Isimila Stone Age Site
Isimila Stone Age Site
4.4
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.4
95 reviews
Excellent
52
Very good
31
Average
10
Poor
2
Terrible
0
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alecenni
Casarano, Italy27 contributions
Sep 2024 • Friends
Alternative trip to a place full of history and nature. At the same site you can find evidence of early human life, as well as very special pinnacle-shaped rocks (pillars), the result of the erosion of the area by rainwater.
The Guide impressed us for the passion with which he told the site and for the enviable attention to the cleanliness of the environment (which unfortunately is not common in this area). Cute little monkeys will season everything!
Given the super low cost of the ticket price, it is absolutely worth a visit!
The Guide impressed us for the passion with which he told the site and for the enviable attention to the cleanliness of the environment (which unfortunately is not common in this area). Cute little monkeys will season everything!
Given the super low cost of the ticket price, it is absolutely worth a visit!
Automatically translated
Written September 12, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LouenStephan
Ghent, Belgium1,817 contributions
Oct 2024 • Friends
You need to go with a car, Neema craft guesthouse can provide one, if you ask it before.
Isimilia lays of the TANZAM highway (left) some 25 km south of Iringa. There is an office, weere one pays and a guide is going with the visitors. The walk is about 1 to 2 hours, depending on the time one need to take pictures and to ask information.
There are 2 parts, ons, the first is the stone-age site, interesting. The second is the pilar site, very impressive.
To recommend
Isimilia lays of the TANZAM highway (left) some 25 km south of Iringa. There is an office, weere one pays and a guide is going with the visitors. The walk is about 1 to 2 hours, depending on the time one need to take pictures and to ask information.
There are 2 parts, ons, the first is the stone-age site, interesting. The second is the pilar site, very impressive.
To recommend
Written October 26, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rob J
14 contributions
Feb 2023 • Solo
I took the dalla dalla from iringa bus station and it was an easy walk down a sign posted track to the site. My guide Kelvin was excellent, very knowledgeable and we spent about an hour walking through the site together. The museum is a good introduction and there are a large number of Stone Age artifacts, but it is the natural pillars that are the stars of the show. They are absolutely stunning. Could have very easily spent more time here.
Be prepared to get a bit muddy if it’s been raining and if it’s rainy season you may want to check what you will be able to see before you go as the gorge effectively turns into a river during rainy season!
Be prepared to get a bit muddy if it’s been raining and if it’s rainy season you may want to check what you will be able to see before you go as the gorge effectively turns into a river during rainy season!
Written February 13, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pushpa S
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania11 contributions
Jan 2021 • Friends
Amazing columns from millions of years ago. We walked about 5 km to see these tall columns of sandstone standing tall and beautiful in the middle of nowhere.
The hike was steep for us as we are not used to hiking but we made it and it was beautiful
The hike was steep for us as we are not used to hiking but we made it and it was beautiful
Written January 3, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Chris P
Shanghai, China6,025 contributions
Jan 2020 • Friends
Really enjoyed our visit to this site. There is an entrance fee and a small museum at the entrance. Initially, there are proper paths, which takes you to the first area with the Stone artifacts - not really much to see and they mostly just look like stones with sharp edges. The trick is now to find the path to the real site. When we got out of the valley, we walked across a ploughed field, to the right hand corner - we basically made our own path, as there are no sign posts. Once you get in the teal valley, just follow it down. There was a recent “fall” when we were there, as well as water in the stream, which made it wet and muddy in places. The next trick is to know share to exit and make your way back. We went with someone who had been before, so that made it a lot easier. Definitely worth a visit
Written January 14, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CFEIII
Center, TX5,830 contributions
Oct 2020 • Friends
The first part of this place was a source for Stone Age tools. There are hundreds of scrapers, knives, ax heads that were roughed out are still visible here. Wandering over the hill to The Valley was really nice. It is all downhill walking and very unique. Could get messy with heavy rains.
Written November 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
triciab1945
Portland, OR143 contributions
Aug 2017 • Friends
This is an old archaeological site with a great little museum with good displays. Be sure to use the guide who is a volunteer trying to raise money to finish his college degree. He is knowledgeable and helpful. Christopher is his name and will accept any donation. He led us through the museum, the gift shop that had some great African fabric shirts and then took us on a walk that lasted almost an hour through the valley to see the Stone Pillars. It is a wonderful phenomenon and reminded us of Cappadocia in central Turkey. The actual digging sites are not that interesting as they are sheds filled with stone age tools in a pile.
Written August 10, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Andrea
12 contributions
Feb 2021 • Solo
Somebody wrote small fee? Most of travellers in Tanzania should learn how to travel. Going to a poor country and showing your wealth is the worst thing you can do for locals and the next travellers. Tanzania is a beautiful country and luckily those helpless holiday makers do not explore it well. Wherever those holiday makers go, it's all spoiled: they way people treat you, prices, vibes. Here people earns 300k per month, that's 100 USD per month. Tanzania doesn't really need those people's help to spoil its beauty.
This is a nice site, but with the entrance fee you pay 2 nights at a local guest house. Is that cheap?
Of course it cost that fee because some helpless holiday makers showed off thier little wealth of whole year saving.
Of course it's plenty of fee like that in Tanzania.
And if anybody thinks those money help locals, he is completely wrong in a country where everything is corrupt. Eating in local eatery or sleeping in simple lodges helps locals.
If you cannot travel, stay at home on your comfortable sofa.
This is a nice site, but with the entrance fee you pay 2 nights at a local guest house. Is that cheap?
Of course it cost that fee because some helpless holiday makers showed off thier little wealth of whole year saving.
Of course it's plenty of fee like that in Tanzania.
And if anybody thinks those money help locals, he is completely wrong in a country where everything is corrupt. Eating in local eatery or sleeping in simple lodges helps locals.
If you cannot travel, stay at home on your comfortable sofa.
Written February 9, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
russellamgalt
Edinburgh, UK25 contributions
Sep 2016 • Friends
This is a hidden gem. The natural pillars are spectacular. However, it beggars belief that the planning authorities approved the construction of electricity pylons over what should be regarded as a sacred natural site.
The museum is interesting but in need of a revamp. Our guide, Christopher, was excellent and gave comprehensive answers to all of our questions.
Well worth a visit.
The museum is interesting but in need of a revamp. Our guide, Christopher, was excellent and gave comprehensive answers to all of our questions.
Well worth a visit.
Written November 23, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Caleb C
36 contributions
Jun 2014 • Friends
This is a great place to visit if you are interested in geography, nature or animals. You get there on a dala dala. Be prepared for a 30 minute journey (from Iringa station) with lots of speed bumps in a crowded vehicle - but trust me it is worth it.
When you get there after a short walk from the motorway it is 3,000Tsh (£1.05). Make sure you bring a copy of your passport otherwise you pay 10,000Tsh. A guide costs 10,000Tsh (£3.50) as well which is so cheap considering he is a great guide! He will show you a small museum with some ancient Hehe tribe's tools and weapons and then he will walk you around the site (takes about 45 mins - 1 hour). He even made a slingshot out of a tree branch and started throwing large rocks around like the old Hehe tribes did, it was brilliant.
The site is incredible, 15 metre tall rock formations carved out by rivers, wind and rain over millenia. The site is not visited very often so it is largely undisturbed. There is no litter, but there are large power lines in the distance, which is kind of annoying I guess. Still, a lot less disturbed than similar sites in places like China or the US.
There are also monkeys, hyraxes and a wide variety of arthropods around the site like giant African ants and bees. There are also hundreds of lizards basking in the sun on the concrete around the museum/gift shop/entrance building, which I found very interesting. There was even an Agama lizard there!
To conclude, Isimila is an excellent experience for any traveler in the region, and very cheap. It is fascinating how this place has developed over millions of years. Definitely go if you are in the area and have time!
When you get there after a short walk from the motorway it is 3,000Tsh (£1.05). Make sure you bring a copy of your passport otherwise you pay 10,000Tsh. A guide costs 10,000Tsh (£3.50) as well which is so cheap considering he is a great guide! He will show you a small museum with some ancient Hehe tribe's tools and weapons and then he will walk you around the site (takes about 45 mins - 1 hour). He even made a slingshot out of a tree branch and started throwing large rocks around like the old Hehe tribes did, it was brilliant.
The site is incredible, 15 metre tall rock formations carved out by rivers, wind and rain over millenia. The site is not visited very often so it is largely undisturbed. There is no litter, but there are large power lines in the distance, which is kind of annoying I guess. Still, a lot less disturbed than similar sites in places like China or the US.
There are also monkeys, hyraxes and a wide variety of arthropods around the site like giant African ants and bees. There are also hundreds of lizards basking in the sun on the concrete around the museum/gift shop/entrance building, which I found very interesting. There was even an Agama lizard there!
To conclude, Isimila is an excellent experience for any traveler in the region, and very cheap. It is fascinating how this place has developed over millions of years. Definitely go if you are in the area and have time!
Written July 19, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is it child friendly? Also how much are the tickets and can one but them on site?
Written March 25, 2018
Hello Jacob. It is children friendly but children from the age of around 7 and above. I went with my nephew who is 9yrs old and he was perfectly okay. I wouldn’t recommend younger children because there’s walking involved and we went when it was very sunny so someone younger could get tired easily. Yes you can get the tickets at the site.
Written March 26, 2018
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