How to get to Arusha

Arusha is the nearest major city to iconic parks of Northern Tanzania like Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire, Manyara & more. So most Tanzania safari tours start from Arusha and the majority of the tour operators and guides are also located in Arusha.

Before you start your Tanzania safari, we recommend to arrive in Arusha a day in advance and rest in the city.

Here are different options to reach Arusha city:

Getting to Arusha by Flight:

Arusha is easily accessible via two airports. Arusha Municipal Airport (ARK), a domestic airport and Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO). Hotels in Arusha are about 15-60 minutes away from these two airports.

Arusha Airport (Domestic)

Most popular option for tourists to get to Arusha is to take a flight to Arusha airport (ARK). It has daily flights from various local destinations and has connections from almost all major airports and airstrips in Tanzania.

Arusha airport has multiple flights from major cities like Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar everyday. The flight costs range from $100 to $300 per person. You can find & book flights to Arusha airport on Kayak.

We can directly start your Tanzania safari from Arusha airport if you are landing in the morning or we can arrange a transfer to your hotel at Arusha at a cost of $25 per vehicle (Toyota Alphard or similar).

Kilimanjaro International Airport

You can also fly to Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) which is the nearest international airport to Arusha and has daily flights from local, African and international airlines. Arusha hotels will be about 1 hour drive from JRO.

JRO has regular connections from major cities in Tanzania like Dar-es-salaam and Zanzibar, along with major East African cities - Nairobi, Entebbe, Kigali and Addis Ababa. It also has flights from some large cities in Europe and Asia like Amsterdam, Istanbul, Dubai and Doha.

We can directly start your Tanzania safari from Kilimanjaro airport if you are landing in the morning. We charge an additional $30 for picking you up at Kilimanjaro airport and starting your safari (same for dropping at Kilimanjaro airport on last day immediately after safari). If you are landing in the afternoon at Kilimanjaro airport, we recommend to rest for the night in Arusha and start safari next morning. We arrange transportation from the airport to your Arusha hotel at a cost of $50 per vehicle (Toyota Alphard or similar).

Getting to Arusha by Road:

If you are starting from Nairobi (Kenya) or Moshi (Tanzania) or Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania), you can get to Arusha by road.

From Moshi to Arusha:

Moshi town is the base for climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro. If you are trekking up Kilimanjaro before safari, your Kilimanjaro operator will drop you at Moshi on the last day of the trek. Moshi to Arusha is about 85 km and takes about 2 hours each way. We charge $100 for a private transfer between Moshi to Arusha in a Toyota Alphard or similar vehicle.

We advise clients finishing Kilimanjaro trek to travel to Arusha on the last day of their trek and rest in Arusha and start safari the next day. Starting your Northern Tanzania Safari from Arusha instead of Moshi will save you about 2 hours of transfer time.

From Nairobi to Arusha:

Nairobi is the largest city in East Africa and has good international flight connectivity. So you can also consider taking a flight to Nairobi and travelling to Arusha by road. Please keep in mind that Nairobi is in Kenya and you would need a separate VISA for Kenya and Tanzania if you are planning to travel from Nairobi to Arusha by road. Additionally, you will also need a Yellow fever vaccination certificate to show at the border while travelling from Kenya to Tanzania.

You can take a shuttle from Nairobi to Arusha. This shuttle takes around 6-6.5 hours which includes crossing borders (30-45 minutes) and VISA formalities at Namanga border. Shuttle usually departs at 8:00 AM and again at 2:00 PM from Nairobi to Arusha and costs about $35 per person. We can arrange private transportation between Nairobi to Arusha at $250 per vehicle (Toyota Alphard or similar).

From Dar-es-Salaam to Arusha:

Dar-es-Salaam to Arusha is about 620 km and takes about 11-12 hours by road. There are bus services available between these cities and bus tickets cost around $45 per person. Bus usually departs in the morning around 6:00 AM. Given the long duration of these bus rides, flying is the most popular option from Dar es Salaam to Arusha. You can also fly from Dar es salaam to a national park like Serengeti directly and start your safari.

Skip Arusha and Fly to parks directly!

There are several ways to get to Arusha depending on where you are located.

But if you are planning for safari at parks in Northern circuit of Tanzania, it might be possible to skip Arusha and directly fly into bush airstrips available in/around national parks like Serengeti(check (how to get to Serengeti)[https://monkey.travel/help/getting-to-serengeti]), Tarangire and Manyara. Since only domestic flights land at these airstrips, you will have to take a flight from one of the domestic airports in Tanzania (popular options are Zanzibar, Dar es salaam, Kilimanjaro & Arusha airports) to the airstrips in National parks of Tanzania.

We can pick you up at your landing airstrip and start your safari tour. This option would be more expensive as flights to bush airstrips are more expensive than those landing at Arusha. Additional charges might also apply for transferring your landcruiser from Arusha to your pickup location in the bush at the time for your arrival.

Please check with your travel consultant to plan your custom safari itinerary.