About Tanzania: Fact File

CLIMATE

The weather in Tanzania is tropical on the coast, on the island and in the Selous.  It is temperate in the other parks.  Temperatures on Mount Kilimanjaro and Meru drop to below freezing.  In broad terms the pattern is as follows:

VISA REQUIREMENTS

Prior to departing for Tanzania, it is essential that you check with the Tanzanian embassy or consulate what the visa requirements are for entry. It is advisable that should a visa be required it is purchased prior to departure for Tanzania in order to avoid any delays on arrival in Tanzania.

It is possible to purchase a visa on arrival, but it could mean standing in a queue for a long time after an international flight. Only US dollar cash is accepted when purchasing a visa on arrival in the country.

Transit visas: This is requirement of the Kenyan authorities and applies if guests use Kenya as the entry point and are effectively in transit to Tanzania. This obviously only applies to those nationalities that require Kenyan visitors visas (check prior to departure with the Kenyan embassy or consulate). This can be purchased with dollar or UK pound sterling cash on arrival in Kenya.

IMPORTANT NOTE: As at November 2000 British and American passport holders who are visiting Kenya on holiday for less than 30 days are no longer required to obtain visitors or transit visas. Once again it is essential to check this status prior to travel.

HEALTH INFORMATION

Guests should check with their local travel clinic or doctor on what medical precautions to take prior to their holiday.

Malaria: Malaria does occur in Tanzania and it is essential that guests consult their doctor prior to travel and it is always a good idea to carry insect repellent on you at all times.

Yellow Fever: This is an ESSENTIAL requirement for Tanzania and guests should ensure that they have the inoculation at least 10 days prior to departing for Tanzania and ensure that they carry the certificate with them as the authorities more often than not request it upon entry into the country. Should a guest not be carrying their certificate they could be subjected to a request by officials for a bribe in order to gain entry into the country. Zanzibari authorities will NOT permit anyone entry onto the island without a valid certificate.

WATER

It is not advisable to drink the tap water.  Although sometimes not cheap, bottled water is readily available for purchase in the majority of hotels and some roadside curio stores.   It is recommended that guests carry bottled water with them throughout their trip, as it can get very hot and dusty while on safari.  On the drive-through safari, a constant supply of bottled mineral water is kept in the vehicle cooler box for guest consumption.

During the dry seasons, water is often in short supply and rations are sometimes enforced.  Most hotels have a note about what measures to take in order to conserve the supply. 

ELECTRICITY

Voltage in Tanzania is 220-240 volts. The plugs are the same as the square 3-pin plugs used in Britain. Adaptors are not all that easy to find and if one is located it will be outrageously expensive. It is therefore recommended that guests bring adaptors with them.

During the dry seasons and periods of drought, the mainline electricity supply is rationed and hotels have to rely on generator power (particularly affects those hotels in the main towns and cities).  Generally speaking, the larger hotels maintain a 24-hour power supply no matter what the mainline supply status is but guests should check with reception on check-in as to what the status is with regard to the hours that power is available.

Many safari lodges rely solely on generator power anyway and the power supply hours vary from property to property.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Photographing of people, (the attractive and distinctive Maasai people are obvious favourites for visitors) be a sensitive issue and usually requires permission and payment.   It is inadvisable to randomly try and take photographs of people along the roadside as many people now use it as an income and can get fairly upset and unpleasant if a deal isn't negotiated. 

Government buildings such as police stations, border posts, military bases, airports, prisons etc. are considered to be strategic installations and the taking of photographs is illegal.