Tanzania Travel

WHO NEEDS VISA TO TANZANIA?

All nationals of the countries or territorial entities mentioned below.
Stateless and those holding non-national travel/refugee documents or passports issued by an authority not recognized by the United Republic of Tanzania, must obtain a valid visa on each occasion they need to enter Tanzania.
The countries whose nationals require visa for Tanzania are:
Afghanistan; Albania; Algeria; Angola; Argentina; Armenia; Australia, Austria; Azerbaijan; Bahrain; Belarus; Belgium; Benin; Bhutan; Bolivia; Bosnia; Brazil; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burma; Burundi; Cambodia; Canada; Cape Verde; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; China (Peoples Republic of ); Colombia; Comoros; Congo; Congo (Democratic Republic of); Costa Rica; Cote D’Ivoire; Croatia; Cuba; Czech Republic; Denmark; Djibouti; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El-Salvador; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Estonia; Fiji; Finland; France; Gabon; Georgia; Germany; Gibraltar; Greece; Guatemala; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Guyana; Haiti; Holland; Holy See; Honduras; Hungary; Iceland; Independent State of Samoa; India;  Israel; Italy; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Korea (North & South); Kuwait; Kurdistan; Laos; Latvia; Liberia; Lithuania; Libya; Luxembourg; Macedonia; Malagasy; Maldives; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Moldova; Monaco; Mongolia; Morocco; Mozambique; Myanmar; Nepal; Netherlands: New Zealand; Niger; Norway; Oman; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Republic of Ireland; Portugal; Qatar; Romania; Russia; Rwanda; Sao Tome & Principe; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Slovak Republic; Slovenia; South Africa; Spain; Suriname; Sweden; Switzerland; Syria; Taiwan; Tajikistan; Thailand; Togo; Tunisia; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America; Uruguay; Uzbekistan; Venezuela; Vietnam; Yemen; Yugoslavia (all travelling documents issued by former SFR of Yugoslavia or by present Yugoslav Authorities)
For those who have Travel documents consult The High Commission Office

VISA APPLICATION
Please Note the following when filling Visa Application Form:-
Date of Entry: Is not the start date of Visas
Means of Financial Support: Funding sources or Sponsor of your Trip
Reference in Tanzania: Contact address & Telephone
Applicants for the entry visa to Tanzania must meet all the necessary requirements. These include the submission of the following:

1. Filled in Application Forms
2. Valid Passport (at least not less than six months from the date of entry)
3. Two Passport Size photographs
4. Supporting letter (for Business visas)
5. Special delivery – prepaid self-addressed envelope for return of the Passport (for postal application)
6. If applied by post please send the original receipt from Barclay’s bank or postal order

HOW TO APPLY
1.      Personal Application: In this category applicant have  to fill in the forms available free of charge from the High Commission Visa Desk or downloading from the link provided. Payment for this category is by cash only.
2.      Postal Application: the fee in this category must be in cash paid in Barclay’s bank  or postal order payable to the Tanzania High Commission.  Visa fee payments must be made to any Barclays Bank Branch, using the counters pay-in slips and Original receipt sent with the Application Forms and supporting documents.

NOTE
It takes three (3) working days to process a Visa in Personal Application category. There is an  express service of 24 hours available at a charge of £5 extra but this service is not applicable for postal applications.
Postal Application: visa process takes 10 working days. Any failure to comply with the stated requirements may result in unnecessary delays or returning of unprocessed application to the sender. Calls will not be entertained within the time mentioned above. Please do not call us about the development of your application unless you want to withdraw it. In case of emergency call between 3.30pm - 5.00pm.
Tel. 02075691487/1486/1489.
The details to be included on the pay-in slips are:
o    Date - the date money paid in
o    Paid in by - Name and Passport Number of the Applicants
o    Barclays Account Holding Branch - 68 Knightsbridge
o    Credit the Account of - High Commission for the United Republic of Tanzania
o    Sort Code - 204735
o    Account No - 50914126
o    Amount - Detailed amount paid in (MUST BE CASH ONLY)

For all Visas that will expire before being used, a fresh application has to be made, fulfilling all previous conditions without exceptions.

APPLICANTS HOLDING TRAVEL DOCUMENTS (CTD) ARE NOT INCLUDED IN THE ABOVE EXPLAINED CATEGORIES. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT THE HIGH COMMISSION.

Baobab Tree

Standing tall on the sunburnt African plains, baobab trees tower over the landscape like great living monuments. The colossal form of these trees is matched by their usefulness, for they provide shade, shelter, water and food for a wide variety of creatures. A leafless Baobab at Matesti shows off its taut, muscle-like branches.
Baobabs may be the oldest life forms on the African continent, and many of the specimens still standing today have certainly been around since the birth of Christ; others for far longer. Carbon-dating experiments in the Zambezi Valley have calculated that trees with a trunk diameter of five metres were over 1000 years of age, and similar experiments elsewhere have dated trees at over 3000 years. Girth measurements themselves are not reliable estimates of a particular tree’s age, as the conditions under which it has grown - and the climatic fluctuations of the centuries - strongly affect this.

Nocturnal Pollination
Baobab trees flower for the first time at about 20 years. In mid-summer, dozens of luminous white blossoms - the size of saucers - open at sunset and their strong musky odour attracts fruit bats and hosts of insects. Large bats seek out the sweet nectar and collect and distribute pollen as they move from flower to flower. The life of the flower is short lived and it drops to the ground within hours of being serviced. The resultant seeds are housed in a hairy pod which resembles a miniature rugby ball (inside of which is a white pulp from which ‘cream of tartar’ is derived). Once they fall to the ground, the pods are fed upon by baboons, monkeys, antelope and elephants, which serve to disperse the hard seeds within.

An Ecosystem Within a Tree
The sculptured branches, with their hollows, dents and bloated stems, provide shelter and home for a great variety of animals. Galagos (bushbaby), squirrels, rodents, lizards, snakes and tree frogs, as well as spiders, scorpions and insects may live out their entire life in a single tree. Holes in the trunk provide ideal nesting sites for birds such as rollers, hornbills, parrots, kestrels and spinetails. Larger cavities are frequently occupied by families of Barn Owls or Ground Hornbills. Eagles, vultures and storks frequently build their large stick nests on the outer branches, and the colonial nests of Red-billed Buffalo-weavers are more often found in Baobabs than any other tree.

Uses to Mankind
For centuries, the baobab tree has played an important role in the economy and culture of Africa. Practically every part of the tree is useful and in Sudan they are so highly valued that individual trees may be privately owned! The wood itself is too fibrous for structural use but the bark is shredded into strands of fibre for use as rope, baskets, nets, snares and cloth. Tonics and cosmetics are derived from the roots, and spinach and soup from the large palmate leaves. The seeds may be ground into a coffee-substitute or eaten fresh and the white pulp is used as ‘cream of tartar’ for baking. The hollow trunks of living trees have served as homes, storage barns, places of refuge or worship, and even as prisons or tombs. One tree at Katimo Mulilo in Namibia has suffered the rather ignominious fate of having been converted into a flush toilet, while one near Gravelotte in South Africa’s Northern Province was once used as a bar where up to a dozen thirsty gold diggers would quench their thirst.

The Future
Because of its many uses and its ability to survive in semi-arid conditions, the Baobab survives in the face of man’s expansion across the continent. Ironically, the tree is probably most at risk in wildlife reserves where confined populations of African Elephant may outstrip their resources and demolish and consume baobab trees in their struggle for survival

Swahili (Kiswahili) is the National Language of Tanzania. Great thing is Kiswahili is the language of Tanzania, Kenya & Uganda. Below is a selection of some basic swahili words which you might find useful during your Tanzania vacations.

Our selection of some words in Kiswahili which might come in handy.

http://www.yale.edu/swahili for more swahili

Tingatinga painting is named after Eduardo Saidi Tingatinga, who established this self-taught art form during 1960’s.
Today, “Tingatinga” is the Tanzanian term for this form of art, known mostly in East Africa, Europe and Japan.

Over the years, knowledge about Tingatinga has spread to other parts of Africa and Europe, as well as to other English-speaking parts of the world. Tingatinga is a concept that development assistance workers and African tourists alike have been drawn to, but which, over time, has lost its uniqueness. In the past, Tingatinga art could be sold on its name alone, but increasingly other works of art are being presented as “Tingatinga” as well.

Tingatinga art can be defined as painting on masonite using bicycle paint. The paintings can be as small as ceramic tiles, while the biggest paintings are no doubt hanging above thousands of family room sofas. Market limitations have prevented artists from working in larger formats. A majority of the buyers have been foreigners wanting to transport the images out of the country by airplane. From that perspective, Tingatinga is a genuine form of “airport art” - cultural art from developing nations that has been adapted to the special requirements of long-distance travelers, including size. Also the choice of motifs

Responsible tourism entails refraining from supporting trades or services that do harm to the people or the environment, and travelers to Tanzania should be very aware its importance.

Please avoid purchasing wildlife products such as ivory and skins as the market created by these purchases encourages poaching and terrible injuries to the animals.

Removal of coral, shells from turtles or any other kind of marine animal also causes a tremendous upset to the balance of marine life which is more often than not impossible to correct.

Wood carvings should be checked to ensure that the material comes from a renewable, sustainable source.

Currency
Tanzanian Shilling (TShs) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of TShs10000, 5000, 2000, 1000 and 500. Coins are in denominations of TShs200, 100, 50, 20, 10, 5 and 1, and 50, 10 and 5 cents.

Currency exchange
Money may be changed at banks, authorized dealers and bureaux de change. A receipt should be obtained and kept until departure.

Credit & debit cards
Major credit cards are accepted in larger hotels. Check with your credit or debit card company for details of merchant acceptability and other facilities which may be available. Cash can be withdrawn from some ATMs using Visa or Mastercard.

Traveler’s cheques
May be cashed with authorized dealers or bureaux de change. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travelers are advised to take traveller’s cheques in US Dollars or Pounds Sterling.

Currency restrictions
Import and export of local currency is prohibited. The import of foreign currency is unlimited, subject to declaration. The export of foreign currency is limited to the amount declared on arrival.

Note:

It is better to carry sufficient local currency when heading to a game drive, as you might not find an ATM or bank there and credit cards are not be accepted everywhere. Even if they did, they charge an extra 7% on the billed amount.

From deciding where to go in the first place to discovering a quaint little hotel’s five stars were from another galaxy, holidays can be a headache.

1. Know your goals: When you sit down to plan your holiday, the first step is to make sure you’re very clear about what you want to get out of it. Do you want an immersion in culture, or do you wan to simply recharge your body batteries? Do you want to read a sack of novels or tango till dawn? Do you want extensive family bonding time or time for every member of the family to try things on their own?

2. Tailor your trip to fit those goals: If you want culture, you don’t want to head for a one-shack- only South Pacific Island. But if you want to relax, that might be the perfect place. If you want a lot of family togetherness, an all-inclusive resort might be just the ticket; but if you want to explore in smaller groups by day and meet up en famille at night, you may want to try an intimate urban hotel.

3. Read up before you go: Get a good guide book or two and read up on the culture, history and attractions of the destination. Surf the Internet for more information; read local publications online. The more you know, the better you’ll be able to appreciate the place and choose from the many options it presents. And the better you’ll understand all the new things- sights, issues, people, rituals – you encounter.

4. Pack light and right: Take clothes that are adaptable and cram everything you need into a carry-on bag if you can. Your heart will soar when you get to skip a line at check-in and when you arrive and breeze by your fellow passengers waiting for their bags.

5. Macro Planning: Don’t try to fit too much into your trip; you’ll be amazed how quickly the days go by. Slow down and savour a few places rather than squeezing many into a superficial blur.

6. Micro Planning: Everything takes longer than you think it will. In a city, don’t try to do more than three things per day. IN the country, leave extra time for bus breakdowns, missed connections and other delays. Be patient. If your daily schedule is flexible, you won’t have to simmer when things go awry.

7. Leave time for serendipity: Remember that the best moments of just about any trip are the unexpected ones. Leave plenty of time to visit an irresistible shop, have a long chat with an old-timer at a café or go on an impromptu day trip with new-found friends to a secret local spot.

8. Reserve the first night: My personal rule of thumb is to always have a place to stay the night I arrive somewhere. When I’m tired and jet lagged I don’t want to have to deal with the two dozen touts who shout at me and pluck at my bags as I step outside the terminal. You can always move to a more suitable place the next day.

9. When you’ve got a lemon, make lemonade: Disasters happen. They’re part of travel. And you can fuss and fume or you can enjoy them. If the train inexplicably stops in the middle of nowhere, break out your bread and cheese and notice the poppies and traditional farmhouses in the far-off field. If you get lost, follow your instinct and ask someone who looks trustworthy for help. If you can’t read the menu, look at what fellow diners are eating and point to what looks good. If you’re stuck in an interminable line, observe what the people around you are doing, saying, wearing – there are lessons everywhere.

10. Go Local: Eat where the locals eat; shop at where they shop. Ask the hotel clerk for recommendations. Open your self up to the locals and you’ll find your most precious souvenirs.

HAVE A GREAT TRIP

The earliest human inhabitation in Tanzania can be dated back to 1.8 million years ago. The fossils have been discovered in Olduvai Gorge.

Present day Tanzanian culture is an amalgam of nearly 120 cultures.

Some of the cultures are listed below.

Masaai: The maasai are probably most popular ethnic group in East Africa. They are renowned for their warrior & pastoral lifestyles and cattle rearing. The number of cattle determine their social status. They inhabit northern Tanzania near the great rift valley and northern national parks. They wear bright red & blue garments and bead jewellery.

Chagga: The Chagga live on the slopes of Kilimanjaro in the North of the Masaai steppe. They farm the mountain side. Through cooperative farming they have achieved a fair standard of living.

Makonde: The Makondes are internationally famous for their intricate wood (ebony) carvings. They live along the coast on the Makonde plateau.

Sukuma: Sukuma are the largest group, live in the north-western part of the country, south of Lake Victoria. Their cotton farming and cattle rearing lifestyle resulted in their prosperity.

The Hadzapi: They are nomadic tribe who survive by their hunting skills and gathering food. Only a few hundred Hadzapi remain, scattered in groups across the african continent. These bushmen have no permanent settlements and few possessions. They move about following the good opportunities for hunting, water, and other necessities. Their language is unusual in that it makes use of clicking noises

The Gogo (or Wagogo) are a Bantu ethnic and linguistic group based in the Dodoma Region of central Tanzania. They have developed slowly due to lack of water. They have a mixed economy of agriculture and herding, but most heavily depended on grain from agriculture. Gogo music has achieved an international reputation

Hehe: The formerly warlike Hehe live in Iringa District’s highland grasses. They are Bantu-speaking people and can be considered typical of the military chiefdoms brought to East Africa by the Ngoni groups, who live primarily in Iringa Region.

Iraqw are a Cushitic people of the Arusha and Manyara Regions of north-central Tanzania, near the Rift Valley wall and south of Ngorongoro Crater . They are known for their statuesque, immobile posture and sharply delineated features. They grow their own food and tend cattle.

The Nyamwezi, meaning “People of the Moon”, were probably so called because of their location in the west. The Nyamwezi, now cultivators, were once great traders. The 19th century European explorers regarded them the most powerful group in the interior.

The Haya, located along the shores of Lake Victoria, to the north-west of the Nyamwezi, grew and traded coffee long before the arrival of the Europeans and today have established tea and coffee processing plants. Haya women produce excellent handicrafts.

Points to be noted:

1) None of the 120 cultures form more than 10% of the population.

2) Present day culture in urban areas is influenced by colonialism, Arab & Indian cultures.

3) Despite the cultural diversity in Tanzania, utmost peace & tranquility prevails through out the nation. This is the result of the efforts of the former president “J.K. Nyerere”. His common language philosophy has helped to bind various cultures. Almost every Tanzanian speaks Swahili, the national language.

1. Northern Mountain Greenbul
2. Pemba Green-Pigeon
3. Pemba Scops-Owl
4. Southern Mountain Greenbul
5. Udzunga Forest Partridge
6. Uluguru Bushshrike
7. Uluguru Mountain Greenbul
8. Usambara Akalat
9. Usambara Eagle-Owl
10. Usambara Weaver
11. Reichenow’s Batis
12. Rufous-tailed Weaver
13. Rufous-winged Sunbird
14. South Pare White-eye
15. Banded Sunbird
16. Grey-breasted Spurfowl
17. Kilombero Weaver
18. Kipengere Seedeater
19. Loveridge’s Sunbird
20. Moreau’s Sunbird
21. Mrs. Moreau’s Warbler

The annual Zanzibar Cultural Festival is Held throughout the Zanzibar archipelago in JULY each year. The festival is a colorful demonstration of various traditions and celebrations of the region.

Performers come from many countries around Africa, but Swahili culture is mostly represented. Zanzibari taraab music and traditional dances are performed by a rich ensemble of cultural troupes from Tanzania and abroad. Arts and crafts that celebrate local culture are exhibited and enjoyed.

Around the archipelago, locals celebrate the cultural festival with workshops, cultural events and performances held in shifting locales. Street carnivals in Stone Town, small fairs, and canoe races also take place. On the northern island of Pemba, the festival marks the annual bull fight, a remnant of Portuguese presence on the islands, where trained bulls prance after unarmed men in a humorous and festive version of the Iberian spectacle.

www.ziff.or.tz has a nice list of accommodations in Zanzibar
http://www.ziff.or.tz/docs/usefulinfo.pdf