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Tanzania Weather & Climate
Close to the equator, Tanzania has no winter or summer — just a dry season and two rainy ones. Here is what to expect, month by month.
Tanzania weather and climate
1 Tanzania weather & climate
Tanzania is close to the equator and does not have winter and summer in the way that many countries do — instead, it has a rainy season and a dry season. The dry season extends from June to October, and there are two rainy seasons: the “big” rains from April to May, and the “small” rains in November.
During the rainy season you can expect brief but torrential showers that help freshen the air. Average daytime temperatures fluctuate over the year from 22–28 °C, with cooler evenings. Whatever time of year you visit Tanzania, you can count on warm temperatures.
2 The weather in Tanzania
Weather is probably the most important thing to consider when planning your trip. It is challenging to apply universal rules to a country as large and geographically diverse as Tanzania, but there are basic patterns that give a general idea of what to expect at any given time of year.
Tanzania has two rainy seasons — a long one that usually falls between March and May, and a shorter one in November and December. The most pleasant time of year is the long dry season (June to October), when the weather is generally clear and sunny. Temperatures vary greatly with elevation, but in the reserves and on the coast the weather is usually warm, even in winter.
3 Month by month
A quick guide to what the weather does through the year — temperatures vary with altitude, so treat these as a general picture.
January · February · March
Summertime — hot and dry, with occasional rain.
April · May · June
The long rains — mainly late afternoon and at night, with a few scattered daytime showers. May and June can be very cloudy. Mornings and evenings are colder, so bring a sweater. We recommend lodges over tents in these months; otherwise the weather shouldn’t affect a northern-circuit safari (Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara).
July · August
Still a little cooler and partly cloudy, but with blue-sky days too. Mornings and evenings are cold — take a sweater and long trousers for early game drives. By afternoon it warms up to t-shirt weather.
September · October · November · December
Sunny — mostly blue skies, sun and warm temperatures. The “short rains” fall in October and November, but they are little tropical showers that won’t affect a sunny holiday.
