Ultimate Tanzania Safari Packing List • What to Pack & Wear

Any African safari is a dream but a Tanzania safari is just spectacular. I’ve been on 2 myself – going on a 3rd this year hosting another group trip – and I would go every year of my life on this trip. It is truly that incredible. But it is important to pack appropriately for your Tanzania safari in order to stay both safe and comfortable. So this is the ultimate Tanzania packing list that will tell you all the things you need to pack for this safari as well what to wear.

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Guidelines for What to Wear on Safari in Tanzania

FIRST AND FOREMOST, the clothes to add to your Tanzania packing list should fit into the following categories:

• Neutral toned – browns, tans, greens, etc.
• No black or navy – these colors attract tsetse flies
• Muted patterns – avoid loud patterns and camouflage (which is reserved for military)
• Breathable and lightweight – linen, cotton, polyester, silk, and anything airy
• Loose – you’re doing a lot of sitting and standing so you’re not going to want super tight clothes stuck to you
• Comfortable – truly, you’re just going to want to be comfortable sitting in a jeep all day or walking around so prioritize that

What to Wear On a Tanzania Safari

Alright now that we know the general rules of how to pack for a Tanzania safari and the type of clothing to wear, I’m going to give you my ultimate Tanzania safari packing list.

Safari Sun Shirt

There’s a reason long-sleeve safari button up shirts are a staple style and so commonly seen on any African safari – Tanzania or otherwise. And that’s because they are great at their job. They are breathable and roomy, you can typically buy them in a range of green and tans.

Pants

For your Tanzania safari, you’re definitely going to want comfortable full-length pants. Make sure they’re breathable and fit into the correct color scheme. And you’ll want to make sure they’re comfortable whether standing, sitting, or walking!

Footwear

Add some comfortable footwear to your Tanzania safari packing list. Something you’re not worried about getting dusty, dirty, and even potentially wet but IS STILL very comfortable.

I have worn a pair of brown tennis shoes and then my Blundstone boots, while my husband wore his hiking boots. Both worked out well for us!

I also love a merino wool sock for safari because it keeps my feet comfy and they don’t get as stinky as quickly so I can rewear them for a couple of days.

Outerwear

So depending on when you go on safari, you may or may not end up wearing a jacket. But to be prepared, I would always bring a rain jacket just in case. But if you know yourself and get extremely cold at night, a packable puffer that takes basically no room in your luggage might be a good thing to pack. I haven’t needed a puffer on any of the safaris I’ve been on, but you know your body better than I do so I’ll link my favorite below next to a rain jacket!

Remember to buy these in NOT black!

Accessories

Want to jazz up your outfits? Here are some cute items you can add to your Tanzania safari packing list:

What to Pack for a Tanzania Safari

Electronics & Gear

There are lots of electronic items you’ll want to bring on safari with you and here are the items I suggest, and am including in my Tanzania safari packing guide because I personally used and loved them. Here are some items you’ll definitely want to pack:

• Plugin Adapter
• Binoculars
• Digital luggage scale
  • This thing is actually a godsend and takes up so little space in your luggage, but helps you make sure your bags will meet weight requirements if you’re flying a lot on your safari
• LARQ water bottle with filter
  • Your safari lodges and guides will have plenty of bottled water for you, but I’m always prepared just in case of emergency so I bring a water bottle with a filter anyway.
    • UV filter
    • Filter straw

Camera Equipment

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BUT if you’re a photographer or have a nice camera, and are either looking to add to your kit or deciding what to pack for Tanzania, I ABSOLUTELY recommend you bringing your big zoom lens on safari in Tanzania with you. Some of my photos from my previous Tanzania safaris are my favorite I’ve ever taken, and if you’re a lover of photography I’d highly recommend you bring your equipment. Here are my MUST-BRING camera items for a safari!

You’ll also want to consider extra batteries and memory cards since you’ll be taking a million photos per second.

• Extra batteries – Sony battery
• Extra memory cards – I like the SanDisk Extreme Pro

Luggage and Accessories

Now, there are two categories of safari I’ve been on in Tanzania that have different luggage requirements based on HOW you’re getting to each park. So every item on this Tanzania safari packing list will need to fit into these items, and it’s absolutely possible for them to.

Drive-Only Safaris

Drive only safaris means you aren’t taking flights between parks or safari lodges. If you’re driving only, there really isn’t a luggage requirement outside of what you need to do for your flights before arriving to Tanzania. I do recommend packing light, because you’ll be moving around a lot, but there aren’t requirements about luggage type here so long as they fit in your safari jeep.

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Fly-Between Safaris

If during your Tanzania safari you are flying between your safari lodges/camps or between the parks, you’ll likely need a soft-side, frameless piece of luggage. This is because the planes are so small and their luggage hold simply doesn’t have the space for more standard luggage.

For this specifically, please check with your airline’s bag allowances, but here are some bags I have and love that will work for this.

Health & Wellness

And here are a bunch of items to add to your Tanzania packing list that are around health and wellness. Take any/all of these with a grain of salt based on your individual needs, but you might love having these with you on your Tanzania safari!

• Do not forget any prescriptions you need to be taking
• Dramamine or a motion sick patch in case you get carsick
• Pee cloth in case you do a “bush pee” which I’ve only done a couple of times
• Mosquito repellent wipes or bracelets will probably be the best bug prevention mechanism but truly, I never used mine. I bring them each time just in case though.
• Sunscreen – my favorite is Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen

What to Have in Your Tanzania Safari Day Pack

While out and about each day on game drives, your luggage will be left at the safari lodge. So here are some items I would make sure to have in the day pack you bring with you into the jeep.

• Water bottle (just in case, though your jeep will likely provide bottles)
• Portable phone charger
• Hand sanitizer
• Sunscreen
• Sunglasses
• Wallet (money with cash for tipping)
• Extra camera batteries and memory cards if needed

There you have it! The ultimate Tanzania safari packing guide that has everything you need from what to wear to what luggage you need and all the little things not to forget. If you have any questions, reach out as always!

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