Tanzania is easily the best country in Africa to track down big game. It is home to a fifth of the continent's wildlife and a quarter of the country is protected as national parks, reserves and conservation areas.

The national language, Swahili, has even given us the word "safari". But more than just a huge safari park, the large East African country - about twice the size of France - is packed with just about every quintessential African experience and natural wonder.

In Kilimanjaro it has Africa's highest mountain; Lake Tanganyika is it's deepest lake and home to some of its most intriguing primate colonies; then wedged between the two, are the vast and beautiful Serengeti Plains where millions of wildebeest take part in annual migrations on some of the last great stretches of true savannah wilderness.

In the middle of all this is the 30 mile-long Olduvai Gorge, often called the "The Cradle of Mankind" as it's here that some of the earliest archaeological footprints of our ancestors were found, as they left the forests to walk the plains 2.5 million years ago.

With all this to offer it comes as a bit of a surprise that many of your best memories of a trip to Tanzania will involve its people. Hundreds of tribes with unique languages make up the country, ranging from the proud Maasai who largely reject modernisation to the thousand-year-old Afro-Arabian civilisation along the coast.

But what nearly all the 38 million population have in common are welcoming smiles and a jovial, free and easy vitality that's invariably infectious. Crucially too, almost all seem to be able to put tribal and religious differences aside to stand behind their country, developing an immense sense of unity since independence from Britain in 1961 and ensuring the country is one of the most peaceful and stable in all Africa.

Survival guide 

For all its natural wonders and fabulous people, Tanzania remains wretchedly poor, its annual per capita GDP of USD$723 making it the world's second poorest country (after Mozambique).

The country has little medical care or clean water in remote areas, few roads and frequent power cuts, even in Dar es Salaam, the largest city. All this means it's best to bring anything vital you think you might need. This goes for sterilized needles as much as it does memory cards; you can track down either, but supplies are not dependable and may need a lot of patient searching to find.

Patience in general is an enormous virtue as you travel around; you can't expect anything to be on time or efficient. The abysmal roads to parks often make journeys unnecessarily difficult and uncomfortable.

If travelling between cities by public bus, expect break downs; that's why most have a mechanic on board. Locals are used to taking all this in their stride, so copy their unflappable outlook, appreciate their helpful nature and be thankful that English is widely spoken and Swahili surprisingly easy to pick up.

Tanzania sports low levels of crime and corruption that countries like South Africa or Kenya can only dream of, yet even so it pays not to flaunt your wealth, particularly in Dar es Salaam, where pickpockets will target Westerners.

A far greater risk to travellers tends to be the many diseases that thrive in this part of the world - including malaria, bilharzia, typhoid, hepatitis and HIV - which are mostly avoided easily enough if you understand the causes and prepare with the right drugs, vaccinations and appropriate behaviour.

Located just south of the equator, Tanzania's temperatures usually lie between 25-30C, making visits possible at any time of year. However, if possible avoid the monsoons in April and May, aiming instead to visit between late June and November when the weather is at its driest and coolest.