General Tanzania Facts
Tanzania is famous to many visitors for its huge wildlife reserves of Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro crater and for the mystical island of Zanzibar that lies off the Indian Ocean coast.
For trekkers, the biggest attraction is of course the Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in the whole of Africa. Apart from the Kilimanjaro, Mount Meru, the second highest in the country also offer a suitable trekking area. The rolling hills and the volcanic cones of the crater highlands among others will offer trekkers a complete range of scenery.
Area: 945,166 sq. km
(364,929 sq. miles)
Population: (1999 est.):
30 million
Population Density: 30 per sq. km
Geography
Located just below the equator on the east coast of Africa, Tanzania is bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi and the Republic of the Congo to the west and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to the south. The Indian Ocean lies to the east. The Rift Valley runs through the country north to south. There are four primary regions: The northern Savannah area including the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Kilimanjaro The southern grasslands including the Ruaha and Selous National Parks The coastal lowlands including the island of Zanzibar The mountains and lakes that border the Rift Valley, including Lake Tanganyika and Gombe National Park
Language
Kiswahili is the official language, although English is widely spoken in commercial areas. In remote areas, the majority of people will speak Kiswahili and their tribal languages.
Getting to Tanzania
Tanzania is slowly increasing the number of international airlines, which operate flights to either Kilimanjaro International Airport (near Arusha) or Dar es Salaam International Airport. Zanzibar is a popular charter flight destination from several major European cities. Some Commonwealth citizens do not require visas. We strongly recommend you check with the nearest Tanzanian Embassy or Tourist Office to ensure you have the most up to date visa information. Yellow fever and cholera vaccinations are now required only for visitors arriving from countries where these diseases are endemic. Check with your Embassy and/or local heath office for more details.
Leaving Tanzania
An airport departure tax normally payable when leaving Tanzania. This fee is often included in your international airfare, unless stated otherwise. Please check with your agent when purchasing your international tickets. A local departure tax is also payable for internal flights within Tanzania.
Climate
Tanzania offers warm days and cool early mornings and evenings throughout most of the country. At altitude the temperatures are moderate. The Coast is often humid and tropical. There are two primary rainy seasons: the long rains roughly from April to May and the short rains during November.
Clothing
Informal, lightweight clothing is recommended. Mornings and evenings can be cool at altitude, so bring a sweater or cardigan. A hat is highly recommended due to the sun. On the Tanzanian coast, and in Zanzibar, ladies are expected to dress modestly in public. To be nude or topless is not only illegal, but also affects the sensibilities of the Muslim community and the village people.
Communications
Telephone, fax and some email services are available, though prone to difficulties in some areas. Most lodges and camps will have at least a radio link with their primary Kenyan offices. In the major towns and at the Coast, international direct dialing should be available, if a little costly.
Currency
The Tanzanian shilling is freely exchangeable. Most major facilities accept major credit cards; Visa and Master Card are the most widely accepted. Note that Check cards are not accepted in Tanzania, and most banks will need receipts for traveler’s checks.
Driving
Tanzanians drive on the left-hand side of the road. It is recommended that you travel with an international driving license if you plan to drive in Tanzania.
Health
Anti-malarial prophylactics should be taken before, during and after your visit to Tanzania, especially if you visit the Coast. Good medical facilities are available in the major cities. Membership with groups such as the Flying Doctors is also recommended; Eco-resorts include Flying Doctor emergency evacuation coverage in all of our safaris, unless otherwise stated. Hotels, camps and lodges should provide either bottled water, or filtered water for drinking. Please do not drink the tap water.
Local time
GMT plus 3
Safety precautions
Common sense precautions should be taken at all times. Please check the travel advisories from your foreign offices.
Electricity
220 / 240 volts AC. Plugs are the UK-type, round 2-pin or flat 3 pin.
Ngorongoro Crater
Until Ngorongoro became a conservation area joining the Serengeti, the Maasai roamed the crater floor and before them, Stone Age man had set up home here. The steep crater walls opens into a 26sq km caldera 610m-760m deep with a diameter of 14.5km, guarded with forests and rolling plains where lives the lion, cheetah, rhino, hyena hippos pink flamingoes and numerous other birds. Unfortunately, there are no giraffes in the crater since their long spindly legs find the descent into the crater too steep and moreover, there aren’t many acacia in this wonderland.
Serengeti National Park
Serengeti, the largest and best known of Tanzania’s National Parks, covers an area of over 14,500sq kms. This park is typical savannah grassland with rolling plains that fill the view punctuated with trees and bushes, where mighty eagles and vultures survey the earth for prey, and rock inselbergs under whose shade the lions sleep and the rock hyraxes play. This magic land hosts lions, cheetahs, elephants, rhino, wildebeests, gazelles, impalas, among other animals. Serengeti is a maasai word meaning ‘endless plains’. It is here the original home of the wildebeest and for years, these beasts have trekked this land, crossing to Maasai Mara in Kenya and back to Serengeti in search of food and water. In fact the wildebeest migration is the only animal phenomenon that has drawn the attention of millions of visitors & researchers to this park over the years. Serengeti became a household name after the famous Grizmeks conducted the first aerial study of the migrating wildebeest and wrote the masterpiece, “Serengeti Shall Not Die.”
Mt. Kilinanjaro National Park
Just over the border, in Tanzania, the square silhouette of Kilimanjaro marks the highest point of the Africa and the tallest free standing mountain in the world. It is referred to as the roof of Africa rising 5895m and easily accessed from Arusha (Tanzania). Every year thousands of visitors, inspired by the words of Karen Blixen, march towards the lethal screes and ice terraces of Kilimanjaro. Although the mountain is in Tanzania, Kenya receives the best view from Amboseli National Park. With its snow-capped peaks and breathtaking sceneries, this dome-shaped massif offers its hikers value for their money and effort. Its abundance in flora and fauna, with some of the rarest and most beautiful plant and animal species make this a special place for every hiker. It is not a hard mountain to climb, although you must be prepared for a good test on your physical fitness. However, the sheer beauty of the mountain urges one on and scaling to the top, 5895sq km can be a challenge.
Arusha National Park (Mt. Meru)
At 4566m, Mt. Meru is a spectacular classic volcanic cone, formed by the volcanic action associated with the creation of the Great Rift Valley. The circular wall of the summit crater was broken by subsequent thermal explosions to make today's horse-shoe shape, and more recent volcanic activity has created the ash cone that stands inside the crater. Small eruptions have been reported in the last 100 years, indicating that Meru is still not quite extinct.
Lake Eyasi
L. Eyasi, a salt lake lying between the Eyasi Escarpment in the north (an ancient fault line that is part of the rift valley system) and the Kidero mountains in the south. It is a hot dry area around which the Hadzabe (also known as Hadzapi or Tindaga) people who are believed to have lived here for nearly 10,000years. Today, there are only a few hundred left. Their language is characterized by clicks and may be distantly related to that of the San (Bushmen) of Southern Africa, although it shows only a few connections to Sandawe, the other click language spoken in Tanzania. The lifestyle of the Hadzabe still centers on hunting & gathering. Also in the area are the Iraqw or Mbulu, a people of cushitic origin who arrived about 2000 years ago, as well as Maasai (of Nilotic origin) and various Bantu groups.
Mto wa Mbu
Mto wa Mbu a Swahili word meaning a river of mosquitoes is located north of L. Manyara and makes a good base for visiting the park at the same time exploring various cultural activities. Most of the 103 tribes of Tanzania are represented here. This place has a cultural tourist programme that allows you to visit these bomas.
Lake Manyara National Park
With a surface area of only 318sq km, this park has such a diverse terrain that its animal and bird life is so impressive. Large areas of ground-water forest with giant fig and mahogany trees alternate with acacia woodland and more open places, all well watered. This park is famous for its tree-climbing lions. Other animals include elephants, buffaloes, leopard, jackal, zebra, warthog, giraffe, hippopotamus, hartebeest, dik dik, among others. Rhinos are very uncommon. Lake Manyara is well known for its birdlife. At times the park is visited by many thousands of Lesser Flamingoes, together with ducks, plovers, goose, vultures, eagles etc.
Tarangire National Park
This beautiful park stretches south east of Lake Manyara around the Tarangire River. During dry season, particularly between August and October, it has one of the highest concentrations of wildlife of many of the country’s parks. Large herds of zebra, wildebeest, hartebeest and elephant can be found here until October when the short wet season allows them to move on to new lush grasslands. Eland, lesser kudu, gazelle, giraffe, waterbuck, impala and occasional leopard & rhino can be seen at Tarangire year round. The park is also very good for bird watching with over 300 different species recorded.
The Crater Highlands
Rising steeply from the side of the Great Rift Valley, the Crater Highlands are some of the most impressive range of volcanoes in Tanzania. With the vast savanna plains of the Serengeti on its west and the rift valley floor with Lake Manyara on the east, the crater highlands offers one of the most beautiful scenery in the world. Beyond the Ngorongoro crater, a best known wildlife reserves in Africa are several peaks, with steep escarpments, crater lakes, dense forests and grassy ridges, streams and waterfalls. These highlands are home to many Maasai people who have grazed cattle here for years.