Tanzania Travel Advice — A Practical Preparation Guide
Tanzania is welcoming to visitors and the practical preparation needed is mostly straightforward, but a handful of specifics trip up first-timers consistently — US dollar bills issued before 2009 are routinely rejected at lodges and parks, photographing Maasai or villagers without asking causes offense (and often a small payment is expected when permission is granted), Stone Town in Zanzibar genuinely expects modest dress because the population is overwhelmingly Muslim, single-use plastic bags have been banned across the country since 2019 and your luggage may be checked, military or camouflage clothing is prohibited for civilians, and most first-time travelers underestimate how much cash to carry into the parks where ATMs are not available. This page covers the practical preparation — health (water, food, malaria approach, vaccinations), money (cash USD reality, ATMs, tipping norms by role), cultural etiquette (Zanzibar dress, photography of people, Swahili greetings, Maasai interactions), and practical logistics (electrical adapters, SIM cards, drones, what NOT to pack). For safety-specific concerns — crime, terrorism, stability — we have a separate companion page at Is Tanzania Safe for Tourists? which deserves its own focused treatment. For health details that need medical decisions, consult a travel clinic 4-6 weeks before flying. After 35 years briefing first-time client groups in Arusha on these topics, the practical advice that actually matters clusters around the five areas below: a quick topic navigator at the top of the page lets you jump to whichever applies to your situation. The named guides — Geoffrey Komba, William Mwasimba, Isaac Munuo — handle these briefings at the start of every trip, and the questions they hear from clients are remarkably consistent year after year. This is the version we wish more travelers arrived with.
Tanzania Travel Advice at a Glance
- For safety questions: see Is Tanzania Safe for Tourists?
- For health: consult a travel clinic 4-6 weeks before flying
- For money: USD bills 2009+, ATMs in major towns only
- For tipping: $20-30/day safari guide; $250-330 total Kilimanjaro crew
- For dress in Zanzibar: modest (shoulders/knees covered) in Stone Town
- Don't pack: plastic bags, military clothing, drones
What Are You Researching?
Most readers come to a Tanzania travel advice page with one specific question in mind — the money rules, the tipping figures, what to wear in Zanzibar, or whether their drone is going to be a problem. Rather than read top to bottom, use the five anchor links below to jump straight to the section that applies to your situation. Each section is written to stand on its own, with the practical detail and the operator observations that matter for that topic. The page deliberately keeps to practical preparation; safety-specific questions live on a separate companion page, linked throughout.
This page deliberately skips safety-specific topics (crime, terrorism, stability). For those, our companion page Is Tanzania Safe for Tourists? handles them with the focus they deserve. The two pages are designed to be read together — this one for practical preparation, that one for safety questions.
Health — Water, Food, Malaria, Vaccinations
Honest practical health framing without straying into medical advice. Tanzania is generally healthy for visitors who take basic precautions, and the most common issue by far is minor stomach upset rather than serious illness. The specific medical decisions — which vaccinations you need, whether and which malaria prophylaxis to take — belong with a qualified doctor or travel clinic 4-6 weeks before flying, because they depend on your medical history, your route, and your circumstances. What this section covers is the practical day-to-day habits and the framing that helps you have an informed conversation with a clinic, plus the few rules worth knowing in advance so nothing surprises you at the airport or on the road.
Water and food
Tap water is not generally safe for visitors — stick to bottled or properly filtered water for drinking and for brushing your teeth. Most lodges provide bottled water in rooms and your safari vehicle usually carries a supply. Because Tanzania bans single-use plastic bags and discourages waste, bring a reusable bottle to refill from larger supplies. Cooked food at established restaurants and lodges is generally fine; the most common stomach issues come from raw salads rinsed with unfiltered water and from higher-risk street food. Pack rehydration salts as a backup — Tanzanian pharmacies stock them too, and they handle the most common minor complaint without fuss.
Sun and altitude
Equatorial UV is strong year-round regardless of temperature, so high-SPF sunscreen, a hat, and sunglasses are non-negotiable on safari and at the coast. Altitude becomes a consideration above roughly 1,500m — Arusha town sits at about 1,400m and the Ngorongoro Crater rim at 1,800m, neither of which troubles most travelers. Kilimanjaro climbing is a separate altitude topic with its own protocols; see Kilimanjaro for beginners for that.
Vaccinations
Typical recommendations include hepatitis A, typhoid, and up-to-date tetanus and polio cover. A yellow fever certificate is required only if you are arriving from a yellow-fever-risk country (parts of Africa, parts of South America) — it is not normally required for travelers arriving directly from the US, UK, EU, Australia, or Canada. Verify with a travel clinic 4-6 weeks before flying; they will know the current requirements for your specific origin and routing, which can change if you transit through a risk country en route.
Malaria
Malaria is present in most of Tanzania below roughly 1,800m altitude — less risk at Arusha town and the Crater rim, more at lower altitudes including the parks and Zanzibar. Prophylaxis is recommended for most travelers, and multiple options exist (doxycycline, atovaquone-proguanil, mefloquine), each with a different profile. Consult your doctor or travel clinic for what suits your circumstances. Behavioural prevention matters too: insect repellent containing DEET, long sleeves at dawn and dusk, and the mosquito nets lodges provide.
Money — Cash USD, ATMs, Credit Cards
Tanzania's tourism economy uses US dollars widely alongside local Tanzanian Shillings (TZS), and the practical reality is that you'll use both — USD for major purchases such as park fees, lodges, and tips, and TZS for small daily purchases like water, souvenirs, and market items. The single biggest first-timer mistake on money is bringing USD bills from before 2009: banks and lodges routinely reject older bills over counterfeit concerns, even when the notes are genuine. Sort your cash at home, carry a sensible mix of denominations, and understand where the ATMs are before you set off, because once you're in the parks the cash machines disappear entirely.
USD bills
Accepted widely, but bills must be from 2009 or later — older bills are frequently rejected even when technically valid, and torn or heavily marked notes can be refused too. New, clean, undamaged bills work best. Pack a mix of denominations: $20s, $50s, and $100s for larger costs, and a stack of $1s, $5s, and $10s for tipping.
Tanzanian Shillings (TZS)
Needed for small daily purchases, markets, and tips for service staff. Exchange in Arusha or Dar es Salaam rather than at the airport, where rates are poor; most lodges can also change small amounts. Keep enough small TZS for incidentals so you're not breaking large notes everywhere.
ATMs
Available in Arusha, Dar es Salaam, Stone Town, Moshi, and major towns — but not in the parks or remote areas. Plan to withdraw what you need before going on safari, because once you're in the parks, ATM access disappears. Major networks (Visa, Mastercard) work at most ATMs.
Credit cards
Accepted at most lodges, hotels, and tour operators; smaller establishments are often cash-only. Inform your card issuer of your travel dates to avoid fraud-prevention blocks, and carry both Visa and Mastercard if possible — one occasionally fails while the other works.
Currency exchange
Hotels, banks, and bureaux de change all exchange currency, and rates vary — banks usually beat airport bureaux. Keep exchange receipts; some lodges and parks request them for record-keeping.
Money management
A money belt or interior wallet is practical, not paranoid, for managing cash while moving between locations. Lodges have safes for valuables. Don't carry all your cash on game drives — leave the bulk at your Arusha base or in a lodge safe.
The named guides — Geoffrey Komba, William Mwasimba, and Isaac Munuo — see clients run into the old-USD-bill issue more often than any other money problem. Get fresh, post-2009 bills from your bank before flying — most US banks will swap older bills for newer ones if you ask. It's a two-minute fix at home that's almost impossible to sort once you've landed.
Tipping in Tanzania — Honest Norms
Tipping is an expected part of Tanzania tourism. Safari guides, drivers, lodge staff, and especially Kilimanjaro crews rely partly on tips as part of their income, and understanding this honestly helps you budget properly and ensures the people who make your trip excellent are properly compensated. The ranges below are norms, not requirements — generous tipping for genuinely excellent service is welcomed, and your operator can give a recommended figure for your specific itinerary if you'd rather not work it out alone. The figures for the guide and driver are per group per day, so a couple or family pools one tip rather than each person paying separately.
| Role | Typical tip (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Safari guide (your daily guide) | $20–30 / group / day | Most important tip; given at the end of the safari |
| Safari driver (if separate from guide) | $15–25 / group / day | Some trips have a combined guide-driver role |
| Lodge staff (pooled) | $5–10 / traveler / day | Goes into a shared tip box; covers housekeeping, restaurant, reception |
| Kilimanjaro lead guide | $20–30 / climber / day | Multi-day climb adds up; see total below |
| Kilimanjaro assistant guides | $15–25 / climber / day each | Some climbs have 2–3 assistant guides depending on group size |
| Kilimanjaro cook | $10–15 / climber / day | Often the unsung hero of the climb |
| Kilimanjaro porters | $7–10 / climber / day / porter | Multiple porters per climber on a typical climb |
| Kilimanjaro climb crew TOTAL | $250–330 / climber pooled | Most operators provide a recommended split |
| Restaurant | 5–10% if not included | Many establishments add a service charge automatically |
| Hotel housekeeping | $1–2 / night | Optional but appreciated |
| Taxi driver | Round up 1,000–2,000 TZS | Not always expected; appreciated |
Bring a mix of USD denominations specifically for tips: $1s, $5s, $10s, and $20s for safari tipping; larger bills for the Kilimanjaro crew envelope. All of it should be from 2009 or later, like the rest of your cash. Some lodges accept tips by card now, but cash remains the norm in Tanzania tourism, and small bills give you the flexibility to tip accurately rather than rounding up by necessity.
Cultural Etiquette — Dress, Photography, Swahili, Maasai
Tanzania welcomes visitors warmly, and the cultural respect that earns the warmest welcome is straightforward — modest dress where it matters, asking before photographing people, learning a few Swahili phrases, and treating Maasai cultural interactions with respect. None of this is complicated, and first-timers go wrong mostly through unfamiliarity rather than disrespect. The few specifics below are the ones the named guides cover at the start of every trip, because they're the points that come up again and again with clients who simply didn't know.
Dress in Zanzibar
Zanzibar is overwhelmingly Muslim (95%+). Stone Town and the villages expect modest dress — cover shoulders and knees, and women may want a light scarf for visiting any religious site. Beach resorts have relaxed expectations within their own grounds, so normal beachwear is fine on the resort beach; cover up when you leave the resort. Skimpy beachwear in the streets of Stone Town is genuinely disrespectful and is noted.
Dress on the mainland
Less strict than Zanzibar, but conservative is respectful. Standard safari attire — long, light, neutral colours — is both practical and culturally appropriate. In villages and small towns, longer is better than shorter.
Photography of people
Ask before photographing anyone, especially Maasai and villagers. Many will agree; some will say no; some — especially Maasai — may ask for a small payment ($1–2 typical). Your guide can broker this respectfully. Never photograph government buildings, military, or police; that can cause serious problems. And never post drone footage of people without consent.
Maasai cultural interactions
Many safari itineraries include optional Maasai village visits, which are meaningful when done respectfully. Photography typically involves a small payment, and cultural exchanges — singing, jumping competitions — are genuine when initiated by your host. Avoid photographing children specifically without parental consent.
Swahili greetings
Learning a few phrases earns warm welcomes everywhere. None of these require perfect pronunciation — the effort itself is what's appreciated.
Right-hand etiquette
In many East African cultures, the left hand is considered impolite for giving and receiving objects. Use your right hand, or both hands, when handing over money, accepting a gift, or shaking hands. Following your guide's lead is the safest practice.
Public displays of affection
Uncommon and somewhat frowned upon in many parts of Tanzania. Be modest in public, particularly in Zanzibar and in villages.
Religion and respect
Tanzania is religiously diverse — predominantly Christian inland (around 60%), majority Muslim on Zanzibar, with traditional African religious practices integrated throughout. Respect for religious observance is expected, and modest behaviour near religious sites is appropriate. This is a matter of courtesy, not politics.
Practical Logistics — Power, SIM, Drones, What NOT to Pack
The practical pre-trip checklist most other Tanzania advice pages either omit or get wrong. Electrical sockets are UK-style (Type G), single-use plastic bags are banned and your luggage may be checked, drones require permits most tourists shouldn't bother with, and military clothing is prohibited. None of these are obscure rules — they're the things that cause real friction at the airport or on the ground when a traveler arrives unprepared, and all of them are easy to handle if you know in advance.
Electricity
230V, 50Hz, UK-style 3-pin sockets (Type G). Bring a UK adapter or a universal adapter. Power outages happen in some areas, though lodges typically have backup generators. A portable battery pack is genuinely useful for safari days when you're away from sockets for hours.
SIM cards and connectivity
Vodacom and Airtel are the main mobile networks. Tourist SIMs are available at JRO arrivals (~$5–15 for data and voice covering about two weeks), and your passport is required for registration. In many areas, 4G mobile data is more reliable than lodge WiFi for video calls or large downloads, so a local SIM is worth the few dollars.
Drones
Require an advance permit from the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority and separate pre-approval from any park you intend to fly in. Many parks restrict drone use entirely; permits cost $200+ and take weeks to process. Most tourists should leave the drone at home — the logistics rarely justify the effort.
Plastic bag ban (important)
Tanzania banned single-use plastic bags in 2019. Do not bring plastic bags in your luggage — the airport may confiscate them. Pack contents in fabric pouches or reusable containers. Resealable Ziploc-style bags for liquids are generally tolerated; obvious shopping-style plastic bags are not.
Single-use plastic bags
Banned since 2019. Repack contents in fabric pouches before flying. The airport may inspect and confiscate.
Military or camouflage clothing
Prohibited for civilians in Tanzania. Avoid camo prints and military-pattern clothing. Standard safari neutrals (khaki, beige, olive, brown) are fine.
Drones (without advance permits)
Permits cost $200+, take weeks, and most parks restrict use anyway. Most tourists should leave drones at home.
Bright white or primary-colour clothing
White shows dirt and attracts tsetse flies. Bright colours can disturb wildlife on game drives. Stick to neutrals.
Large jewellery or expensive valuables
Lodge safes exist, but minimising what you'd hate to lose simplifies the whole trip.
More electronics than you'll actually use
Power access varies and charging takes time. Two devices and a portable battery serve most travelers better than five gadgets.
Wondering About Safety? Read the Companion Page
This page deliberately doesn't cover safety-specific topics, because they deserve focused treatment elsewhere. Our Is Tanzania Safe for Tourists? page handles crime, terrorism, stability, and the operator-honest realities of safari and Kilimanjaro safety — the kinds of questions that need direct, calm, evidence-based answers without scaremongering. Tanzania is generally safe and welcoming for tourists, but "generally safe" is a starting point for a proper discussion, not a substitute for one, which is why we give the topic its own dedicated page rather than a few reassuring lines here.
- The general safety profile of Tanzania for tourists
- Crime patterns and avoidance (mostly opportunistic urban issues, very low in safari and Kilimanjaro contexts)
- Terrorism and travel advisory context
- Solo and female travel considerations
- Safari-specific safety — your relationship with wildlife and your guide
- Kilimanjaro climbing safety — route choice, operator quality, altitude protocols
The two pages are designed to complement each other. This page handles preparation; that page handles safety. Together they cover what most first-timers need to know practically before flying. Both pages were written from the same operator perspective — 35 years of briefing client groups in Arusha — so the voice is consistent across them.
Other Tanzania Travel Essentials
Travel advice is one of five practical pre-trip topics in this cluster, and the other four cover the rest of the groundwork — the visa, when to come, the cover you should hold, and the emergency service worth understanding before you fly. Each is written to the same honest, operator-grounded standard as this page, so once you've worked through the preparation here, these are the natural next stops to round out the planning.
Tanzania Visa →
The eVisa process, costs and validity, and the common application pitfalls — plus where the Zanzibar requirement first comes up.
Read the visa guide →Tanzania Weather →
Month-by-month climate guide for the Northern Circuit, the coast and Zanzibar, and Kilimanjaro altitudes — when to come.
Read the weather guide →Travel Insurance →
What coverage actually matters for safari and Kilimanjaro — altitude exclusions, evacuation, and the mandatory Zanzibar insurance.
Read the insurance guide →Flying Doctors Service →
The deep dive on East African air evacuation — coverage area, how a call-out works, and membership versus operator-included cover.
Read the Flying Doctors guide →Practical Preparation Done — Plan Your Tanzania Trip
Preparation researched — now the trip itself. As an Arusha operator since 1991, TATO-registered, we run the safari and the mountain under one team, which is exactly why the named guides who brief first-timers every week also run the trips they're preparing you for. Here's where to go next, and the Travel Guides that take the planning further.
- The classic 7-day Northern Circuit — our most-booked safari, the 7-day Tanzania safari.
- The shorter circuit — the 4-day Northern Circuit safari.
- Beach and safari together — the Zanzibar safari fly-in (Zanzibar dress and insurance matter here).
- Tight on time — short safaris from Arusha.
- Climbing the mountain — compare the Kilimanjaro climbing routes, or start with Kilimanjaro for beginners.
Keep planning with our Travel Guides:
- Safety guide → Is Tanzania safe for tourists
- Plan a safari → How to plan a Tanzania safari
- What to expect → What to expect on a Tanzania safari
- Packing list → Tanzania safari packing list
- Tanzania safari guide → Tanzania safari guide 2026
- Best time to visit → Best time to visit Tanzania
Tanzania Travel Advice — Common Questions
What should I know before traveling to Tanzania?
Can I drink the tap water in Tanzania?
Do I need malaria prophylaxis for Tanzania?
What vaccinations do I need for Tanzania?
Should I bring USD cash or use my credit card?
Why are my older USD bills being rejected?
How much should I tip on safari?
How much should I tip the Kilimanjaro crew?
What should I wear in Zanzibar?
Can I bring a drone to Tanzania?
What about the plastic bag ban?
Is Tanzania safe for tourists?
Prepared for Tanzania — Now Plan the Trip
Visa, insurance, weather, and practical preparation researched. Send us your dates and what you want to see — we'll send a proposal within 24 hours built around your trip. 35-year Arusha operator.
Or email info@safari-tz.com · Call +255 740 666 662
