Arusha

RobertWalter

We have an extra day in Arusha, any suggestions as to what to do,see and eat. Best places to eat outside of Hotel Arusha Serena?

AlanS

RobertWalter wrote:

We have an extra day in Arusha, any suggestions as to what to do,see and eat. Best places to eat outside of Hotel Arusha Serena?

Check the K&T forum archives- basically, rest, chill out, get a massage, have your hair braided, take a guided walk around the lake, canoe on the lake, visit small Jewish cemetery, hire driver/guide and go to Arusha Nat'l park (your best bet). The tour stops at the Tanzanian Cultural Center (despite its name it is a large private souvenir establishment) so no reason to have a guide to take you there. Arusha is not the kind of town where you go to visit, sightsee, eat, etc. without an escort.

British

Yes, you really have to eat at the hotel, it is not in the town. In fact, the next time you see covilization will be in Nairobi, and then boy is it a contrast, terrible traffic jams. Most people get a good amount of jet lag after arriving, most flights landing late at night. I am not a good sleeper, but believe me if you do not set your alarm you would probably sleep until midday. If you have the energy, my favorite thing would be to visit Arusha National Park, you can probably arrange that when you arrive, we enquired on arrival and the next morning they called us asking what time we wanted to go! if you have the money, they will find someone to take you there. Otherwise, chill out, get a massage and steel yourself for a wonderful but tiring tour.

Sealord

My wife will be walking around Lake Duluti with a guide, I will be drinking a beer and watching the monkeys play. There will probably be two Tauck tours at the hotel during our visit. When we were there last our driver guide told us to close the windows when we were driving.through town. Probably a message there. The hotel grounds are quite beautiful. I had no desire to do anything but rest up to prepare for an intense couple of weeks. I know AlanS is a much more intense traveler than I, and wants to do everything everywhere. I’m inclined to maintain a more relaxed pace.

AlanS

Sealord wrote:

My wife will be walking around Lake Duluti with a guide, I will be drinking a beer and watching the monkeys play. There will probably be two Tauck tours at the hotel during our visit. When we were there last our driver guide told us to close the windows when we were driving.through town. Probably a message there. The hotel grounds are quite beautiful. I had no desire to do anything but rest up to prepare for an intense couple of weeks. I know AlanS is a much more intense traveler than I, and wants to do everything everywhere. I’m inclined to maintain a more relaxed pace.

Hey, I resemble that remark : ) Let's see, what is on tap for pre-Botswana???

HGreenleaf2

Has anyone on this Tanzania trip inquired about pre tour excursions out of Arusha other than to hang our at Lake Duluti?

mil

Hi HGreenleaf2
Yes! I'm going next 8/23 and I did check pre tours etc.. and booked a visit to the market + massage directly with the hotel; if you send them an email they will contact you within 24 hours.
If you go to their website :https://www.serenahotels.com/serenaarusha/en/default.html
and click under experiences it will list all the pre-act. they offer. Some of the most popular ones are the visit to
the Arusha national park (all day) , the market visit and the lake walks (about a couple of hours ea.). all this extra tours are set by the hotel. If you like getting a massage as you arrived the hotel, book early because avail. goes fast.
Enjoy.

British

Mileg, will you please post an opinion of the market tour when you return, I have driven past it twice, once in about 2006 and once four years ago, and it looks nothing more than a bunch of old second hand clothing displayed out in the dirt. If you find it has improved when you go i’d Like to know, especially if you see any rolls of African fabric because I really enjoy the patterns and managed to find some when I was in Namibia. I will be going again next year.

mil

Hi British. Yes, I will report on the market.
The one closest to the hotel is the Tenguru food market , so I'm not sure if it's the same one I've seen in videos and on
"Bing" as I have Google it. The one in Google looks fun. I'll let you know.
Have a great week.