Serengeti, there is no comparison! Eg in Kruger in 4 days we saw about 10 zebra...in Serengeti, as part of the Migration, we saw 10s of thousands in the same time frame...I understand the price difference can be an issue though...

 

[ShelleyB]

South Africa is now widely considered to be the cheapest country in Africa for safari, and the reason is simple - park entry fees (along with budget accommodation in the parks and a weak rand).

The daily fee for Kruger is around USD$25, which is about 1/3 of the price of the Serengeti. With the huge increase in park fees in Kenya (in 2024 the daily cost for the Masai Mara is increasing to USD$200 per person in high season, with secondary parks such as Lake Nakuru increasing to USD$100 per person), South Africa will become even more appealing for budget travellers.

That could certainly explain why the independent budget travellers have apparently disappeared. Although we did still see plenty of people who were camping in Serengeti - it's cheaper than lodges or (permanent or semi-permanent) tented camps. I think Tanzania is still do-able on a budget. I also think for some (many?) the wider range of other activities (shark cage diving, wineries etc) probably has appeal.

 

[ShelleyB]

Having done safaris in both Kruger (actually private game reserve) and Serengeti, there is no comparison! Eg in Kruger in 4 days we saw about 10 zebra...in Serengeti, as part of the Migration, we saw 10s of thousands in the same time frame...I understand the price difference can be an issue though...

Although we have only ever done a safari in northern Tanzania (twice now), I agree it was our understanding that we would see substantially more animals in Tanzania than Kruger. To be honest we never really considered South Africa, partly because we really have just enjoyed travelling in Tanzania, and also partially because as we've noted upthread so much more of the wildlife areas are protected.

 

[ShelleyB]

As you have all no doubt worked out, I am back home and returned to the usual work commitments, slowing the pace of this trip report. But I am determined to complete it, so please stay with me if you can.

So after our two days in Arusha, we have reached the start of our safari, and the last major event of our holiday. As noted upthread we arranged our safari with Lion King Adventures. They came with excellent reviews on Tripadvisor, and were excellent in accommodating our particular requests and suggesting various options. Pick up time was arranged for 8.30am, and our guide, Gilbert, was spot on time. Lion King make a whole theme out of their name, and our vehicle was named “Nala”. Whether word of this use has reached Disney I have no idea. Over the course of our safari we would spot plenty of other Lion King vehicles, including Pumba, Scar, Timon and of course Simba. ShelleyB son was a little horrified to learn some of the names were just the Swahili word for the animal in question.




Last time we were on safari in Tanazania, Land Rover (new and used) were king. Now Toyota rules the roost, with Cruisers particularly popular. The interior is set up perfectly, with power, a cooler, and of course a roof that pops up.

Today’s destination was Tarangire National Park, known as the elephant paradise. Our drive took us through Massai country, and around the rim of Ngorongoro crater (which we’ll return to later). Not far out of Arusha we began spotting zebra and wildebeest (parks are not fenced in Tanzania) and once past Ngorongoro giraffe became common too. However, animal density was significantly higher once we entered Tarangire, with plenty of wildlife ticked off the list, including elephants of course. ShelleyB son particularly enjoyed the seatbelt free time and the opportunity to stand and look out the roof as the vehicle was in wildlife spotting mode.

Some photos from our game drive.







At the end of the game drive, we headed to our lodge where we would be staying two nights, the Maramboi Tented Lodge. This lodge was outside the park, close to Lake Manyara, and still within a wildlife protected zone. So around the lodge, plenty of the herbivores, along the paths, near the pool and snuffling by the tent. It was a fabulous place.

 

[ShelleyB]

The next day we were back to Tarangire for a full day’s game drive. As we were staying fairly close it was fairly quiet when we arrived at the park. The park is divided by the Tarangire river. The only crossing at present is a weir, although a new bridge is currently under construction. Yesterday the river was too high to cross and with overnight rain it remained so today, leaving us confined to the west of the park. A shame, but it still left most of the park to explore. And early on we were lucky enough to spot lions. Better yet, we were the first vehicle to spot them. It’s standard on Tanzanian safaris that all the guides share information of what they have spotted, either by stopping for a quick chat, or more commonly on the radio. This of course benefits everyone as it increases the likelihood you will see the big game. The downside of course is that there is often a crowd of vehicles around the popular animals, like the big cats. So being first gives extra quiet time with them. With lions this is not usually such a big deal, as in many respects they are just very big domestic cats, and are often found asleep. All day long. But this pride, although initially some distance away, decided to pay us a visit and ambled on over to our vehicle. One dared us to scratch the belly:





Another on the hunt:



Look at my big toothy-pegs




I could post photos of lions all day, but we also saw other cool creatures like mongoose:
And lots and lots of birds





And back at our lodge a lovely dinner:

 

[VPS]

Great photos

 

[ShelleyB]

Great photos

Thanks. All the animal shots I have posted are with a new (to me) camera that I am just getting the hang of. Bought a new lens as well that I was really happy with.