Guided tours Tanzania

Labelled fair and solidarity tourism, this highly recommendable French-speaking Belgian agency organises safaris with very original stays in the homes of local people, notably in Endallah, a village of the Iraqw community on the heights of Lake Manyara, a rare tribe of Cushitic origin who came thousands of years ago from Mesopotamia through the Horn of Africa to settle here, and who have kept a mysterious Arabic language and unique customs. The arrival on foot is a beautiful hike with a view of the lake. Then we sleep in a local's house (in a room with bathroom and mosquito net), and with one of the guides we visit the school, the dispensary and one of the rare traditional Iraqi houses made of wood and dried mud still standing. The welcome from John Karama and all the team is sincerely warm, the villagers curious about the visitors and the open air musical barbecue festive. The experience is unique. The Endallah association organizes other immersions in the homes of other northern tribes, the Maasai and Kuria (see their website). These village visits can be combined with safaris in the Serengeti, to a Shangarai village near Arusha in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, or to Mama Polo's home in the Kuria village of Nyamburi, on the other side of the Serengeti Park on the border with Kenya. The agency also organizes classic safaris throughout Tanzania and Zanzibar and participates in local development projects.

Bohobe Travel and Tours offers a walking tour of the city focused on its female figures, to discover the city through "the eyes and voices of women in Tanzania". For five hours (bring snacks and drinks), you'll wander the streets of Dar es Salaam, meeting women artists, entrepreneurs and traditional knowledge holders. Featuring Tanzanian women, this is an engaging and inspiring excursion.

Let's salute some interesting local initiatives. This small company set up by locals offers guided bike tours and scooter rentals. The two-wheelers are recent and well-maintained. The off-the-beaten-track tours we recommend are those to Ng'ambo (literally "the other side") and Uswazi in Zanzibar's very authentic new town, far from the ultra-touristy hypercentre. The agency also offers bike tours to a spice farm on the outskirts of Stone Town and in the center.

This development aid and solidarity tourism organization based at the Red Banana restaurant offers short walks that are not very sporty, but still allow you to discover in an original and thorough way the life of some families, their traditional cuisine, the banana plantations of the village of Migombani, rice plantations which grow here in abundance, thanks to a quite elaborate local irrigation system taking advantage of the rivers coming down from the plateau, flower plantations, a water reservoir used by the Maasai to water their herds, palm oil and sunflower oil production, local handicrafts.. The Rangis from Kondoa, for example, make rugs and baskets from papyrus that they grow here, while the Sandawes bushmen make bows and arrows for hunting.
One can also walk to the small oasis of Miwaleni Falls or through the banana plantations to the nearby hill of Balaa, from where the view extends over all of Mto Wa Mbu. The income from this community-based cultural tourism project funds, among other things, the manufacture of stoves that use three times less wood than a simple open fire, thus saving many of the surrounding trees, the main source of energy for the growing local population. You can also rent bicycles, or visit the fishermen and take a boat ride.