General Travel Information

General Travel Information

Medical care in case of emergency

Travelers in Tanzania should make sure they have adequate travel health insurance coverage, which covers an emergency flight to Germany in case of an emergency, see also medical care.

Tourist Tax

An additional public fee of US $1.50 is charged for overnight stays. This may already be included in the room rate or may be charged subsequently.

Money/Credit Cards

The local currency is the Tanzanian Shilling (TZS). It is recommended to bring sufficient cash (Euro/US $). When bringing dollar bills, please note that banks and exchange offices usually only accept dollar bills with a stamp from 2006. Exchanging euros for local currency is limited to major cities and certain hotels. Withdrawing cash with German bank cards is rarely possible at ATMs.

It is therefore advisable to take (several) credit cards with you, which can be used to withdraw cash at most ATMs. Especially with the more widespread VISA card, cash can be withdrawn relatively reliably at various banks. Service at ATMs is occasionally disrupted, so a cash reserve is recommended. Also in the past, unauthorized cash withdrawals by third parties were often charged to a credit card just used at the ATM.

Credit card statements should be carefully reviewed and suspicious double withdrawals or charges should be reported to the bank. In larger hotels, credit cards are usually accepted, but sometimes only VISA.

Tipping

As a European, you should be aware that tipping should be appropriate for Tanzania – and not for our part of the world. Tanzanian workers in the hotel industry typically earn 150,000-300,000 TSH, so if you feel compelled to tip 1/10th of your monthly salary (30,000 TSH), you are destroying more than you are supposedly doing good.

Tie the tip to performance. Just because you’re vacationing in a developing country doesn’t mean you have to tip. If you are not satisfied with the service, you should clearly recognize this and lower the tip accordingly (or not at all). Many locals believe that tipping is a compulsory payment by tourists, which is sometimes cheekily demanded without understanding that tipping is associated with services.

Amount of Tip:

The amount of tip depends on many factors and cannot be generalized.

  • 10-15 US$ per day and person for a tour guide or driver is considered usual.
  • 1 US$ per day for the porter.
  • 1 US$ per day for the chambermaid.
  • 10% in bars and restaurants

Small attentions, i.e. gifts are gladly accepted. These include, for example, like the free fragrance samples from perfumeries, promotional T-shirts, pens, small pads or notebooks, chalk, promotional gifts from World Savings Day, especially small purses, lighters or the like.

Less suitable, however, are sweets or the like, since the diet is already one-sided and high in carbohydrates.

Consideration is always called for here. It is important in this context, however, that the handing over of gifts should necessarily be associated with a consideration. Unmotivated gift giving on the street just because a child looks particularly cute sends the wrong message to people, namely that the white tourists come and give their things only because they have so much money.

This equipment has Proven itself on safaris:

Important documents and papers

  • Copies of all important travel documents (passport, plane ticket, insurance policy).
  • 2-3 passport photos for re-application of passport.
  • List of important addresses and telephone numbers.
  • Vaccination card.
  • Cash, credit card.
  • Travel guide, phrase book, map

Travel utensils

  • Adapter plug (in East Africa the three-pin “English” system is used).
  • Battery charger, also for connection to the cigarette lighter socket.
  • Photo equipment incl. spare accumulators/batteries.
  • In the big cities you can now easily buy the most common memory cards. Of course, the best thing is to plan from the beginning with enough memory capacity. Please also take enough spare batteries with you.
  • Binoculars for animal observation.
  • Drinking bottle.
  • Flashlight, preferably a headlamp.
  • Backpack or a soft but sturdy travel/sports bag.
  • Small, comfortable daypack (24 – 40 l).
  • Waterproof protective cover for backpack or travel bag.
  • Money belt, chest, leg or fanny pack.

Clothing for safaris in Tanzania

For safaris in Tanzania, light, durable clothing is recommended (preferably not blue or black as the traps used to attract and catch tsetse flies are made of blue and black fabric).

  • Combinable, robust outerwear and pants.
  • Rain jacket.
  • Thick sweater, preferably made of quick-drying material (e.g. fleece).
  • Bathing shoes and swimwear.
  • A second, light pair of shoes, possibly also sandals.
  • Hat or cap for sun protection, sunglasses

First-aid kit & hygiene articles

  • Small first aid kit with personal medications.
  • Oral electrolyte supplement to compensate for salt and water loss in case of diarrhea.
  • Sunscreen cream or lotion with high sun protection factor (SPF 25).
  • Hygiene wipes or wet wipes.
  • Mosquito repellent
  • Means for the after-treatment of insect bites, small wounds and for disinfection (iodine).
  • Earplugs against noise (barking dogs, snoring fellow travelers, etc.)