Arusha Cooking Class & Food Market Tour
A private half-day cooking class in Arusha: you walk through a busy food market with a local cook to buy fresh ingredients, then prepare a Tanzanian lunch together in a home kitchen and sit down to eat it.
Taste Tanzania, Then Cook It
Tanzanian home cooking is simple, filling and full of flavour: rice pilau with whole spices, ugali made from maize flour, beans in coconut sauce, leafy greens with tomato and onion, and green bananas stewed until soft. At the market your cook shows you how to choose the ingredients, how prices work and what each stall sells.
Back in the kitchen everyone helps: peeling, chopping, stirring the pots over charcoal or gas, and rolling chapati. The menu can be fully vegetarian on request. It is a relaxed, hands-on way to spend a free morning in Arusha, and you go home with the recipes.
Highlights
- A guided walk through an Arusha food market
- Hands-on cooking of three or four Tanzanian dishes
- Lunch together with your cook
- Recipes to take home
- Vegetarian menus on request
What to bring
- Comfortable clothes you don't mind getting a little messy
- Small notes if you want to buy spices to take home
- Tell us about any allergies when you book
- Ask before photographing people at the market
More in Arusha: Arusha City & Cultural Tour, Safari packing list
Route Map
- By road
- Day of the trip
- Arusha
Lines show the order of travel, not the exact roads.
We collect you from your hotel at about 9 am and drive to the market, where you meet your cook.
About an hour among the fruit, vegetable, rice and spice stalls. Your cook buys what is fresh that day, explains how Tanzanian families shop and lets you try fruit you may not know.
A short drive to the kitchen. Over about two hours you prepare three or four dishes together, for example pilau rice, beans in coconut sauce, sautéed greens and chapati, with your cook showing each step.
You sit down to eat what you have cooked, with tea or a soft drink. Afterwards we drive you back to your hotel, at about 2 pm.
Meals: Lunch
Price Per Person — Private Class
| Group Size | Price Per Person |
|---|---|
| 1 Person | $145 |
| 2 People | $90 |
| 3 People | $70 |
| 4 People | $60 |
| 5 People | $55 |
| 6 People | $50 |
Price per person in US dollars, by the number of people in your group. Groups of more than 6: price on request.
Trip Notes
- Start & end: your hotel in Arusha
- About 5 hours, morning start
- Private class: your group only
- Vegetarian and other diets on request
- Children welcome with an adult
Includes
- Private vehicle with driver
- English-speaking local cook and guide
- All ingredients
- Lunch with tea or a soft drink
- Recipes to take home
Excludes
- Other drinks
- Personal purchases at the market
- Tips for your cook and driver
- Travel insurance
- Tanzania's compulsory inbound travel insurance for foreign visitors (44 US dollars per person, from 1 October 2026)
Questions Travellers Ask
What will we cook?
Usually three or four everyday Tanzanian dishes, such as pilau rice, beans in coconut sauce, greens, ugali or chapati. The exact menu depends on the market that day and on your wishes.
Can you cater for vegetarians or allergies?
Yes. Tell us when you book and we plan the menu around it. Many Tanzanian home dishes are vegetarian anyway.
Do I need any cooking experience?
No. Your cook shows you each step, and everyone joins in at their own level.
Can children join?
Yes, with an adult. Children often enjoy the market and rolling chapati.
Can we combine it with the city tour?
Yes. You can do the cooking class in the morning and our Arusha City & Cultural Tour in the afternoon; ask us for a combined price.
