Fast Facts

Area Codes -- Tanzania's country code is 255. Local major area or city codes are: Dar es Salaam, 022; Bagamoyo, Mafia Island and south coast, 023; Zanzibar and Pemba, 024; Moshi, Arusha and Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area, 027; Serengeti National Park and Lake Victoria region, 028; and central and southwestern Tanzania and Lake Tanganyika, 026. If you're calling a cellphone number from abroad, you don't need to add the area code before the cellphone code.

ATM Networks -- Cirrus and PLUS ATM networks are available at almost all bank branches, but remember in remote areas banks are few and far between.

Business Hours -- Standard shopping and business hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5pm, and Saturday from 9am to 1pm, though many shops are open Sunday morning, too. Shops run by Asians may close on Friday afternoons. Bank hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 3:30pm and Saturday from 8:30 to 11:30am.

Drugstores -- Pharmacies are ubiquitous in the towns and cities and usually open until 9pm. Pharmacies attached to hospitals are open 24 hours.

Electricity -- Outlets in Tanzania supply 230 volts of electric current. New sockets take square three-pin plugs (same as the U.K.), but you may find large round three-pin and small two-pin sockets in older hotels. Bring a multi-adapter/converter with power surge protection as Tanzania can experience power surges.

Embassies & Consulates -- All embassies are located in Dar es Salaam, the capital: U.S., 686 Old Bagamoyo Rd., Msasani (tel. 022/266-8001; http://tanzania.usembassy.gov); U.K., Umoja House, Garden Avenue (tel. 022/211-0101); and Canada, 38 Mirambo St. (tel. 022/211-2831). Australia does not have an embassy or consulate in Tanzania; the Canadian embassy provides consular assistance to Australians.

Emergencies -- In an emergency, dial 112.

Internet Access -- Cybercafes can be found in any sizeable town, and in the centers of Dar es Salaam, Arusha, and Zanzibar's Stone Town they can be found on almost every street. Increasingly hotels and resorts offer Internet access, though smaller cybercafes are often cheaper.

Language -- While there are a number of local languages in Tanzania, KiSwahili is the official language. However, English is taught in secondary schools, and apart from remote rural areas almost everyone speaks it. Some safari guides and hotel staff on Zanzibar speak other European languages, too. Signs are usually in English.

Legal Aid -- Contact your consulate or embassy, who can refer you to a qualified English-speaking attorney.

Liquor Laws -- On mainland Tanzania, alcohol is sold in bars, hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets with no restrictions. The exception is the coast and Zanzibar, where away from the large resorts, small Muslim-owned restaurants generally do not offer liquor.

Lost & Found -- To report a credit card stolen, place a collect call to Visa at tel. 410/581-9994, American Express at tel. 623/492-8427, or MasterCard at tel. 636/722-7111 (all in the U.S.). You can have money wired to you via Western Union; there are agents in all of Tanzania's larger towns and cities. Check locations at www.westernunion.com.

Mail -- The Tanzanian postal service is cheap and reasonably efficient, and without snags, an airmail letter will take about 2 weeks to arrive in Europe or the U.S. The bulkier your mail, the longer it will take to arrive.

Newspapers & Magazines -- Tanzania has two daily English-language newspapers, Daily News and Guardian. The East African is a weekly newspaper covering news throughout Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda.

Restrooms -- Public bathrooms are rarely available and can be quite smelly and dirty. Always carry toilet paper with you. Some are long-drop (outhouse) toilets, which most Westerners will be unfamiliar with. If you need to go, try to find a nearby restaurant or hotel. Bathrooms are clearly marked with internationally recognizable symbols for ladies and gents.

Smoking -- Smoking in public and in the workplace is banned in Tanzania, although hotels provide smoking rooms, and most restaurants and bars permit smoking in designated areas.

Taxes -- There's a 20% value-added tax on goods and services, and this is generally included in the prices.

Taxis -- Taking cabs is a comfortable way to get around and not very expensive by Western standards. But agreeing on a price with the driver before setting off requires a little bit of skill and research. Before you head out, ask at your hotel what your trip should cost. Besides regular taxis, there are bicycle taxis, which carry one person on a seat over the back wheel; and tuk-tuks, three-wheeled vehicles that can carry three people on the backseat behind the driver.

Telephones -- You can make international calls from public call boxes with a phone card available at post offices. Hotels offer international calls, but remember you'll be paying a premium for these services. Cellphones are a way of life in Tanzania, and you will be able to pick up roaming from a local provider on your own phone, though access is restricted in isolated areas. Alternatively, SIM cards and pay-as-you-go top-up cards are available everywhere from formal phone shops to street vendors. Call rates from Tanzania to the neighboring countries of Kenya and Uganda are charged at long-distance rates, not international. American and European toll-free numbers can't be called from Tanzania.

Time Zone -- Tanzania is 3 hours ahead of GMT, and 7 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time.

Tipping -- Wages in Tanzania are generally low, so tipping for good service will be much appreciated. In general, you should leave a 10% to 15% tip at restaurants and bars, even if the service charge is already included. If you're staying at an upmarket hotel or lodge, tip a few Tanzanian shillings to the luggage porter, the chambermaid, and the doorman if he hails you a cab. On safari, it's only right to tip your guide US$10 to $20 per day, although excessive tipping can cause problems for the next client so ask your safari company to advise on a realistic tip. Taking pens and sweets to give out freely to children in Tanzania is not advised as this encourages begging. If you want to contribute to any cause in Africa, it's always best to make a donation to a reputable charity.

Water -- Although the water is not particularly dangerous, it can carry bacteria that can give you a bout of diarrhea, which could disrupt your vacation. Drink bottled water, order drinks without ice (unless you know that the ice was made with bottled or purified water), and stay away from washed salads and fruit as much as possible. Water that has been boiled for several minutes is fine, as is water which has been sterilized with iodine tablets or similar additives. When buying bottled water, ensure the seal hasn't been broken, which indicates they have may have been refilled with tap water.