Tanzania Travel Tips
- Tanzania
- January - December
Passport and Visas for Tanzania can be obtained via Online Visa Application before arrival or on arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport.
All travelers will need a passport which will remain valid for at least 6 months longer than your expected visit. You will also need to present proof that you have a return ticket, and proof that you have sufficient money to support yourself during your stay in Tanzania.
Each traveler is responsible for sorting out their own passport and visa requirements, and we cannot offer much assistance in this matter. If you do not yet have a passport, apply for one early, as they can take some time to arrive. If you already have a passport, double check when it expires.
While Tanzania is a commonwealth country, UK citizens definitely do need a tourist visa to enter. This is also true for citizens of Australia, New Zealand, India, United States, Canada and most EU countries. Citizens of countries not mentioned should contact their nearest embassy or high commission to check visa requirements. Visas usually cost in the neighborhood of $50 (around £40), but some visas from the US can cost $100. Tanzanian visas expire three months after they are issued so be careful not to apply too soon.
Visas can be purchased upon arrival at Kilimanjaro international Airport (IATA code: JRO), but you can expect long queues, and for the process to take an extra hour or more. The Tanzanian High Commission has stressed that they have the right to deny visas applied for on arrival. We have never had a report of this happening, but it is a danger best avoided.
For these reasons, we highly recommend that travelers get their visa in advance if at all possible. On the other hand, many US travelers prefer to avoid risking their passports in the mail, and other potential delays, by applying upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport.
It is also now possible to apply for your Tanzania visa online https://eservices.immigration.go.tz/visa/. Please read the Visa Application Guidelines carefully before beginning your application to ensure you apply for the correct type of visa, and that you are planning on entering Tanzania through one of the approved entry points.
Where to obtain a Tanzanian visa
In Dar es Salaam: The Office of the Director of Immigration Services
In Zanzibar: The Office of the Principal Immigration Officer
Abroad: Any Tanzanian Embassy or High Commission or via the Tanzania Immigration Services website
Entry points to Tanzania: Any gazette entry point, including international airports, Zanzibar Airport, the port of Kigoma, Horohoro, Sirari, Tunduma, and Nagama
Please be advised that, whilst we make every effort to provide you with accurate and up-to-date information, travel requirements can change quickly and sometimes without notice. We urge you to double check the visa and passport requirements for your trip, consult with an embassy or consulate.
Vaccinations needed for your African Safari
Below we have set out what is the general guidance for Tanzania Safari Vaccination Requirements. We strongly advise you to consult with your own GP or travel clinic near you before travelling. They will have the most up to date and medically accurate information relevant to you, and should be relied upon over these Recommended Vaccinations for your African Safari.
Strongly Advised Vaccinations
Hepatitis A: This can be spread via contaminated food and water.
Tetanus: Tetanus is often present in the soil, and can contaminate open wounds easily. Tetanus vaccine should be used every ten years if travelling.
Typhoid: Typhoid can also be spread via contaminated food and water, and poor hygiene.
Diphtheria: This potentially fatal disease is spread mainly via spit, but occasionally through contact with cuts on the skin.
Yellow Fever: This can be contracted by being bitten by a contaminated mosquito. This vaccination is not essential if you are arriving directly in Tanzania. You do need it though if you plan to arrive through any country that is subject to yellow fever. Simply stopping over at an airport in an affected country should not require vaccination, but leaving the airport even briefly would make it necessary.
Sometimes Advised Vaccinations
Hepatitis B: This illness is spread via contact with blood or bodily fluids. It is many, many times more virulent than HIV/AIDS.
Some 8% of the population of Tanzania is believed to carry the virus.
Rabies: Rabies is spread via contact between the saliva of any infected animal and an open wound (including bites, but also licking existing wounds). Rabies is fatal unless treated, and treatment of an unvaccinated rabies patient can be very difficult in many parts of Tanzania.
Tuberculosis: TB is generally contracted through inhaling airborne sputum.
Cholera: Cholera is spread via contaminated food and water, and poor hygiene.
Measles: This disease is spread through inhaling sputum.
Frequently asked questions
Kilimanjaro Vaccinations
If you want to climb Kilimanjaro it is necessary to get certain vaccinations. They include vaccination against Hepatitis A and B, rabies, diphtheria, tetanus, polio, typhoid, and yellow fever. You will also need to have a general medical exam to make sure there are no other issues that may cause problems while climbing. It is also important for you to get trekking and travel insurance.
To Summarize, these are vaccinations you should get:
- Rabies
- Vaccinations
- Tetanus
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis B
- Polio
- Yellow Fever
It sounds unwise, to plan for Climb Mount Kilimanjaro without preparing Kilimanjaro Climb Gear List. Mt. Kilimanjaro is in the bucket list of every new and experienced hiker. Towering at an altitude of 19, 341 feet, Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest freestanding mountain in the world and one of the seven summits in the world. This majestic mountain has five ecological zones whereas, the adverse weather conditions and altitude sickness is the path-breaker of most of the hikers. On high altitude, there is extremely cold weather for which you need proper clothing and hiking gear to survive. If you are preparing to Climb Mount Kilimanjaro, then you should choose Best Gear for Kilimanjaro carefully to Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
During the day on Kilimanjaro the temperatures can easily range from the high 20’s (centigrade) right down at night to -15c. To cope with this huge range in temperature your clothing and kit strategy needs to be based around combining lots of thin layers that you build up and take off as the weather demands.
Please note that Tanzania is implementing a ban on the use of single-use plastic bags on 1st June 2019. Please ensure that none of the items in your luggage are packed in plastic bags – if you are looking to separate items in your bag, please consider re-usable ’packing cubes’. Please also be aware that disposable plastic bottles are not permitted on Kilimanjaro.
Kilimanjaro National Park operates an absolutely strict limit of 15kg per porter for your main equipment bag, which includes your sleeping bag. This is more than sufficient for your needs on the mountain. Your bag will be weighed before you leave the hotel to start the climb and if it is overweight you will have to take items out and leave them at the hotel.