Skip to content
Lemala Safaris: honey badger crossing golden hills
A male lion standing in golden grass at sunset, gazing out across the plain

Warm, green and festive

Tanzania in December

Wildebeest and zebra arrive on the southern plains ahead of calving. Days are warm and festive, with brief showers and excellent beach weather on the coast.

Mixed
For a safari
Mixed
For Kilimanjaro
Very good
For Zanzibar beaches
Migration
Main draw this month

Tanzania in December at a glance

Herds return south

  • The weather

    Warm, with brief showers and fresh green country. The short rains are usually light and often come as afternoon storms.

  • Where the herds are

    The front of the herds is often back on the southern plains by late December, ready for the calving that begins in January.

  • The parks

    Many camps reopen or hit their stride. This is a lovely, underrated time, with good volumes of animals, relatively few vehicles and green scenery.

  • Kilimanjaro

    A mixed month on the mountain. The first climbing window opens in January.

  • Zanzibar and the coast

    December to February is one of the two good windows for Zanzibar, warm with the northeast wind.

  • Crowds and rates

    Busy around Christmas and New Year, so book early if your dates are fixed. Outside those weeks it is calmer.

Planning a trip in December

  • Good for

    Festive-season safari, Green scenery, Beach finish

  • Watch out for

    Christmas and New Year weeks sell out and rates rise.

  • What to pack

    Light layers, a thin waterproof jacket, sun protection and a swimming costume.

Our verdict on December

December is warm and green with good wildlife, and it puts you in the right place to start the calving season if you stay into the new year.

Safaris that suit December

Itineraries from our collection that list December among their best months, from the lowest starting price.

Compare with other months

Choose another month to see how it differs. The bars show how good each month is for a safari.

Questions answered

What travellers ask us

December is warm and green with good wildlife, and it puts you in the right place to start the calving season if you stay into the new year.

The front of the herds is often back on the southern plains by late December, ready for the calving that begins in January.

A mixed month on the mountain. The first climbing window opens in January.

Light layers, a thin waterproof jacket, sun protection and a swimming costume.

Keep planning

Where to go next

Free guides

Take the planning with you

A free PDF to read at your own pace: where to go, when, and what each park is best for. Tell us where to send it.

  • Cover of The Tanzania Safari Planning GuideFree PDF

    Free guide

    The Tanzania Safari Planning Guide

    Where to go, when, and what each park is best for: a clear primer before you choose a safari.

    • The best months for every park, park by park, on one page
    • A profile of each destination: the landscape, the wildlife to expect and the size of the park
    • The ways to travel, from classic game drives to walking, beach and combination trips

Your Tanzania journey

Ready to plan your Tanzania safari?

Tell us when you would like to travel and what you hope to see, and we will shape a private trip around you.

Chat on WhatsApp

No obligation and no pressure. We reply personally.

  1. 01

    Tell us what you love

    Dates, who is travelling and the moments you are dreaming of. Two minutes is enough.

  2. 02

    A real person replies

    A Lemala planner writes back personally with ideas, not a template.

  3. 03

    Get your tailored plan

    A day-by-day itinerary and a clear quote, shaped around you. No obligation.