Tanzania Weather Overview

Tanzania's weather varies a lot more than its reputation as a year-round safari destination might suggest — it depends heavily on which part of the country you're actually in, since the Northern Circuit, the coast, and Kilimanjaro's slopes each follow a genuinely different pattern.

Across the Northern Circuit parks — the Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Lake Manyara — the dry season runs roughly June through October, giving the clearest skies and easiest game viewing. The long rains fall March through May, and shorter rains typically arrive in November. See our full guide to timing a safari for how this affects game viewing and migration timing specifically.

Zanzibar and the coast follow a similar but not identical pattern — see our Zanzibar seasons guide for the coast-specific breakdown, since humidity and rainfall timing there differ somewhat from the inland parks.

Kilimanjaro is its own case entirely, since altitude changes everything — see our dedicated Kilimanjaro weather and climate zones guide for what to expect on the mountain specifically, from tropical heat at the base to freezing conditions near the summit.

Contact us to plan your trip around the right season for what you want to see.