Weather in Tanzania

Tanzania has two primary dry seasons that represent the best time to visit for wildlife viewing and general travel. The long dry season from late June through October is the peak safari season — the Serengeti and Ngorongoro are at their most rewarding, with thin vegetation making wildlife spotting easier and the Great Migration river crossings at the Mara River reaching dramatic peak frequency between July and September. Temperatures are pleasant, typically 20–28°C in the daytime, and rain is minimal.

The short dry season from January through February offers a second excellent window, particularly for witnessing calving season on the southern Serengeti — when hundreds of thousands of wildebeest give birth in an explosion of new life, attracting massive concentrations of predators. This is also an ideal period to climb Kilimanjaro, as the weather on the mountain is generally more settled. The two rainy seasons — the long rains (March to May) and the short rains (November to December) — bring lush green landscapes and fewer tourists, with significantly reduced accommodation rates, though the long rains can make some bush roads impassable.