It lies mid way between Kilimanjaro Airport and Arusha. The town itself is small and ramshackle and runs in a ribbon development along the main road and south to the River from which it takes its name.
The land around Usa is volcanic and wonderfully fertile with magnificent avocado trees, maize fields, or, further up the slopes of Mt Meru banana and coffee plantations. Many people stay in Usa river Village on arrival in Northern Tanzania because many of the hotels in this area are in quiet rural locations and it's very conveniently placed for both airports (Kilimanjaro and Arusha) and for road transfers off to Tanzania's northern parks.