Tanga · Tanzania
Tanga
A quiet colonial-era port on the north coast, and the base for the Usambaras, Pangani and Saadani.
Overview
Tanga is Tanzania's second port and its least visited coastal city - a low, green, unhurried place of German and British colonial buildings, sisal warehouses and a seafront that has never been developed for tourism. That is the appeal. The city itself is a half-day: the old town, Toten Island with its ruined mosque and baobabs, and the Amboni limestone caves a few kilometres north, the largest cave system in East Africa. What makes Tanga worth a stop is what surrounds it. Ninety minutes south, Pangani is a Swahili trading town at a river mouth with genuinely empty beaches on either side. Saadani National Park, further down the same coast, is the only park in East Africa where the bush meets the ocean and elephants occasionally cross the beach. Inland, the Usambara Mountains rise steeply to Lushoto and Amani, cool and forested, full of endemic birds and plants and criss-crossed with village-to-village walking trails that are among the best value in the country.
Browse by category in Tanga
Photos of Tanga
Operators serving Tanga
Ushunga · Tanzania
Beach Crab Resort
Boma Subutuni, Tanga · Tanzania
Fish Eagle Point
Tanga · Tanzania
Frenchkiss Lodge
Mwanza · Tanzania
KJB CAR ACCESSORIES
Hedaru · Tanzania
Maharage hotel
Trips visiting Tanga
Where these are, around Tanga
60 listings with a mapped location.
Map of 60 listings
- Listed
- Placed from the town
When to visit Tanga
Month by month: wildlife, weather and how busy it gets.
October
Short rains — brief afternoon storms, green landscapes, fewer visitors.
- Wildlife
- —
- Weather
- Weather: 4 / 5
- Crowds
- Crowds: 2 / 5
- Rainfall
- 90 mm
- Temperature
- 22–31 °C
Show all twelve monthsHide the full table
| Best time to visit | Wildlife | Weather | Crowds | Rainfall | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JanuaryShort rains — brief afternoon storms, green landscapes, fewer visitors. | — | Weather: 4 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 70 mm | 23–32 °C |
| FebruaryShort rains — brief afternoon storms, green landscapes, fewer visitors. | — | Weather: 4 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 60 mm | 23–33 °C |
| MarchWet month — expect rain most days, and lush, difficult country. | — | Weather: 3 / 5 | Crowds: 1 / 5 | 140 mm | 23–32 °C |
| AprilLong rains — some tracks impassable and some camps closed. Lowest prices. | — | Weather: 1 / 5 | Crowds: 1 / 5 | 320 mm | 22–31 °C |
| MayLong rains — some tracks impassable and some camps closed. Lowest prices. | — | Weather: 2 / 5 | Crowds: 1 / 5 | 240 mm | 21–30 °C |
| JuneDry season — good roads, thinner bush, animals gathering at water. | — | Weather: 4 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 50 mm | 20–29 °C |
| JulyPeak dry season — the best game viewing and the highest prices. | — | Weather: 5 / 5 | Crowds: 3 / 5 | 40 mm | 20–29 °C |
| AugustPeak dry season — the best game viewing and the highest prices. | — | Weather: 5 / 5 | Crowds: 3 / 5 | 45 mm | 20–29 °C |
| SeptemberPeak dry season — the best game viewing and the highest prices. | — | Weather: 5 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 50 mm | 21–30 °C |
| OctoberShort rains — brief afternoon storms, green landscapes, fewer visitors. | — | Weather: 4 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 90 mm | 22–31 °C |
| NovemberLong rains — some tracks impassable and some camps closed. Lowest prices. | — | Weather: 2 / 5 | Crowds: 1 / 5 | 200 mm | 23–32 °C |
| DecemberWet month — expect rain most days, and lush, difficult country. | — | Weather: 3 / 5 | Crowds: 2 / 5 | 140 mm | 23–32 °C |