Dar es Salaam Favorites

Favorite thing: I have asked the people at the hotels and read the reviews. The best time to fly to Dar Es Salaam is from June to August. The average high temperature is 29 degrees Celsius. The average low temperature is between 18 and 20 degrees Celsius.

If you decide to travel between August to May, then be ready with the heat.

Favorite thing: When you book your hotel, you may inquire if there is a box for tipping in the hotel. In many hotels, the management requests guests to give their tips in the box so the money will be equally divided among their workers/employees.

Favorite thing: I was asked by a government official who asked me to give him US$ 20 but I somehow managed not to embarrass him and still not to get bribe.

We should help the country in general by not playing along with the corrupt folks. You will notice that there are countless hardworking Tanzanians and if they continue doing so, their country will become prosperous someday.

Favorite thing: Note: you cannot check into your KLM Europe-bound flight until 8:00 PM (for the 10:55 departure) and there are not restaurants/cafes inside the airport before checking in. The only option before checking in is the Cafeteria Flamingo, which is located outside the airport terminal, next to the departures terminal, up the stairs. Cafeteria Flamingo has reasonably priced food/drink (for an airport), the service is friendly, and the bathrooms are surprisingly clean! If you choose not to drive into Dar during your long layover, this is a good option.

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Favorite thing: Changing your money into Tanzanian Shilling (TSH) is easy in Dar es Salaam. There are many exchange offices in the city, but the rate is varying between the different offices. Expect a slightly lower rate at the airport, so don't change all your money here.

Take a look at the photos and see you will get a better rate if you have 100 & 50 USD notes than smaller notes. Traveller cheques has a terrible bad rate, so don't change it here.

Favorite thing: This map, taken from my 1971 Michelin Map #155 of Central and South Africa (with Madagascar) shows that my 'home' base of Luanshya, Zambia was located about halfway between the Indian Ocean to the east and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Although I made a few trips south to Lusaka and Victoria Falls, as well as a few southeast to Malawi and some north to Zaire (Congo), it was not possible to go too far in those directions due to all the civil wars/unrest taking place in Angola, Congo, Rhodesia and Mozambique. As a result, other than a couple of forays into Zambia's northeastern areas near Lake Tanganyika, my October/November 1973 trip to Dar es Salaam and Nairobi was the big one. On my way back to Tanzania from Nairobi, I took the scenic route down through the Amboseli and Tsavo Game Parks to Mombasa on Kenya's Indian Ocean coastline, before coming back into Tanzania for the return trip to Zambia.

Fondest memory: The one-way distance between Luanshya and Dar es Salaam is 990 miles (1600 km) while continuing from there to Nairobi takes in another 420 miles (680 km). The distance from my 'home' in Luanshya to Dar is equivalent to a drive between Boston and Chicago or Paris to Rome (but not on super highways!). The distance all the way to Nairobi is the same as that between New York City and Miami or Madrid to Prague.

Favorite thing: Not far from Dar are some excellent beaches and adequate resorts, including Oyster Bay Beach and Bahari Beach. The resort facilities at Ras Kutani are a little more plush. If you're staying at a beach resort for any length of time, take a boat ride to the quiet and relaxing Mbudya Island.

Favorite thing: The swahili coast goes from north Kenya to south Tanzania, including wonderful beaches and nice colonial towns and islands, as Mafia, Lamu, Zanzibar...

The Swahili coast has been the site of cultural and commercial exchanges between East Africa and the outside world particularly the Middle East, Asia, and Europe since at least the 2nd century C.E.