Getting to Arusha
 

Hi,

We are plannning a safari trip to Tanzania - north circuit. Considering GoodEarth tour company as they seem to have favourable reviews in this forum. This and most other safaris in north circuit start in Arusha. Problem is that there are no international flights that will get us to JRO directly (we will be flying in from Singapore).

It appears that we need to either go to DAR or Nairobi and then take a local flight (Precision Air seems to be the only option) or fly to Nairobi and given that the distance is shorter, maybe a private transfer can be arranged via road?

Which is the best way to do this? Are there other better options available?

Please help!

Take the nonstop to FRA on Lufthansa, then take the once a week direct FRA-JRO on Condor

http://www.condor.com/ibe/cfi/us/fli...02A61AF1.ibe01

I think you will be VERY happy with Good Earth Tours. I cant shower Narry(in Florida) and my guide Ben with enough compliments

There is also a 6x/week daily flight from Amsterdam to JRO on KLM .... you could fly to Amsterdam from Singapore directly I assume?

Even a flight into NBO will fly into Kilimanjaro/JRO, the international airport (for Visas and Immigration) and from here it's a 1/hr drive west to Arusha. If into DAR, you can probably get a flight to Arusha/ARK or JRO.

Suggest you fly KLM out of AMS to JRO and Good Earth will be glad to meet/greet and transfer you to Arusha.

There isnt a SIN-AMS nonstop, so thru FRA is the only way to get it to one stop from Singapore....otherwise there is no reason to go to Europe, just do a 2 stop through BKK & NBO

KLM 836 SIN-AMS non stop (4 days a week I think)

I stand corrected, thank you Elizabeth

Consider taking a bus from Nairobi to Arusha. A number of local bus companies now offer that option, whereas a few years back when I took it, there seemed to be only one. Anyhow, it was an enjoyable trip of a few hours in which we got to see the countryside and even some wildlife (ostriches). Depending on your flight from Singapore, perhaps you could spend a restful night in Nairobi and start out the next day refreshed. ZZ

Let me add that the difference in airfares between going into Nairobi and into JRO may pay for the extra night in Nairobi, although I have not included a possible extra visa cost. ZZ

You can also fly Singapore Air to Dubai, then Ethiopian Airlines through Addis Ababa to Kilimanjaro Airport.

All,

Frying from Singapore via Europe is double the cost and also adds 8-10 hours flying time besides the layover time in airports. The shortest is to fly via Dubai on Emirates. We could go to Dar or Nairobi and take a flight but I am hearing many horror stories about Precison Air, so was trying to avoid that, but looks like that may not be possible.

How long does it take to travel by road from Nairobi to Arusha?

I just put "bus, nairobi, arusha" into the Google search engine and got several hits. A quick perusal of the schedule showed a travel time of a little over five hours between the two points. You might check it out. ZZ

Precision Air is just fine! I've never had any trouble with them, nor have heard of any. What have you heard and where?

My experiences with Precision have been fine too. I'd be interested to learn what you've heard and from whom.

... here too, no issues ever with Precision. On time. They take off and land! That's good enough for me and only 50/min vs 5/hrs on the bus.

If any delay/mechanical, then it's no different from any other airline at one time or another... things happen everywhere!

Glad to hear people had good/ok experiences on Precision Air. I googled Precision and in one of the airline review forums there are several comments on overbooking, not having seats on plane despite having tickets, long delays or cancellations with no explanations, lost luggage etc. Yes, it is just 50 min flight so as long as they fly somewhat on time and don't lose our bags, we should be ok.

Kenya airways flies Bangkok-Nairobi-Kilimanjaro.You could also opt to fly out from Mumbai,India too.Singapore airlines,Airasia and Tiger airways connect Mumbai.Kili to Arusha is just 45mins by taxi.
http://www.kenya-airways.com/default_en.aspx

When considering the bus, have a look at this thread. CR

http://www.fodors.com/community/afri...s-or-plane.cfm