Camping Holidays in Tanzania
Camping holidays in Tanzania options are many and easy to come by. Bringing your own tent is a great way to get all the experiences Tanzania has to offer while saving money and the good news is most beach hotels have designated grounds for the camping traveler. Be careful though, if you plan on pitching your own tent in the Serengeti you will be paying a hefty price.
Unfortunately, you can not simply set up your own camp at the national parks. Not only is this illegal but it is highly dangerous what with all the lions and buffalo and what not. Every national park has camping options however, run by hotels or safari operators, which vary depending on your preference and budget. For example, Selous River Camp offers basic but comfortable tents for $100 a night or luxury mud huts for over $200. However, your best option for camping holidays in Tanzania is to check out safari operators such as Meru Treks. They usually offer a range of bundle price options for you to choose on your safari with camping always reducing the price. Generally, you can take a two to three day safari with camping for around $500 that includes armed security to protect you from curious animals. Be sure to check with the safari operator in advance, chances are they provide the tents.
Don’t leave your tent at home though! If you want to pitch your own equipment, camping holidays in Tanzania are still easily done. Outside the national parks, most beach hotels and eco-lodges will allow you to pitch a tent for a small fee but be sure to phone ahead to make sure. Places like Kipepeo Beach and Village offer the best option for a camping holiday in Tanzania. At Kipepeo Beach for example, $10 will get you a camping spot right on Dar es Salaam’s South Beach, with shared bathrooms, electrical hookups, and space for both small and large groups. This is not only a perfect money saver, but is also a humbling beach experience under magnificent stars only a short while yet a world away from Dar es Salaam city centre.
For safari and national parks, camping holidays in Tanzania command a higher price than you may have expected but don’t forget these are stunning natural resources that are preserved by those prices. If you cannot afford them, camping holidays in Tanzania are still the best way to save money especially for the backpacker and when visiting close to the towns and cities such as Dar es Salaam with hotels such as Kipepeo Village offering fantastic rates.
Kigamboni Bridge
across the Kurasini Creek the spectacular bridge connects Dar es Salaam’s main city districts to Kigamboni, a fishing village and new district ward just South of Dar es Salaam harbor.
Previously this link was only crossable by the Kivukoni ferry but with Kigamboni Bridge, commuters now have 6 lanes to make the crossing by car, drastically reducing traffic and wait times in the congested city centre and reliance on the small ferry. The bridge also has two cycle and pedestrian lanes, and operates a toll plaza of 14 lanes that allow quick and easy passage.
Kigamboni Bridge is a distinctly modern cable stay suspension design and the first of its kind in East Africa, with 400 meters of its weight supported by cable and the rest being held by support columns. Its construction also involved 2.5km
of approach roads on either side, joining the Mandela expressway to other junctions through free interchange, as well as a slipway to the TAZARA Railway Bridge which passes underneath.
At a cost of $136 million to Tanzania’s government and social security fund, the importance of Kigamboni Bridge to Dar es Salaam should not be understated. Not only does it serve to reduce commuting time and relieve Dar es Salaam’s infamous congestion problems, but the modern style and magnitude of the structure is a sign of Tanzania’s rapidly growing economy that serves as a counter to the stereotypes of Africa. Indeed, Kigamboni Bridge, like much of Dar es Salaam is one of the many attractions that change Western attitudes toward Africa when they see it.
Many tourists visiting Africa for the first time come with pre-conceived and ill-informed notions of a completely undeveloped continent. Sights like Kigamboni Bridge and the bustling central business district of Dar es Salaam show that Tanzania is far from the stereotypical backward nation but instead boasts a fledgling infrastructure and rapidly expanding modern economy.
Julius Nyerere International Airport (DAR) is the largest airport in Tanznaia and the easiest route for getting to Dar es Salaam. The airport is located just outside Dar es Salaam and it offers flights to and from many major global destinations. Direct flights are served to Blantyre, Lilongwe, Arusha, Kigoma, Moroni, Mwanza, Tabora, Zanzibar, Entebbe, Juba, Nairobi, Harare, London, Johannesburg, Kilimanjaro, Addis Ababa, Anjouan, Cairo, Lusaka, Dubai, Amsterdam, Maputo, Pemba, Muscat, Musoma, Shinyanga, Doha, Kigali, Zurich, and Istanbul. Generally, its an easy airport to get a flight to.
From the airport, take a taxi to the city for about $20 minimum. It’s a good idea to know exactly where you need to go, and even have a map to show the driver. The drive into the city is about 20 minutes but during rush hours this can literally take hours. Unfortunately, Dar es Salaam’s rapid economic growth has created major traffic problems, so this extended drive time can happen anywhere in the day and should be taken into account if you’re under pressure for time.
However, if you plan on visiting Zanzibar first as many tourists do, there is a ferry option for getting to Dar es Salaam. This is cheaper ($35 single) than flying from Zanzibar but takes two hours whereas the plane takes 20 minutes. However, the ferry takes you right into the city centre while the road from the airport is almost constantly congested with traffic. So, the ferry is actually usually a wiser choice for getting to Dar es Salaam from Zanzibar unless you only need to reach the airport.
Another option for getting to Dar es Salaam is the train from Zambia. This is actually a great tourist attraction in itself where you get a chance to view the Tanzanian countryside in all its glory and diversity. Kapiri Mposhi, just North of Zambian capital Lusaka, begins a two-night train ride for getting to Dar es Salaam. This Zambia-Tanzania train is commonly referred to as TAZARA Railway. It operates scheduled services twice a week, leaving in both ends of the line on Tuesdays and Fridays around 4:00pm, arriving on Thursdays and Sundays at 9:30am in Zambia, but in the afternoon for Dar es Salaam.
Unlike Zanzibar, if you’re travelling from elsewhere within Tanzania, most areas of the country usually requires a number of Dala Dalas (public busses) for getting to Dar es Salaam which take a long time and are not very comfortable. However, there is a coach from Arusha and other major cities at a cost of about $15 that will take about 10 hours. Generally though, the fastest option for getting to Dar es Salaam is to get to the nearest regional airport (Mbeya, Arusha, Tabora) and take a one hour flight to Dar es Salaam.
