British Airways has confirmed it will launch new flights from London Gatwick to Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar starting in summer 2027, marking the airline’s return to Tanzania after a 13-year absence and significantly expanding its East African network.
The new three-times-weekly seasonal service begins on 29 May 2027, flying from London Gatwick to Kilimanjaro International Airport before continuing on to Zanzibar. The route runs through 31 October 2027, timed to cover the peak safari season alongside UK school summer holidays and October half term. Return fares start from £849 including taxes and fees.
It’s a genuine triangle route rather than a simple there-and-back service: the aircraft — a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, offering First, Club World, World Traveller Plus and World Traveller cabins — flies London to Kilimanjaro, continues on to Zanzibar, then returns to London directly from there, operating Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays outbound.
The dual-gateway structure is deliberate. Kilimanjaro puts travellers within reach of Tanzania’s Northern Safari Circuit — the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire and Lake Manyara — as well as Mount Kilimanjaro itself. Zanzibar, meanwhile, delivers passengers straight to the Indian Ocean archipelago, known for its beaches, spice plantations and the UNESCO-listed Stone Town. For tour operators, the combination makes it far simpler to package safari-and-beach itineraries within Tanzania, or to build wider East African programmes that pull in neighbouring Kenya.
Neil Chernoff, British Airways’ Chief Planning and Strategy Officer, said the airline was excited to launch flights to two destinations that showcase the best of Tanzania, calling the routes a strengthening of BA’s East African footprint. The move comes alongside a wider expansion of BA’s Africa network: the airline is also boosting its London Heathrow–Cape Town service from seven to ten flights a week starting next March.
The announcement drew a strong welcome from the trade. Virginia Messina, Group CEO of the African Travel and Tourism Association, called it a real step change in connectivity to Tanzania, noting it builds on recent moves from Air Tanzania, Brussels Airlines and KLM that are similarly opening the country up to European source markets.
British Airways isn’t the only carrier eyeing this route. Air Tanzania has separately announced plans to launch its own direct London Gatwick–Kilimanjaro–Zanzibar service in July 2027, aiming to cut out the current stopovers via Addis Ababa, Nairobi or Dubai. South African carrier Airlink has also entered the fray, launching a first-ever non-stop Cape Town–Zanzibar route from October 2026. Together, the moves point to a broader surge in direct connectivity to East Africa’s safari and beach destinations — a signal that demand from UK and European travellers is strong enough to support multiple new routes at once.