Staying Safe in Tanzania

Yellow fever is required if you are arriving from, or have transited for more than twelve hours through, a country with yellow fever transmission — including if you are combining with Kenya, Uganda or Rwanda. Malaria prophylaxis is strongly recommended for the whole country. Talk to a travel clinic six to eight weeks before you fly. We are not doctors and will not pretend otherwise.

Yes, across most of Tanzania including Zanzibar. The Ngorongoro Crater rim and higher Kilimanjaro slopes are low risk because of altitude. Take prophylaxis, use repellent at dawn and dusk, and sleep under the net your camp provides. Any fever within a year of travel should be reported to a doctor with the fact you were in a malaria zone.

This is worth understanding properly before you travel. Tanzania has no government emergency ambulance service in any region, and the 112 line does not connect reliably outside Dar es Salaam. In practice, the fastest response is a private vehicle to the nearest major hospital combined with a call to a local contact who knows which hospital handles what. Private medical evacuation exists — Arusha Medivac operates 24 hours — and comprehensive insurance with evacuation cover is essential rather than optional.

Drink bottled or filtered water. Every camp and lodge provides it, and most now use refill stations rather than single-use plastic — bring a reusable bottle. Ice in reputable lodges is made from treated water and is fine. Salads and peeled fruit in established camps are safe; roadside food is a different calculation.

Yes, and we will ask to see it. It must cover medical treatment, emergency evacuation and trip cancellation. If you are climbing Kilimanjaro it must specifically cover trekking above 4,000 metres, which many standard policies exclude. Given the ambulance situation described above, evacuation cover is the single most important line in your policy.

Broadly yes, and we host solo women regularly. On safari you are with a guide throughout and in camps with staff present. In town, the usual precautions apply — registered transport, avoid walking alone after dark, dress modestly particularly in Zanzibar and coastal areas, which are predominantly Muslim. Many solo travellers use our local companion service for a day simply for company and context.