Arusha City

About Arusha City

Arusha City is Tanzania’s safari capital and the urban nerve centre of the Northern Circuit, sitting at 1,400 metres above sea level on the lower slopes of Mount Meru with a permanent population of over 600,000 people. The town centre anchored by the iconic Clock Tower roundabout and the bustling central Maasai Market where city services concentrate: international and local banks, ATMs, currency exchange bureaus, supermarkets, pharmacies, hospitals including the Mount Meru Regional Hospital, fuel stations, vehicle hire companies and a dense network of tour operator and safari outfitter offices. Accommodation spans the full spectrum from budget guesthouses in the town centre to five-star lodge properties on the outskirts, alongside a thriving restaurant scene serving everything from nyama choma and pilau to Italian, Indian and Chinese cuisine. Arusha is also home to the Arusha International Conference Centre, the East African Community headquarters, and the Tanzania Tourism Board offices. All road transfers to Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and the Serengeti depart from here, and the town sits 46 kilometres west of Kilimanjaro International Airport.