Tanzania Best of Birding Safari – 19 Day Tour

After breakfast in your hotel, we will visit The Umoja Centre, an exciting youth education project supporting vulnerable teens gain vital education and life skills.  We will then head into town to show you the highlights of Arusha City, including the colourful central market and Tanzanite museum. Experience real Tanzanian cooking in one of Arusha’s many eateries. In the afternoon we will visit a fascinating recycled glass project (Shanga) who support people with disabilities before stopping for a drink in the leafy gardens of the Arusha Coffee Lodge.

We will depart Arusha in the morning and head directly to Tarangire National Park, named after the river that runs through it which quenches the thirst of a variety of animals, including giraffes, waterbucks, wildebeests, zebras and a high density of elephants. Tarangire is home to over 550 species of birds and its hilly landscape is dotted with baobabs and diverse grasses. After a morning game drive, you will enjoy a picnic lunch overlooking the river, before continuing wildlife viewing until arriving at the lodge.

As the sun rises, beaming beautiful golden light, we will do our first game drive of the day, taking a picnic breakfast with us. This is a fantastic time to view wildlife and to take memorable photos. Tarangire has a rich and diverse avifauna, but the prime specialties here are two Tanzanian endemics, Ashy Starling and Yellow-collared Lovebird, both of which are common, as well as the restricted-range Northern Pied Babbler.

In the middle of the day we will return to the lodge for lunch and a rest, swim or massage. Later in the day we will explore the park further with another game drive before dinner.

After breakfast we will head to Lake Manyara, an alkaline lake, rich with plant and bird life. The lake’s environment supports over 300 species of birds including cormorants, pink flamingos, pelicans and storks.  After a picnic lunch, we will enjoy an afternoon game drive where you can see elephants and baboons (in fact Lake Manyara boasts the most baboons in any park in Africa!)  If you are lucky you will also see the famous tree-climbing lions. 

We will leave at dawn and head back to the park, taking breakfast with us to view the early morning birdlife and other animals as they move around in the cool of the day. Lake Manyara is home to a diverse number of water birds, including Great White Pelican, Intermediate (or Yellow-billed) Egret, Purple Heron, the huge Goliath Heron, the colorful Saddle-billed Stork, Spur-winged Goose, Hottentot Teal, the beautiful Long-toed Lapwing, Little Stint, Curlew and Marsh Sandpipers. 

After a lake-side picnic lunch, we will continue with a game drive in the afternoon, through the varied landscapes until late afternoon.

After breakfast we will drive to Moshi town, with a view of the highest mountain in Africa, Mt Kilimanjaro (weather dependent!). We will arrive at the hotel for a welcome lunch and then embark on a walking tour of this colourful urban centre, visiting the market and have a coffee in the heart of coffee country.

Leaving Moshi, we start the journey to Mkomazi National Park driving parallel to the Pare Mountains, through sisal and pineapples plantations. We will stop along the way to buy some local fruit.

Mkomazi National Park spans 3,500 square kilometres and is home to two highly endangered species, the black rhino and African wild dog. The birds of Mkomazi are more numerous, with over 400 recorded species including large numbers of doves, hornbills, weavers and guinea-fowl as well as striking species such as the martial eagle and violet wood-hoopoe.

After waking in your lodge, which is nestled in this unique park, we will spend a full day exploring and spotting the many species of birds and animals, including elephants and zebra.

After breakfast we will drive through changing landscapes, including large sisal farms to Lushoto in the Usambara Mountains.

The Usambara Mountains are part of the Eastern Arc Mountain and stretch for over 90km, largely covered in tropical rainforests. The Usambaras are considered a Biodiversity Hotspot, with several endemic species of birds, flowers and trees, including the Usambara Eagle-owl.

After spending some time in Lushoto town we will travel further up the mountains to Irente.

After a delicious farm breakfast, a local guide will lead us on a hike through the forests and villages of this lush green part of the Usambara mountains. We will have the chance to find these species and more - Mottled Swift, Red-capped Forest Warbler, Zanzibar Boubou, Eastern Nicator, Sombre and Yellow-bellied Greenbuls, Red-rumped Swallow, Coastal Cisticola, Kurrichane Thrush, Collared Palm Thrush, Mocking Cliff Chat, Amethyst Sunbird, Eastern Golden Weaver and Red-backed Mannikin.

Today will drive to East Usambara Mountains, which hold a number of special and unique species such as Bohm’s Bee-eater. Near to Amani, we will hopefully spot Kretschmer’s Longbill. The forests of the Amani area have sadly been impacted by the increase in vast tea estates and now are mostly restricted to the tops of the mountains. Fortunately, bird life thrives in the remaining area which has been declared a nature reserve, and this is the area that we will focus our attentions on.  

Enjoy another full day in these abundant forested habitats of the Eastern Usambara Mountains. Hopefully we will spot the highly endangered Long-billed Forest Warbler as this is one of the last remaining areas where this bird can be found. Other birding delights include the Mottled Spinetail, Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Green Barbet, Scaly-throated and Pallid Honeyguides, African Broadbill, Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrike, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher, Lowland Tiny Greenbul, Little Yellow Flycatcher, Black-bellied Starling, Red-capped Robin-Chat, Plain-backed Sunbird and Red-throated Twinspot.

While enjoying a picnic lunch, watch out for raptors including the Black Sparrowhawk, Ayres’s Hawk-Eagle, Southern Banded Snake Eagle, African Goshawk and even the majestic Crowned Eagle.

After breakfast we will drive to the large town of Morogoro, in the foothills of the Uluguru Mountains, passing through changing landscapes of villages and sisal plantations. Morogoro is a bustling urban centre and is the centre for agriculture for the region.

Leaving Morogoro early in the morning, we will start the journey to the high forests of the Uluguru Mountains. We will leave the vehicles and hike to the higher ground into unspoiled primary forests as most of the lower slopes have been deforested for agriculture. As you are walking, keep your eyes open for White-eared Barbet, Angola Swallow and Bertram’s Weaver.

A key target for today’s viewing is the rare Uluguru Bush Shrike, an endemic species to this area. Other great forest species to keep a look out for include the Green Barbet, Fülleborn’s Boubou, Sharpe’s Akalat, Moustached Tinkerbird and Usambara Weaver.

Today we will immerse ourselves in another full day of birding in these great forests with the main targets being the elusive Uluguru Greenbul and Winifred’s Warbler. The forests are home to Livingstone’s Turaco, Red-capped Forest Warbler, White-chested Alethe, African Hill Babbler and Red-faced Crimsonwing. We are also likely to encounter the Southern Citril, Yellowbellied Waxbill, Evergreen Forest Warbler, Dark-capped Yellow Warbler, Variable Sunbird, Bluespotted Wood Dove and Bar-throated Apalis in the edges of the forest and the more open spaces.

We will depart from our camp after an early breakfast and head to Mikumi National Park (approximately 1 hour).

Mikumi National Park, spanning over 3230km², forms a unique eco-system along with Selous Game Reserve. Its savannah landscapes are home to elephants, zebras, kudu, black antelope, baboons and more. More than 400 various species of birds inhabit the park.

Soon after dawn, we will head into the park for a walking safari to learn more about the African bush, including animal tracking, natural medicines and notice the smaller side of safaris – the insects, the flora and of course, the birdlife. We will then head back to the lodge for a well – earned delicious brunch and a siesta. Late afternoon, we will embark for a game drive to view the larger animals in the cool of the evening.