Many people write e-mails with questions and ask for directions before traveling to Tanzania. After the fourth trip to Tanzania, I decided to collect the most important information in one entry, in which you will find answers to frequently asked questions, tips, and advice before traveling to Tanzania. All the information Easy travel present below is based on its visits to this country several times. Find here to know more information.
How to organize a trip to Tanzania
The cost of traveling to Tanzania depends primarily on what we want to visit and how to travel. Many travel agencies are organizing interesting trips to Tanzania. One option is to use their offer. I work with one of these offices as a pilot ( Horizons Travel Club ) and once a year I take people willing to travel to Tanzania on the ” Kilimanjaro Snows ” expedition. The second very popular method is to organize your stay in Tanzania on your own: flight ticket, accommodation, trekking, safari.
The cost of traveling to Tanzania
The cost of traveling to Tanzania depends primarily on what we want to visit and how to travel. If you plan to go to Kilimanjaro (check the cost of entry to Kilimanjaro ), go on safari to the Serengeti National Park (see what is the cost of safari in Tanzania ) and relax on Zanzibar it is not possible to fit such a trip in the budget of less than PLN 10,000 for one person. This is primarily due to very high fees for staying in the Tanzanian National Parks (see official prices for staying in the Tanzanian National Parks).
If you do not want to visit the most popular places in Tanzania, and you want to visit this amazing country, the cost can be reduced significantly, because traveling around Tanzania by public transport is cheap, the cost of accommodation in the simplest guesthouses is low, and the food is very cheap. One must always remember: In Tanzania, we bargain for everything!
Most visited places in Tanzania
During four trips to Tanzania, I had the opportunity to be in the most visited places, i.e. in the continental part: on Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru, in the National Parks: Serengeti, Arusha, Tarangire, Lake Manyara, in the Ngorongoro crater, on the lakes Eyasi and Nakuru and in the cities of Arusha, Moshi, Mto Wa Mbu, Pangani and Dar Es Salaam.
Tips before traveling to Tanzania – visas for Tanzania
Tourists visiting Tanzania must have a visa. The easiest way to get an online visa for Tanzania. This avoids several hours of waiting at airports and land border crossings. It can still be obtained at the Tanzanian Embassy in Berlin or Tanzanian airports and major border crossings.
However, this is very time-consuming. The cost of a single visa is 50 USD. It is usually issued for the duration of the declared stay in Tanzania (up to 90 days) or simply for 90 days. It is not possible to obtain a multiple-entry visa at the border or the airport. Additional information on Tanzanian visas can be found on the website of the Tanzanian Embassy in Berlin or on the Tanzanian eVisa portal to Tanzania.
Tips before traveling to Tanzania – vaccination
Vaccination before traveling to Tanzania is a very important issue. Similarly, I am an advocate of anti-malarial prophylaxis and I take anti-malarial pills on every trip to Tanzania. I just don’t risk it.
No vaccination is compulsory when traveling to Tanzania. This is a theory. Vaccination against yellow fever is checked when crossing the border and at airports. Example: In January 2018 I was flying to Tanzania with a stopover in Ethiopia. Each passenger had to provide proof of vaccination, i.e. the so-called yellow booklet and an entry confirming the fact of vaccination.
Either way, before each trip, you should visit for consultation at a specialist clinic dealing with a travel medicine or tropical diseases.
Tips before traveling to Tanzania – money in Tanzania
When traveling around Tanzania, we use US dollars (USD) to pay for safaris, trekking and sometimes accommodation. Whereas the official currency in Tanzania is Tanzanian shillings (TZS), which we pay in shops, restaurants, bazaars, etc. So, after arriving in Tanzania (in exchange offices in cities, not at the airport) exchange some dollars for shillings. As of March 2018, the USD 1 exchange rate was 2245 TZS and the 1000 TZS exchange rate was 1.504 PLN.
Warning! One of the most important tips before traveling. You only need to take the latest dollar bill notes with you. Banknotes with lower denominations have a lower exchange rate, and older banknotes are not accepted at all.
Accommodation in Tanzania
Accommodation in Tanzania is very good. Luxury and atmospheric houses on the beaches of the multi-star hotels of Zanzibar, pleasant and exclusive hotels in the cities, exclusive lodges in the National Parks. Most tourists, however, choose more economical conditions and sleep in popular hostels, bungalows, shelters or under a tent. In this version, safaris, trekking and staying on Zanzibar are much cheaper. The total extremes are guesthouses, which are used mainly by Tanzanian people moving around the country. Believe me – you would not like to spend the night in them, even if the accommodation would cost 3 USD.
Souvenirs from Tanzania
The most popular souvenirs from Tanzania include Maasai ornaments, wooden products (masks, figurines, etc.), coffee, tea, and spices. As I wrote a moment earlier, we haggle for everything, especially for souvenirs. Even if we see a stock price in the store, it means nothing but the starting level of the negotiated price.
