No engine comes along. That is the first thing you notice on a horse, and it is the reason an eland stays where it is instead of moving off. Riding in Tanzania comes in two forms with very little in common, and what each one asks of you is set out below, so you can work out which one fits before you ask us for anything.
Can you go on a horseback safari in Tanzania
Yes, in two forms. A two hour ride at a game reserve near Arusha, open to beginners, and multi-day treks with a mobile tented camp that moves along with the group and needs an experienced rider. We book the day ride for our guests. The multi-day rides are not part of our trips as standard, and what they require is at the bottom of this page.
Two hours from Arusha, even if you have never ridden
The ride is two hours in the saddle, at a game reserve under Mount Meru. Beginners can come, and that is the most important line on this page, because most people assume riding here is only for people who already ride. Experienced riders can gallop. Anyone with less experience goes at a slower pace, and the tempo follows the group. A helmet is provided on site and you do not ride without one. They ride all year round.
Where it is, and why forty-five minutes from the airport matters
The reserve lies between Arusha and Kilimanjaro International Airport, about forty-five minutes by road from each. Mount Meru stands over it, and on a clear day you can see Kilimanjaro from the saddle. You are there in about an hour and back within half a day, so it costs you no travel day at all. That is what makes it fit where most activities do not.
Where the ride fits in your trip
There are three departure times, eight in the morning, half past ten, and half past four in the afternoon. The afternoon one is for your last day. You have checked out, you fly in the evening, and you ride in the last light twenty minutes from the departure hall. The morning rides work on a rest day between two parks, or on your first full day around Arusha or Moshi. We recommend a night nearby before the safari starts, and that day is usually free, which is exactly where this fits.
The animals you rarely see this close from a car
Eland, kudu, bushbuck, dik-dik, gazelle, impala, zebra and wildebeest, and a great many birds. That is not the list people come to Tanzania for, because a vehicle on safari is usually looking for lions. The eland is the largest antelope in Africa and one of the shyest. Bushbuck and dik-dik keep to dense vegetation, so from a road you see them at a distance or not at all. On a horse you get closer, because there is no engine and a horse does not read the way a vehicle does. This is a different list, not a lesser safari.
What to wear and what to bring
Long trousers, closed shoes, preferably with a small heel, and muted colours. Those are the stable’s requirements rather than ours. The helmet comes from the stable. Bring sunglasses, sun cream and water. A camera is fine, as long as you are content to hold the reins in one hand.
Who the day ride is not for
The minimum age is fourteen, and the weight limit is 95 kilos, which is 209 pounds. Both are hard limits and neither gets negotiated. If you are travelling with younger children, that rules the ride out for part of your party or for all of it, and we will find something else for that morning.
Multi-day rides through the Serengeti and around Kilimanjaro
Multi-day riding treks do exist in Tanzania, with a mobile tented camp that travels with the group. There are two regions and their seasons do not overlap, the southern Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Highlands from January to April, and the Kilimanjaro region from June to October. What they ask of you is considerable. Three to five hours in the saddle a day, an independent seat, and the ability to gallop out of a situation that calls for it. The weight limit is around 85 kilos, roughly 187 pounds, lower than for the day ride. Groups run from about four riders to about twelve. Those figures come from parties who resell these treks rather than from the operator running them, so we check the exact requirements and the dates before you commit to anything. These rides are not part of our trips as standard. If you want one, we will look into it.
A day on a horse does not replace a safari, and it is not meant to. It is two hours, forty-five minutes from the airport, with no engine coming along.
