The Amboni Caves in Tanzania is the most extensive subterranean cave system in East Africa. Located approximately 9km north from the town of Tanga, it was declared a conservation area in 1922 by the British Colonial Government. The Caves were formed about 150 million years ago during the Jurassic age and researchers estimate that the area was under water some 20 million years ago.
Originally thought to extend more than 200km, research in 1994 have however concluded that their extent was much smaller than originally thought with the largest of the caves being only 900m long. There are however legends and rumours that they reach all the way to Mombasa. It is possible to visit only a small portion of the cave network as there are ten caves but only one can be viewed and is used on guided tours.
Some of the attractions include the Popo flight, Popo which means bat in the Swahili language. Many of these bats live in the caves and every evening as the sun set they fly out the cave entrance to go on the hunt for food for the evening. Closed shoes are recommended for all visitors as there are a lot of bat guano on the floor of the cave. Rocks in the cave includes shapes of a sofa, ship, crocodile, elephant, map of Africa, statue of liberty and the head of a lion.
The best way to reach the caves would be by bicycle arranged through the Tanga Culture Tourism Enterprise, alternatively you can hire a taxi from Tanga and if negotiated they can wait for you to finish your cave tour and take you back to where you need to go. Head towards Amboni VIllage and take the turn off near the forestry office, from here it is approximately 2.5km to the Kiomoni village.
- Adventure Type:
Caves - Country:
Tanzania - Province:
Tanga Region - City/Town:
Tanga - Rating:
3 - Difficulty:
Easy - Duration:
1 Hour