Dar es Salaam
Description: Dar es Salaam is a major African city with more than 3 million people. Unless you have a particular reason for spending some time in Dar, we feel it just doesn’t fit in well with most itineraries. Due to the timing of flights, we do occasionally recommend overnights in Dar. The best bet for a half-day in Dar is to head to Mwenge where there is some good souvenir shopping, especially wood carvings. And near there is the Makumbusho Village Museum where you can find a collection of authentic homes from 18 Tanzanian tribes. You can get a short tour and a broad overview of village life in Tanzania. There are also some decent beach hotels in/near Dar es Salaam, but for anything more than a 1 or 2 night visit, these are mostly outshined by nearby Zanzibar, which is where most people go. Near Dar, just a couple hours north, is Bagamoyo. This is a laid-back large village that has several very nice beach hotels.
Accommodations
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Harbour View Suites
Holiday Inn Dar es Salaam City Centre
Hotel Slipway
Peacock Hotel
The Retreat Dar es Salaam
Hotel Sea Cliff
Southern Sun
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Amani Beach Hotel
Hyatt Regency Dar es Salaam, The Kilimanjaro
Mövenpick Royal Palm Hotel
“What an amazing family experience. From the moment Willy picked us up at the airport to the moment he dropped us off we felt right at home. It’s hard to put into words the experience because it was truly life changing. You’d expect that we would say seeing lions (and boy did Willy the lion whisperer know how to find lions!) was the highlight. Don’t get me wrong that was wild! But our connection with Willy and doing things like visiting an orphanage and going to his house for a typical African dinner were outstanding. To have a little glimmer of how people in another country and culture live is to forage a lasting connection. We cried when we had to part with Willy because he had become family to us”