Waterfalls in Tanzania

Materuni Waterfall drops around 150 metres into a basin below, in the Moshi district on the Kilimanjaro side, fed by the Mware River. It is one of the tallest in the country and the most visited of the Kilimanjaro-area falls, usually done together with a Chagga village walk and a coffee tour from the same village. Allow most of a day. How to Reach: About 45 minutes by road from Moshi, then a 45-minute walk down. Best Time to Visit: June to October.

Kalambo Falls drops over 200 metres off the Ufipa escarpment into the Kalambo gorge, on the Tanzania-Zambia border in Rukwa Region, and it is usually ranked the second-highest uninterrupted fall in Africa. It is also one of the most significant Stone Age archaeological sites on the continent: excavations in the gorge have recovered evidence of human occupation going back hundreds of thousands of years. How to Reach: By road from Sumbawanga in Rukwa Region, then a walk to the escarpment edge. Best Time to Visit: May and June, just after the rains.

Sanje Falls, in Udzungwa Mountains National Park, drops about 180 metres in three stages and is the tallest waterfall inside any Tanzanian national park. The Waterfall Trail is a three to four hour hike through rainforest with views out over the Kilombero floodplain, and there is a plunge pool at the middle tier you can get into. A guide is required in the park. How to Reach: By road to Mang'ula, the park gate, roughly 350 km from Dar es Salaam. Best Time to Visit: June to October.

Marangu Waterfalls, also called Ndoro Waterfalls, are at the foot of Kilimanjaro near Marangu village, the historic starting point for the mountain's oldest climbing route. The walk in goes through Chagga farmland and forest and takes about an hour, with Kilimanjaro behind you on a clear morning. There are pools at the base you can swim in. How to Reach: About 45 minutes by road from Moshi to Marangu, then an hour on foot. Best Time to Visit: June to October.

Ngare Sero Waterfalls sit in a gorge near Lake Natron in the Rift Valley, and the walk in goes up the streambed itself between walls several hundred metres deep, which is most of the appeal. There are pools at the top deep enough to swim in. Two hours on foot, wet the whole way, and a guide from the village is required. How to Reach: By road to Ngare Sero village at Lake Natron, then on foot with a local guide. Best Time to Visit: Year round, though the streambed floods after heavy rain.

Olmoti Waterfall, also called the Munge Cascade, falls off the western rim of the Olmoti Crater in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, feeding the Munge stream that runs down into Ngorongoro Crater. You cannot get to the base: the view is from the crater rim above, a walk of about half an hour from the ranger post with a guide. Conservation Area fees apply. How to Reach: By road to Nainokanoka in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, then a guided walk. Best Time to Visit: June to December.

Mount Meru Waterfalls are reached by a 45-minute hike on a trail of roughly nine kilometres from near Kambiyachupa, on Meru's lower slopes outside Arusha. The route is moderate rather than easy, with a stairway through forest, a gorge section and a river crossing. Operators in the area also run ziplining and quad biking from the same base. How to Reach: About 45 minutes by road from Arusha, then a 45-minute walk. Best Time to Visit: June to October, outside the heaviest rains.

Themi Waterfall is the closest of these to Arusha, about five kilometres from Olgilai village in the Themi Falls Leisure Park on Meru's lower slopes. It is a single drop of around 15 metres, formed where an underground stream meets the Themi valley, and the surrounding villages draw water from it. Easily done in an afternoon, with camping and cultural walks run from the same site. How to Reach: About 20 minutes by road from central Arusha. Best Time to Visit: July to October.

Tululusia Waterfall is in Arusha National Park on Mount Meru's lower slopes, at around 1,660 metres above sea level. It sits on the Tululusia route, the two-day walking approach to Meru's summit, so most people who see it are on their way somewhere else. Reaching it alone takes about an hour and a half from the gate, and park fees and an armed ranger are required. How to Reach: About an hour by road from Arusha to Ngongongare gate, then on foot with a ranger. Best Time to Visit: June to October and December to February.

Cave Waterfall is on the slopes of Mount Meru near Arusha National Park, at around 1,940 metres above sea level, and the water drops about 30 metres into a small pool through a rock overhang that gives it its name. Access needs a permit, arranged either directly or through an operator, so it is not a walk-up. Allow about three hours on foot. How to Reach: From Arusha, by road to the Mount Meru foothills, then on foot with a permit. Best Time to Visit: July to October.

Kakombe Waterfall is in Gombe Stream National Park on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, the park where Jane Goodall's chimpanzee research began. The walk to the falls is one of the standard trails, and chimpanzees are often encountered along it, which is the real reason most people make the trip. Two to three hours, and a park guide is required. How to Reach: By boat from Kigoma to Gombe, then on foot with a park guide. Best Time to Visit: November to May, when the chimps stay lower down.

Soni Falls is in the West Usambara mountains near Soni village, in the Lushoto area, and it is one of the few falls here you can swim at without a long approach. The setting is farmland and forest rather than wilderness, and it works as a picnic stop on the way through the range. The full walk takes three to four hours if you go beyond the pool. How to Reach: By road from Lushoto or Soni village, then a short walk. Best Time to Visit: June to October.

Kisasa Waterfall, also written Izasa or Kizasa, is in the West Usambara mountains between Lushoto and Yogoi, and the walk in runs through villages and smallholdings rather than forest. The pool below the fall is not suitable for swimming, so this is a walk and a viewpoint rather than a bathing spot. It suits half a day from Lushoto. How to Reach: By road from Lushoto towards Yogoi, then on foot. Best Time to Visit: June to November.

Kidhege Waterfall is in the Shagayu Forest Reserve in the West Usambaras, one of the older forest blocks in a range recognised as a global biodiversity hotspot, with plants found nowhere else. The walk to the falls takes an hour or two and the forest is as much the point as the water. There are pools at the base you can swim in. How to Reach: By road from Lushoto to the Shagayu reserve, then on foot. Best Time to Visit: July to October.