What to See in Arusha, Tanzania: Free Audio Guide

Looking for things to do in Arusha? The city is the capital and administrative centre of Tanzania’s Arusha Region, set at the foot of Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the Great Rift Valley. It is also an important diplomatic hub, with a lively history that can be explored through museums, religious landmarks and places connected to international institutions. Neywo offers a free audio guide for Arusha with 8 narrated places.

What to See in Arusha

Arusha is often known as A-town, a local nickname that reflects the city’s energetic character. Its story reaches from regional politics and cultural heritage to the history of international justice. These are some of the key places to include in an Arusha self-guided walking tour.

Arusha

Begin with the city itself. Arusha is home to more than 617,000 people and serves as the centre of the Arusha Region. Its location beneath Mount Meru gives it a distinctive setting, while its role in regional and international affairs makes it more than a stopover on the way to Tanzania’s famous natural attractions.

The city has become an international diplomatic hub. It hosts the African Court of the African Union and serves as the capital of the East African Community. From 1994 to 2015, it also hosted the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. A branch of the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals operates in Arusha today.

Arusha Declaration Museum

The Arusha Declaration Museum is one of the city’s places to explore its political history. It is included on the route through central Arusha and helps give context to the city’s role in the region.

East African Federation

The idea of the East African Federation offers a window into a possible future for the region. It is a proposed union of the eight members of the East African Community: Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.

The concept dates back to the early 1960s and has not yet become reality. Institutions have nevertheless been created to support the idea, including work on a regional constitution. In 2018, a committee began drafting one, while the process later faced delays connected to the COVID-19 pandemic. Drafting resumed in 2023. The proposal has also been described playfully as the “United States of East Africa”.

St. Theresa’s Metropolitan Cathedral

St. Theresa’s Metropolitan Cathedral is another landmark on the walking route. Its presence adds a religious dimension to a tour that otherwise moves through museums and institutions connected to Arusha’s civic and political life.

Natural History National Museum

The Natural History National Museum provides a different perspective on the region. It is one of the places to visit in Arusha for travellers interested in natural history, and it forms part of the city walk alongside the German Boma.

German Boma

The German Boma is connected with Arusha’s colonial history and now houses the Natural History National Museum, including its hominids aisle. The site brings together the history of the building and the museum’s focus on human origins and natural history.

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda

The former home of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is one of the most significant historical sites in Arusha. The United Nations court was created in November 1994 by UN Security Council Resolution 955 to prosecute those responsible for the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

The tribunal moved to Arusha in 1995 under Resolution 977 and remained active until its official closure on 31 December 2015. It was the first international court to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and serious violations of the Geneva Conventions connected with internal conflict.

During its existence, the tribunal convicted 61 people and acquitted 14. It also established an important legal precedent by recognizing rape as a tool of genocide. Its work was nevertheless criticized by those who described it as “victor’s justice”, because it did not prosecute members of the Rwandan Patriotic Front or its leader, Paul Kagame.

Cultural Heritage Museum

The Cultural Heritage Museum offers another opportunity to engage with the area’s cultural heritage. It complements the city’s political and historical museums, adding a broader cultural perspective to what to see in Arusha.

Explore Arusha with a Free Audio Guide

Neywo’s Arusha audio guide turns the city into a self-guided walking experience. It includes one walk: “The Ultimate Tour: Arusha to International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda”. The route covers 2.43 kilometres, takes about 70 minutes and has 7 narrated stops.

The walk includes Arusha, the Arusha Declaration Museum, the East African Federation, St. Theresa’s Metropolitan Cathedral, the Natural History National Museum, the German Boma and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Each story plays as you reach the place, at your own pace, with no group and no schedule. Narration is available in 11 languages.

Download Neywo and explore Arusha independently, listening to the story of each place as you walk from one stop to the next.