Tanzania: Service, Cycling & Safari
11 Day Inn Bike Tour
Tour Information
We’re collaborating with the non-profit organization, globalbike, to bring you a tour that combines service, cycling and safari in Africa. During our time together, we’ll learn how globalbike works to make bicycles accessible to Tanzanian women as a means to improve their health and well-being. We’ll shift gears during the second half of the tour to experience once-in-a-lifetime "game biking." This is the stuff of dreams, and we feel privileged to help turn them into reality. Join us as we share our collective appreciation for the bicycle with our Tanzanian sisters. All tour profits will go to Tanzania and globalbike.
Guaranteed
The tour still has space. Make your travel arrangements.
Moderate
Flat and small rolling hills on unpaved dirt roads. Moderate cycling level.
10 nights lodging, 10 breakfasts, 9 lunches,10 dinners, water, luggage transport, van support, bicycle, 4x4 safari excursions, community engagement activities, trained bilingual guides, airport transfers and contribution to globalbike.
Mountain bikes with front suspension are included. There are no e-bikes available on this tour.
Coming soon!
Fly round-trip to Kilimanjaro International Airport, Tanzania.
Sue Lincoln
Tour Leader/Chef
What if I have to cancel a tour outside of the USA?
We understand that personal circumstances sometimes force women to cancel their travel plans. Therefore, we have tried to be as generous as possible with the following international tour cancellation policy:
- 120+ days before tour departure: forfeit $150 of your deposit.
- 75 - 119 days before tour departure: forfeit 25% of the complete tour price.
- 50 - 74 days before tour departure: forfeit 65% of the complete tour price.
- 30 - 49 days before tour departure: forfeit 85% of the complete tour price.
- 0 - 29 days before tour departure: forfeit 100% of the complete tour price.
- No refunds are possible after the tour begins.
Where can I get travel insurance?
Consider purchasing a plan with Allianz Travel Insurance. Be sure to enter ACCAM code #F027213 to identify yourself as a WomanTours traveler when securing your insurance. The cost will depend on several factors, including your age, state of residence, and length and location of your tour.
For more information please visit the Allianz Travel Insurance website
What is the difference between Leisurely, Moderate and Advanced tours?
Tours labeled Leisurely are flat tours at an easy pace on bike paths free of motorized traffic. Tours labeled Leisurely-Moderate are flat tours on a mix of roads and bike paths. Tours labeled Moderate have some hilly terrain. Tours labeled Moderate-Advanced have more challenging terrain with a mix of hills, longer climbs and flat stretches. Their daily mileages tend to be longer than on our other tours.
"This second trip to Africa was so necessary for me! I saw so much improvement in efforts to make life more equitable, easier, healthier and happier. The tour was a celebration of women: first, the groups of Tanzanian women who welcomed us so warmly, and secondly, recognizing and celebrating what a strong group of women WE were. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Tanzania Bike Tour Itinerary
DAY 1: We’ll begin our Tanzania bike adventure together with a shuttle from the Kilimanjaro Airport to our lodge just outside the town of Moshi. Most flights arrive late in the day, so you’ll enjoy a recuperating evening beneath the shadow of Africa’s tallest mountain. Moshi is the start for many adventure-seekers vying for a summit bid of Mt. Kilimanjaro at 19,341’. 0 miles.
DAY 2: We ease into our tour with a relaxed morning spent touring the grounds and learning about one of Tanzania’s sustainable coffee farms. Perk up on some home-grown coffee – as fresh as it gets – and then spend the afternoon back at our lodge. We’ll join our partner, globalbike, for an evening meet and greet. 0 miles
DAY 3: For the next three days, we take to the Kilimanjaro countryside on bicycles. Sandy roads, sugarcane fields, and monkeys will accompany our first bike ride.
Our destination is the village of Msitu Wa Tembo, home of the Kazi Na Sala women’s group and bike shop. The group’s name means “Work and Prayer” in Kiswahili, and its members work to empower women in the community. We’ll learn about their bike rental program using globalbike’s rugged Buffalo Bicycles, designed to withstand the rugged terrain and carry 200 pounds. We will return to our lodge for dinner and a debrief of our first cycling day. 18 miles.
DAY 4: After breakfast, we bike on dirt tracks among the acacia trees to the Maasai village of Mikocheni. We’ll visit the Enaboishu women’s cooperative bike shop, the first of its kind in the region. We’ll spend the afternoon with the local women participating in hands-on activities to learn about life here. We can practice carrying water like a local— both on and off the bike, or we may visit a market with beautiful beaded crafts. 29 miles.
DAY 5: We continue cycling through the rural Tanzanian countryside today. We will visit a small community called Mawala, and another women-led bike shop and rental business. Rice fields, cattle and goat herds, and red dirt farmlands will be our scenery. Then we’ll continue to Nyumba Ya Mungu Lake, where we may have the opportunity for a canoe ride with the local fishermen. 18 miles.
DAY 6: After a hearty breakfast, we embark on a new phase of our journey centered around exploring the wonders of the Tanzanian countryside and wildlife. We shuttle to our starting point near Arusha with beautiful views of Mount Meru, the second highest peak in Tanzania. There, we’ll hop on our bikes as the terrain starts to rise and fall and we draw closer to Arusha National Park. As the guides like to remind us, “pole pole” (slowly, slowly).
We will picnic at the park headquarters, while vervet monkeys scamper in the trees overhead. Then we’ll hop into 4x4s for a game drive through the park, famous for its lush tropical forest, marshes and open plains. Keep your eyes peeled for pink flamingos, black and white Colobus monkeys, baboons, and impala. 17 miles.
DAY 7: We continue our journey with a “game biking” experience in Radilen Wildlife Management Area, Tanzania’s first community managed conservation area. We’ll hope to encounter elephants, zebras, giraffes or gazelles. Baobab trees tower over the dirt tracks, and we will sense the East African savannah as we move through this incredible landscape.
Our bike ride ends at the entrance gate for Tarangire National Park, a park the size of Rhode Island! We will board 4x4s for the last leg to our lodge inside the park for the night. 26 miles.
DAY 8: The park is ours to explore today! Tarangire’s namesake river is the primary source of fresh water for thousands of migrating zebras, impala and wildebeest and sustains a thriving elephant population. We may also spot giraffes, buffalo, lions, cheetahs, and perhaps a leopard in a tree. Over 500 bird species have been recorded in this immense park – be sure to have your binoculars handy! Tonight, we go “glamping” in beautiful canvas tents at our next safari lodge. 0 miles.
DAY 9: Today is a rest day at our lodge, perched overlooking the Great Rift Valley, with blue Lake Manyara below us. For those who are interested, we will venture into town to a market with high-quality Tanzanian-made crafts, artwork, and other goods. The afternoon is yours to enjoy freely. 0 miles.
DAY 10: We set out at sunrise to get our first glimpse of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s famous for its 2000’ deep crater - the world's largest unfilled and intact caldera of its kind. The crater spans five different ecosystems including grasslands, pools, marshes, a salt lake and forest, so it's home to a tremendous diversity of species.
We'll hope to see some of the thousands of wild animals, including the endangered black rhinoceros, hippopotamus, and the highest density of East African lions in Tanzania. You will probably never see as many animals coexisting freely anywhere else in the world. We'll celebrate our experience together over a farm-to-table dinner back at our lodge. 0 miles
DAY 11: After breakfast together, we’ll leave the wilderness behind and shuttle back to the Kilimanjaro airport. 0 miles.