Tanzania Weather in November 2024: Travel Tips for First-Timers

November is part of the hot "short rains" season. Short thunderstorms are common. When it is not raining, it is sunny. The weather conditions are sub-optimal for outdoor activities, so we recommend going on shorter excursions, sightseeing, and urban attractions in November.

Read on for our travel advice and weather information including average temperatures, rainfall, and travel tips…

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Weather in November: Overview

Averages:

• Temperature range: 17–30°C (63–85°F)
• Rainfall: 14 cm (5 inches)
• Rainy days: 8
• Sunshine hours/day: 8.5 hours

Climate Comparison (Averages) for Tanzania's Top Tourism Areas

In November, the total rainfall across the country basically almost doubles from October. The rains only fall a short time each day, usually in the afternoons, and often as thunderstorms. Most of Tanzania is warm or hot, and it is generally sunny when it isn't raining. There is moderate to high rainfall.

Northern Tanzania: November usually has comfortable weather for sightseeing treks since it is warm or hot. By scheduling your excursions in the mornings and watching the weather, you can still enjoy outdoor activities and safaris. The weather in Zanzibar is rainier and less predictable than the mainland, and it is stormier and rainier in the first half of November.

Southern Tanzania: There is less rainfall in the south, so safaris, hiking and other activities may be not be affected as much as in the north. Nyerere, Ruaha and other southern national parks are hotter than the northern ones, and there is moderate to low rainfall. The weather is usually suitable for safaris, hiking, boating, and balloon rides.

China Highlights, Asia Highlights, and Global Highlights collaborate to provide families and couples with personalized and stress-free experiences in diverse destinations.

Huangshan We booked a 3 day tour of Huangshan with China Highlights. Tony was our guide in Huangshan. He was very knowledgeable and spoke excellent English. I was able to appreciate the Hui culture and Huangshan more thanks to Tony. The entire trip went smoothly thanks to China Highlights! More helen, Dec 2023

Exploring Chengdu Two days with her guidance made my all dreams to come true (voluntairing experience in Research base of Giant Panda Breeding, meeting Leshan Giant Budha, strolling in Wuhpu Shrine and Jinli Ancient street, admiring Sichuan Opera, diving into local tea culture In People's park and of course tasting Sichuan hot pot dinner and other local food) in relaxed and joyful mode. Helen is really fond of pandas and all what she is doing. I was admiring her profesional skills in each step even in smallest ones. More Inspirator, Dec 2023

Albee was great in booking our tour to Albee was great in booking our tour to Indonesia Malaysia and Singapore.She was very friendly and responded to my request to change itinerary few times to fit our needs. More , Dec 2023

Olivia Tian, a sunshine tour guide! In October, my friend Amy booked a tour with Chinahighlights, Olivia Tian was our guide in Beijing, she is such a sweet n happy person to be around, not only she gave us the best guide service, also very accommodating, alter the plan as per our interest, took us to very local shopping n food district. Above all, she takes awesome pics, very patient!! Thank you so much for such pleasant 5 days in BJ, look forward to see you when we are back in China, Olivia!! More Venture216019, Dec 2023

One whole of a good experience ! Kevin was always making flexible arrangements for us making sure we meet our needs. Kevin also walked us to our desired restaurant daily making sure all are well before he left. Kudos to the whole team. Highly recommend ? More Cornelius C, Dec 2023

Excellent tour of Suzhou, Hangzhou and Shanghai I should mention the three bilingual guides, all passionate about their location and very accomodating. Tim in Hangzhou was exceptional as was Kenny in Shanghai.All three drivers were very good too.All in all a great tour. Thoroughly recommended. More Deepak, Dec 2023

Family of 4 on 5 days Beijing trip My family did a 5 days' trip in Beijing with China Highlights and tour guide Lily Liu. Our tour guide Lily is very knowledgeable with chinese history and was able to explain in both English and Mandarin. She is very patient in explaining, ensuring that we understand every single details.We enjoy the well planned trip very much. More Valerie, Dec 2023

China is Amazing Wonders that do not stop coming at you.Great country Great job,Loved every minute of it,Ethan did an amazing job,True Ambassador of China,Just like the Chinese people,Friendly, dignified and hardworking,Very happy.China Highlights exceeded expectations and then some,I will never even think of travelling with another company. More Philip Sardar /Maps10321171537, Dec 2023

13 day tour with China Helen who set the tourist standard for us. She was super informative and consistently looked out for the best phot spots using her camera and ours. She always gave us a "smile countdown" and positioned us. She took candid shots which we later discovered as most precious. We did a private tour and also found the drivers to be very capable. More Can vi, Dec 2023

The tour was perfectly organised The tour was perfectly organised, the guides, Massimo, Giorgio, Helen and Luca were prepared and always ready to help and adapt themselves to our requests More Jonathan, Dec 2023

The tour was perfectly organised We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu and thoroughly enjoyed our tours with her.Helen was friendly, bubbly and knowledgeable.It was fun to be with her. China Highlight had arranged 5 tours for us during our stay. The company is reputable and had fulfilled all our request. More Silva, Dec 2023

We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu We had 2 tours with Helen in Chengdu and thoroughly enjoyed our tours with her.Helen was friendly, bubbly and knowledgeable.It was fun to be with her. China Highlight had arranged 5 tours for us during our stay. The company is reputable and had fulfilled all our request. More Sooi, Dec 2023

Wonderful times with the pandas The tour was amazing and we loved the pandas we got so many wonderful pictures and our guide Helen was great. She is super knowledgeable and always ready to help More Kavita, Dec 2023

Xi’an During our trip around China, we spent three days in Xi'an. Thanks to our wonderful guide, Susan, who took us to visit the most beautiful places, explaining additional details about the dynasties. We especially enjoyed the Terracotta Warriors, where we had the chance to create one at a local workshop. Susan was very attentive; she tried to find a restaurant where everyone was happy with the food and found a pizza for our little son. She even made a gift for our daughter—a beautiful hairpin. Very positive experience! More Kamilya1818, Dec 2023

Wonderful trip to Beijing and Xian Had a great trip to bejing n xian. Our guide lily liu is so well versed in english and we have no worry here at all. We managed to dine in great halal restaurants though out our trip. Highly reccomended to all muslims travellers. More Efen Reyes, Dec 2023

Great experience, highly recommended! Additionally, she helped me with all my personal needs like getting a SIM card, finding an ATM, shopping, dining, checking in at the train station, hotel, suggested a couple additional very entertaining art events. Was also punctual and spoke good English. More Wayne S., Nov 2023

Chengdu and surrounding area tours Our guide Helen was the complete package. She guided us every step with deep knowledge and energy. But, that's not all. She bought us snacks for the optional kungfu show. She helped us check into every hotel and inspected our room to ensure it was perfect. She translated at every need. She even bought a bamboo stick to help us ward off some aggressive monkeys. We had 4 lovely days with Helen and our excellent driver, Mr. Wu. Highly recommended! More Chris, Nov 2023

Like a dream come true, but better The experience itself was above and beyond what was described. The driver and vehicle was spotless and on time, the lantern festival and seats were like something from a wonderful dream. The lesson to make kratong and the dinner after were perfect. This whole experience has been a dream come true and I cannot recommend it enough. More Diana B, Nov 2023

excellent communication Bangkok guide Mr. Samart was great, and saw to all our needs. Mr. Chong in Chaing Mai was fun and very sweet. (5 Stars, Mr. Chong!) Finally, Nittaya is experienced, flexible to our needs, and took good care of us right to the flight out. More Abigail Kamelhair, Nov 2023

We really enjoyed touring Chiang Mai She met us at the airport and accompanied us on hiking tours, market visits, temple and pagoda tours, and our Thai cooking class, and then returned us safely to the airport where she helped us navigate the check-in process. More Steve, Nov 2023

Best Places to Visit in Tanzania in November

Top things to do in November include hiking and spending time in the wildernesses, seeing wildlife, and going to the beaches. Consider urban attractions or the huge, wild, and drier southern parks.

1) Dar Es Salaam — Tour the Highlights

The capital, Dar Es Salaam, has both natural and urban attractions, and it is the No. 1 way into the country. In November, the weather is hot and sunny with moderate rainfall.

You could visit the urban attractions when it rains, such as the National Museum, to learn about Tanzania's culture and history. You could also visit street market areas such as Kariakoo to buy some souvenirs, products, fruit and food. The street markets offer a variety of locally-produced and imported goods.

When it is not raining you could go to the beaches such as South Beach that is crowded and has hotels along it or Bongoyo Island offshore — a protected marine preserve that has fine beaches. Pugu Hills Forest Reserve is an hour's drive away.

2) Ngorongoro Crater — Safaris, Hikes, and Relaxing in Hotels

At the Ngorongoro Crater, you can have a rewarding safari adventure in November, when the weather is usually fine, since the rains are short. Besides stunning high-altitude scenery, you can drive up close to numerous animals in a habitat that is like a huge bowl measuring 260 square kilometers (100 square miles). The floor of the crater is at altitude 1,700 meters (5,577 feet), and the rim shelters it to make a drier microclimate with average daily highs of about 23°C (73°F).

The rim, at an elevation of 2,300 meters (8,530 feet), is much colder with nighttime temperatures of about 6°C (43°F) and occasional freezing weather. You could hike along the rim through forests and see fantastic scenery from posh rim hotels. The world's largest inland volcanic caldera is just southeast of the Serengeti, about 3 hours' drive from Arusha.

3) Arusha National Park — A Variety of Things To Do

November is a good month for going to Arusha NP, a big wilderness with beautiful green scenery. The short rains of November usually leave its mornings fine for outdoor excursions and its diverse habitats and scenery beautiful and lush. It is warm during the days and a little nippy at night.

Arusha NP is a great natural park with a variety of things to do only an hour from Arusha, a good tourist base city. It has places to hike, safari, kayak, and fish. Mount Meru, adjacent, is the second tallest mountain in Tanzania, but when it rains, hiking on the volcano might be dangerous due to slippery trails.

Transport: Arusha NP is an hour and a half from Kilimanjaro International Airport and 5 hours from Nairobi.

4) City of Arusha — Resting, Fine Dining, Shopping and Excursions

Arusha is the 'Safari Capital' for people going on wilderness excursions. It is a good city to use as a base for touring and safaris since it has luxurious hotels, backpacker lodges, spas, interesting places to go to, and a domestic airport. In November, the weather is warm and the rainfall is moderate.

When it is rainy, you could visit the Natural History Museum. To learn about a unique precious gemstone that was only recently discovered and only mined near Mount Kilimanjaro, you could visit the Tanzanite Museum and buy gemstones. Tanzanite is a unique colorful gemstone that changes colors based on viewpoint.

Transport: Ngorongoro is about 3 hours away. Driving to Arusha from Nairobi takes 5 hours. Driving from Kilimanjaro International Airport takes an hour.

5) Nyerere — Safari, Hike, Balloon, Sightsee in Drier Weather

While the great northern wilderness preserves get more rainfall that hampers outdoor activities, the world's largest national park, Nyerere, is drier with only about 7 days of rain in November for a total of 10 cm (4 inches). It has diverse habitats that allow you to see a variety of animals.

You can see hippopotami and crocodiles in East Africa's largest river and a lot of other species. The weather in December is good for activities ranging from boating, to hiking, to fishing. The extra rain in December provides moisture, but because the rains are short and usually in the afternoons, your excursions should usually not be affected if early in the day.

It is a great time to see lush green vegetation and migratory birds in the 30,893-sq-km (11,928-square-mile) preserve. You could fly-in from Dar Es Salaam airport (DAR) or have a 5½-hour bumpy ride from the capital. Your tour guide would pick you up at the airport and handle all further arrangements.

Tips for Visiting Tanzania in November

November has moderate tourism. The rains hamper tourist activities somewhat, but you could watch the weather and plan your touring and activities around the rains to have a great tour while the land is lush and the prices and crowds are moderate.

We suggest that you plan your tour with urban bases, such as Arusha, where there are good facilities and good travel infrastructure suitable for travel on short excursions as the weather permits and where you can enjoy urban activities too.

Lodges and hotels around the wilderness preserves and the beaches are fully open in November. Book your tours and reservations early. To avoid the biggest crowds and higher prices, and to also enjoy the lighter rainfall, Ruaha and especially Nyerere are recommended.

There are no national public holidays in November.

What to Wear in November

During the short rains, mosquitoes and bugs abound. Have available a lightweight and "breathable" waterproof rain coat or rain jacket, rain pants or a rain poncho. Because it is sunny when it is not raining, wear a long-sleeved shirt, light trousers or a long dress to help avoid sunburn.

The mosquitoes, flies and other insects propagate in the rainy weather. You could reduce insect bites by daubing oils of citronella, lemon grass, or eucalyptus.

Bring warm clothing if you are going to northern areas such as the Serengeti and Arusha or to higher elevations because mornings and nights might get chilly.

Clothes for wildlife parks: Dark colors attract tsetse flies that spread sleeping sickness. It is important to wear neutral-colored clothes to avoid alarming the animals.

Monthly Weather in Tanzania