Practical information

Tanzania is open for visits from tourists. There is no quarantine required upon arrival. But if you have symptoms like sore throat, fever, or a cough you should not travel. If your country of departure or the airline you travel with require that you have a negative COVID-19 test you need to get one, but you do not need one to be allowed to enter Tanzania.

African Tours & Safaris staff, office staff as well as all our guides, have done mandatory training and have been certified by Tanzanian government in preventive methods to avoid spread of COVID-19. We take this very seriously, for your security and for the security of our staff. Our safari guides wear a face mask for your security. The safari jeep in cleaned and sanitized every day. We have hand sanitizer in the jeep for you. At every point of entry to the national parks there are hand washing facilities ad hand sanitizer. We ask you to be thorough with hand hygiene all through your safari. All the hotels and lodges we use on safari have also done the same training and they work thoroughly with hygiene and preventive measures to stop the spread of the Corona virus.

All though it is not mandatory for you to wear a face mask in Tanzania we recommend that you bring your own face mask. For your own protection and as a courtesy to others we recommend you wear it when inside public places where it is hard to maintain a safe distance.

If there are any updates or changes in COVID-19 restrictions, regulations and/or recommendations we will contact you. Please also visit your countries foreign ministries travel advise for latest updates on COVID-19.

Did you receive a proposal from us that you want to book? Send an email to us with your:

• Full names (all names as they are spelled in your passports)
• Email address
• Contact phone number
• Any special requirements (dietary or otherwise)

We will then send you a confirmation of your safari and instructions on how to pay it.

Payment is done using Visa or MasterCard. Payment is totally secure and done online. When you receive your confirmation and your invoice you will also receive a link that you use to pay your registration fee. A new link for finale payment will be sent to you via email about one week before the finale payment date.

Special conditions 
The following terms and conditions apply for African Tours & Safaris Tanzania’s arrangements for individuals and businesses. For group bookings and conference arrangements, special conditions may apply. African Tours & Safaris has the right to adjust the schedule and equivalent in case of changes outside African Tours & Safaris control. African Tours & Safaris does not take financial responsibility for delays on the outbound or inbound journey beyond African Tours & Safaris control. Passengers must ensure to check that the travel documents are accurate with their booking when they receive them.

Booking and payment of travel packages
When you contact us we will send you a travel proposal, this is not binding. After you’ve confirmed your trip you will receive a confirmation, specifying the cost of the trip. You will also receive invoices for the registration fee, 20 % of total price for the safari. The registration fee is non-refundable. Payment of the registration fee shall be made no later than 10 days after receiving the confirmation. After you have paid the registration fee your reservation is binding. The remaining amount is payable no later than 60 days prior to arrival.

Chimpanzee tracking – special terms of payment
Please note that for Chimpanzee tracking in Tanzania special terms of payment apply. If you have booked a safari that includes chimpanzee tracking a full payment of the special permit will have to be paid upon booking and this payment is non-refundable. 

International flight tickets
African Tours & Safaris does not book and/or sell flight tickets to international flights

Domestic flight tickets
African Tours & Safaris book and sell flight tickets for domestic flights within Tanzania. These tickets are unless otherwise specified in your voucher booked and issued locally and will be sent to you via email after you have made your finale payment.  

Cancellation and amendment
In the event of a cancellation 61 or more days prior to departure we take a fee of 20 % of the total price of your safari (this is your registration fee). In case the cancellation is made later than 61 days prior to departure your payment is nonrefundable. Some trips have a special cancellation policy. For trips that include chimpanzee tracking the cost of permits for these activities are nonrefundable. Please note that full payment of the trip must be made if cancellation is made less than 61 days prior to departure. This means that if you have not settled your payment less than 61 days before departure you still must make a full payment even if you cancel before you have paid. 

Cancellation and travel insurance. 
Cancellation and travel insurances are not included in the price for your trip. We therefore advise all travelers to look over your insurance coverage and add extra insurance if you are not fully insured. Before you purchase a travel insurance, you should check what protection is included in your household insurance and what protection is included if you pay by debit/credit card. For those of you who want/need the extra travel cover we recommend that you purchase additional insurance. Note that African Tours & Safaris does not sell or broker travel insurance or cancellation insurance. Travel insurance is entirely the traveler’s responsibilities and African Tours & Safaris excepts no liability. 

Pregnancy 
If you are pregnant, we ask you to be aware that special regulations may apply with regards to both airfare and insurance. Bring your insurance certificate. 

Force majeure 
African Tours & Safaris is not responsible for additional costs related to delays or changes in itinerary caused by unforeseeable events such as war, strikes, extreme weather, earthquakes, governmental action etc.

Vaccinations 
Our destinations require certain types of vaccinations or other medical protection such as malaria tablets. For information about which vaccinations you need, please contact your nearest vaccination center. Please note that advice on vaccinations and other medical advice is not given by Africana Travel but only by medically skilled and qualified personnel. It is the traveler’s responsibility to ensure that you have the vaccinations you need to travel. This is not African Tours & Safaris responsibility. Bring your vaccination card in your hand luggage and keep it close at hand during the whole trip.

Yellow fever vaccination
Please note that Tanzania has from time to time required a yellow fever vaccination to enter the country. Please check this when you get your vaccinations.

Price changes after booking  
African Tours & Safaris reserves the right to increase the agreed price because of changes in the costs of transport, such as fuel prices, taxes, charges for some services or entry fees, park fees or other conditions which African Tours & Safaris cannot/have not been able to take into consideration. The contracted price for a package cannot be altered less than 30 days before the start of the journey. The tour price can never increase by more than 10 percent.

Reservation 
The information contained in this website is based on available information and exchange rates per 15 October 2018. The prices and travel conditions that apply are subject to change.

Travel documents 
Valid passport, visa, any cancellation and travel insurance as well as mandatory vaccinations are your responsibility. African Tours & Safaris is not responsible for visas nor do we take responsibility for your passport expiration date. Usually, the passport must be valid for at least six months after your return from the trip. 

Complaints during the trip 
Any complaints on faults during the trip should be communicated directly to African Tours & Safaris as soon as possible after the deficiencies have been noted. Complaints to hotels, guides or other personnel on the trip is not considered a valid claim. The complaint should be made directly to African Tours & Safaris so that African Tours & Safaris can immediately assist the client African Tours & Safaris can be contacted any time of day any day of the week with the phone number indicated on your voucher

Balloon Safari 
African Tours & Safaris offers balloon safaris in Tanzania. We work exclusively with operators that have the necessary security approvals, experience and education. However, the nature of a balloon safari still comes with an added risk and participating in a balloon safari is at your own risk

Bush walks, hikes and walking safaris 
African Tours & Safaris offers bushwalks (safari on foot) and hikes in some areas where there is a lot of wildlife (such as Mount Meru in Arusha National Park, Loliondo and Ngorongoro Crater Highlands). We follow all safety rules and use highly experienced guide and rangers, and we consider walking to be safe. Still these hikes are always done at your own risk. While on a bush walk or hike it is very important that you always follow your guides instructions.

Mountain climbing 
African Tours & Safaris offers ascents of Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru. We employ highly experienced and skilled guides, and we follow all safety precautions. To climb a mountain, which is 4500-6000 meters high still involves certain risks. All climbing is at your own risk. We recommend that you only try to climb the mountain if you are fully healthy. It is the client’s responsibility to ensure that he/she is healthy enough to handle the mountain ascent if you are in any doubt please see a medical doctor before booking a trip that included climbing a high mountain.

Flying Doctors
Anyone traveling on safari in Tanzania and/or climbing Kilimanjaro or Mount Meru with African Tours & Safaris are covered by an insurance from Flying Doctors (unless otherwise stated in your confirmation) . This insurance means that in the event of serious illness or injury, you will be airlifted to a hospital in Nairobi or Dar Es Salaam. Exceptions apply to trips that do not include safari, climbing or hiking. If you only book hotel nights on Zanzibar for instance the insurance is not included. Note that insurance with the Flying Doctors only includes transport to the hospital. It is the traveler’s responsibility (and not African Tours & Safaris responsibility) to have an insurance that covers the cost of medical care, possible changes in your return journey, loss of income or any other cost in the event of illness or injury that occurs on your trip.

When you have booked a trip with us, you get a confirmation (reservations voucher) and invoices via email. On your voucher, you have all the information; domestic flight, itinerary, hotel accommodation, meals, transfers and contact information for African Tours & Safaris in Tanzania and in Sweden

Bring your reservations voucher
Pack the reservations voucher in your hand luggage and keep it with you throughout the trip. You will not receive separate vouchers for each hotel, the reservations voucher and your flight ticket for a domestic flight (if you have booked one) is the only travel documents you receive from us. 

Domestic Flights
Flight tickets for domestic flights in Tanzania will be emailed to you when you have made the finale payment on your trip. Please print and bring a copy. 

Vaccinations
Prior to traveling to Tanzania, you should go to a vaccination clinic and advice on the vaccinations you need. All medical advice should be given by medically trained personnel. African Tours & Safaris staff does not give medical advice.

Yellow fever
Tanzania and Zanzibar no longer require proof of vaccination against yellow fever unless you travel to Tanzania via a country that has yellow fever (like for example Kenya, Ethiopia and/or Uganda). If you do a stopover of less than 12 hours in a yellow fever country and do not leave the airport you do not need to be vaccinated against yellow fever. Please note that regulations regarding yellow fever vaccinations have changed several times over the last few years and we strongly advice you to ask about yellow fever when getting vaccinations to make sure you have the correct information at the time.

Remember that if you travel to Tanzania via for instance Kenya or Uganda and therefore need to be vaccinated against yellow fever you need to show your vaccination certificate upon arrival to prove that you have Yellow fever vaccination so remember to pack your vaccination certificate in hand luggage!

When you have made the finale payment for your safari we will email you your voucher and you flight tickets (for domestic flight, if you have booked any with us) and we will also email you our pre-travel information letter. Our pre-travel information letter contains information about Tanzania, things you need to bring, what we suggest you pack, tips, practical stuff like what kind of wall plugs we use in Tanzania, what the weather is like when you travel and so on.

Citizens of most European, North American, South American and Asian countries need a tourist visa to visit Tanzania. For cotozens of most countries it is possible to get a visa upon arrival. In most countries it is also possible to get a visa from your nearest Tanzanian embassy or high commission before you travel. Please contact you r nearest Tanzanian embassy for detailed information about rules regarding citizens of your country. 

Visa upon arrival
Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport, Julius Nyerere International Airport (Dar Es Salaam) and Zanzibar Kisauni Airport, you can obtain a visa. In the arrival hall there is a form you must fill in. The form asks for your address in Tanzania, here you write the hotel you stay on the first night. After filling in the form you get in line for purchasing visa. You do not need a photo of you as you will be photographed at the desk. Have your passport and US $ 50 in cash available. After you have received your visa  you proceed to pass immigration.

Visa before departure
Visa before departure is obtained from your nearest Tanzanian embassy or High Commission. Visas are valid for three months from the time they are issued so do not send it to the embassy too early.

Remember!
Remember that your passport must be valid for at least six months after the day you leave Tanzania for you to be allowed entry to Tanzania. Check the validity of your passport well in advance of departure so you have time to get a new passport if you need to.

African Tours & Safaris does not sell or convey cancellation insurance or travel insurance. For travel insurance and cancellation insurance we recommend that you:

• Check what coverage you have in your existing insurances
• Pay your safari with a credit card. Many credit cards are a good travel insurance. NOTE! the conditions of various cards differ check what is included in your cards carefully. We accept Mastercard and VISA
• If you need extra protection, you are advised to buy additional travel insurance from an insurance company

Upon arrival in Tanzania, you will be met by African Tours & Safaris staff in the arrival hall at the airport with a sign that clearly says “African ours & Safaris“ and your name. You then go out to the waiting van at the airport’s parking and you are driven to your hotel. Usually it is not your safari guide who will meet you at the airport. You meet your safari guide on the morning of your first safari day. 

Passports and vaccination certificates
When you arrive in Tanzania, you will need to show your passport and your vaccination certificate. Have these readily accessible in your hand baggage

Tanzania has 220V current in the electricity grid with wall plugs of the British style (type G). Adapters for these wall plugs are easily available in most countries. Some hotel also has wall plugs of the western European standard. Hotels have electric sockets in the rooms. Tented camps normally do not have sockets in the tents but they have electric sockets in the reception and/or restaurant.

Most parts of northern and coastal Tanzania have cellphone coverage. Southern and central Tanzania still is not covered to 100 %. Central Serengeti has weak signals and the phones often lose connection. Tanzania’s country code is +255.

Most hotels have WiFi free of charge. Some hotels only have Wii in reception and common areas and some have WiFi in the whole hotel. In general safari lodges only have WiFi in the common areas. Normally the Wii works well, has a strong signal but especially in safari lodges, the band width is normally not enough to stream videos on platforms like Netflix and HBO.

Tanzania is in Eastern Africa just south of the equator. The climate is mainly tropical and dominated by monsoon winds from the Indian Ocean. Tanzania has one of the driest climates of all areas this close to the equator with distinct dry and wet seasons. The country is large (about twice the size of France) and has significant differences in vegetation and altitude so the climate varies between different parts of the country and the description of the climate below is a simplification.

In general Tanzania has three seasons.

The dry season stretches from mid- to late May until early November. During this season rain is uncommon. The beginning of the dry season is the coolest period of the year but for every month the weather gets warmer and in general September and October are quote warm. Max/min temperatures in June are on average around 25/18 in Serengeti and Arusha, slightly warmer in low lying parks such as Lake Manyara and Tarangire and along the coast and in Zanzibar. In October the max/min temperatures are around 30/20, again slightly warmer in Lake Manyara, Tarangire and coastal areas, including Zanzibar.

The short rains stretch from mid-November until early to mid-March. This season is warm and mostly dry but thunderstorms occur and heavy rains is not uncommon but as the name of the season hints the rains are normally short. Temperatures are like the end of the dry season, but the weather is more humid.

The long rains start in early to mid-March and go on until mid- to late May. This is the season when heavy and often long rains occur. Most often evenings and morning get rain

Safari in Tanzania is carried out normally with private jeep and private guide. Jeeps used are specially built Toyota Land Cruiser or Land Rover. Jeeps are reinforced to withstand rough terrain and they have a roof that can be lifted up to you to stand up and see the animals during your safari tours.

Jeeps suited for four or six passengers. This means that groups of up to six people always travel in a jeep while groups of more than six people are traveling with at least two jeeps.

Your safari guide are professional, experienced and well trained. All our guides speak very good English, and all are very talented both in animals, plants and nature and to be responsive to the traveler wishes and needs.

Soft rugged bags
Safari, we recommend that you pack in soft and rugged bags. Safari jeeps have limited space for luggage and hard suitcases can be difficult to get into. Why soft bags strongly recommended. During a safari as you drive on partly bumpy road and it can at times be dusty. Bags can be torn apart and we recommend that you pack in rugged bags that you are not too worried about.

Your guide is there for you
Each safari is unique and every safari travelers’ preferences and experiences are unique. Your guide is included to give you the best possible safari and they are accustomed to adapting to your wishes. Your itinerary is a framework that must be kept, but within the framework can guide you customize the safari according to your wishes. Are you interested in some animals (lions, birds, lizards or whatever it may be), tell your guide and he will do all he can for you to see what you are most interested in. If you have seen lots of animals and wants to spend an afternoon (or morning) to just sit at your lodge and enjoy the beautiful views, talk to your guide as you plan your day accordingly.

Respect nature and other tourists
When you are on a safari, you are not in a zoo, but really in the wilderness. The enormous protected nature areas found in Tanzania is in many ways unique in the world and tourism is a way to preserve them. It is important for us that you are traveling show respect nature and we therefore ask that you follow some simple rules:

• Never throw anything in nature. Take with you all the junk for your picnic lunches etc.

• Never encourage or ask your guide to drive off the road. Driving offroad damages nature and it is therefore important that safari jeeps adhere to the rules and stay on the roads

• Talk quietly in jeeps when you see animals close to not disturb the animals or other tourists who might also look at these animals.

• If you need to go to the bathroom during your safari tell your guide, he will stop in a place that is safe

Jeep in Arusha National Park

African Tours & Safaris use Toyota Landcruisers and Landrovers that are custom designed for safaris. Our vehicles seats 4 or 6 persons. Every passenger has a window seat. All safari vehicles are reinforced with custom suspension to withstand the partly rough terrain on safaris. The jeeps also have seat belts, cooler boxes for cold water and a popup roof so that you can stand up and see animals on game drives.

African Tours & Safaris safari jeep

Each safari is unique, and every safari traveler’s wishes and expectations are unique. Your guide is there to give you the best possible safari and to do so our guides listen and adapt to your wishes. Your travel plan is a frame that must be kept but within the framework you can, with your guide, tailor the safari according to your wishes. If you are interested in some specific animals (lions, birds, lizards or whatever it may be) tell your guide and then he will do everything he can to make sure you see what you are most interested in. If you have seen lots of animals and want to spend an afternoon (or morning) just sitting by the lodge and enjoying the beautiful views, talk to your guide and plan your day after that. Your guide is there for you.

Most of Tanzania is a malaria area and therefore it is necessary to use mosquito nets. Lodges and hotels that we use in all areas where there are mosquitos and malaria have mosquito nets and you do not need to bring your own.

When  booking a safari with us you will get a detailed list of what you need to pack (and what you do not need to pack) for your safari. 

The currency in Tanzania is Tanzanian shilling (Tsh). However most hotels, restaurants and other establishments that cater for tourists accepts (and in mkost cases prefer) to be paid in US dollars (USD). Unless you plan to go to local restaurants and stores you will not need anything but USD. You cannot change money to Tanzanian shilling in your home country as the Tanzanian currency is not allowed to be traded abroad. If you want Tsh, bring USD in cash and change when you arrive in Tanzania. 

Tanzania’s time zone is Greenwhich mean time + 3 (GMT+3). Tanzania does not have daylight saving’s time so depending on whether your country does or not the time difference between your country and Tanzania may vary between different times of the year. 

Tanzania has many languages and there is not one that a majority of Tanzanians speak as a native language. The lingua franca is Swahili and to a certain extent English. While most people that work in sectors related to tourism speak good english in other sectors and on the countryside many do not. Swahili is more and more becoming the dominant language and many young people have Swahili as their native language even if both parents speak another first language. 

Most of Tanzania is a malaria area and therefore it is necessary to use mosquito nets. Lodges and hotels that we use in all areas where there are mosquitos and malaria have mosquito nets and you do not need to bring your own. 

Do you want to book a safari with us? Fill in the form below and we will contact you within a day. Will will send you a detailed proposal via email. If you want to book this or if you have any questions about the safari you revert back to us with an email. When you book with us you will receive an invoice and a confirmation. Once payment is done you will also receive our pretravel information and your voucher.