Art, Culture & History

• Enrol in a short art course with one of the music, art or sculpture schools
• Learn new cookery or language skills
• Experience village life and authentic Tanzanian culture

Art in Tanzania has much to offer – dance, drama, music, painting, film and sculpting. Whether it is Tinga-Tinga painting, sculpture in wood or Taraab music skills, you can enhance your talent in the arts by adding a Tanzanian perspective, learning new techniques from cultural exchange and enrolling for short courses. Alternatively you can learn Swahili or undertake cookery classes another innovative way to learn about the Swahili culture.

Tanzania is very forward looking in that many villages throughout the country offer the opportunity to experience cultural tourism. These cultural tourism programmes enable local Tanzanians in rural areas and villages to feel some of the positive benefits of tourism in Tanzania. Sharing community life and experience communal living is one of the special highlights. You get to encounter and directly communicate with people in villages, with the guides acting as a go-between and interpreter. This offers the chance to meet local people, to get to know their families, the village population and to experience their everyday life on a very personal and friendly level. You can experience something which travel brochures often promise but seldom keep: close contact with other cultures.

Travellers can visit from half a day or stay for a full week. Overnight stays include home stays, sometimes guest houses, hotels or camping sites. Accommodation is always simple, but is clean and equipped with the basics needed.

Some of the villages who participate are:

Mto Wa Mbu
• A walking tour of the farms and surrounding area at the foot of the Rift Valley
• A trip to Miwaleni Lake and waterfall
• A view of the cultures of the different tribes

Longido – 80 km north of Arusha on the way to Nairobi. The town lies just at the foot of Mount Longido.
• Walking safaris with Maasai warriors
• A view into the culture and daily lives of the Maasai
• A climb up the impressive Longido mountain
• A view into the culture and daily life of the Maasai

Usambara Mountains – situated in the northeast part of Tanzania between Mount Kilimanjaro and the Indian Ocean.
• A visit to the view points on the edge of the mountains
• Hike through dense forests and along small rivers
• Visit to irrigation and soil conservation projects

Pangani Coast – 50km south of Tanga, Pangani town is in the extreme northeast corner of Tanzania at the Indian Ocean coast
• A visit to a former slave labour camp and slave market site
• A river cruise through the vast coconut plantations
• A walk through Pangani historical town
• Fishing with local fishermen

These give you a flavour of what to expect from these tours. You can also have cultural tourism programmes to some of the other fascinating rural areas of Tanzania including
Babati/Hanang
Engaruka
Gezaulole
Ilkiding’a
Kisangara
Machame
Mamba/Marangu
Monduli Juu
Mbeya
Mkuru
Mulala
Ng’iresi
Northern Pare Mountains
Southern Pare Mountains

We cannot recommend these tours highly enough as they offer unsurpassed and rare experiences as well as helping local people and communities. Contact us now to see how we can incorporate cultural tourism into your journey.