Dar es Salaam City Tours

Dar es Salaam City Tours

Very interesting city tour of Dar es Salaam
5/5

We are a swedish couple who 19/7 attended a day-tour of Dar es Salaam. Our guide Patrick is very knowledgable about all things Tanzanian. The tour let us experience the more "common" sights like the Fishmarket and Village-museum but also took us outside of the beaten path to other areas and neighborhoods around town . That gave us a rather unique cultural experience. It was obvious that our guide went to great lengths to make us experience a taste of the "real" Dar es Salaam.
On comparison with other companies this full-day-tour was delivered at a very good price and offered excellent value for money.
All in all we can recommend Nodven Tour with Patrick as a guide as a very entertaingi and enlightening way to spend a day in Dar es Salaam

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Askari Monument, Samora Avenue and Maktaba Street, Dar es Salaam Tanzania

The Askari Monument in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, is a memorial to the askari soldiers who fought in the British Carrier Corps in World War I. It is located at the center of roundabout between Samora Avenue and Maktaba Street, a place that reportedly also marks the exact center of downtown Dar. It was unveiled in 1927.

The main feature of the monument is "The Askari" a bronze statue of a soldier. It was realized in the United Kingdom by British sculptor James Alexander Stevenson, who worked for Westminster's Morris Bronze Founders. Stevenson signed the statue with pseudonym "Myrander". Before being sent to Dar es Salaam, the statue was exhibited for a while at the Royal Academy, receiving critical praise. The soldier has a rifle with a bayonet pointed towards the Dar es Salaam harbour.The statue stands on a pedestal. On the narrow sides of the pedestal are plaques with a dedication in Swahili (Arabic and Latin script) and English; on the wide sides of the pedestal are 2 pictorial plaques showing fighting African soldiers and the carrier Corps.

In the place where the Askari Monument is located, there used to be another statue, namely that of German explorer and army Major Hermann von Wissmann, governor of German East Africa in the late 19th century. This former statue, unveiled in 1911, represented Wissmann standing, one hand on his hip and one on his sword, looking towards the harbour; at his feet, an African soldier covering a dead lion with a German flag. When the British entered Dar es Salaam in 1916, they removed this statue along with those of Karl Peters and Otto von Bismarck.
The monument in Dar es Salaam belongs to a group of three Askari Monuments that were all unveiled the same year in different parts of what was then British East Africa: the other two are at Mombasa and Nairobi

Duration: 20 minutes

Stop At: Kariakoo Ismaili Jamat Khana, Nyamwezi Street, Dar es Salaam Tanzania

Explore the disorienting array of products at Kariakoo Market, Dar es Salaam's largest and most chaotic market. A former base of the British paramilitary World War I Carrier Corps, the site is packed to the brim with fresh produce, clothing, fabrics, kitchenware, plastics, trinkets, and inexpensive electronics. The modern three-story concrete structure dates from 1974, a landmark of the area. Beware of pickpockets. Make Kariakoo Market a centerpiece of your Dar es Salaam vacation itinerary

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Mwenge Woodcarvers Market, Sam Nujoma Road, Dar es Salaam Tanzania

Mwenge Woodcarvers Market gathers over 200 carvers, who sell their sculptures and crafts. In the stalls you can see various artistic pieces, such as bowls, jewelry, chests, paintings, and other and ritual masks. Most of the artists come from Makonde tribe. No matter the background, many artists join their movement and make crafts in the traditional style, while combining it with modern elements. Many stalls sell the same pieces, so you can work with vendors to try and get a lower price. To visit Mwenge Woodcarvers Market and get the most from your holiday in Dar es Salaam

Duration: 40 minutes

Stop At: Village Museum, Along Bagamoyo Road in Kijitonyama, Dar es Salaam Tanzania

The Makumbusho village is a museum that showcases authentically constructed houses and equipment from a few of the tribes of Tanzania and is located at the heart of Dar es Salaam. It is one of the five major museums in the country, the others being the Dar es Salaam National museum, the Mwalimu Nyerere museum, the natural history museum and the Arusha declaration museum.

Only a few of the Dominant tribes are represented at the museum as there are way too many tribes (over 130) in the country to successfully build a house for each at the site, let alone maintain them. Such a site would also takes days to completely tour. Those listed include:

Bena
Chagga
Fipa
Gogo
Haya
Hehe
Iraqw
Kwere
Makua
Mwera
Ngoni
Nyakyusa
Sukuma
Yao
Zanaki
Zaramo

What to do there?
Learn about the lifestyles and traditions of the many tribes that live in Tanzania today, including the types of houses that they live in and tools used. Most of what you would find at the museum is still being used today, by their respective people in rural areas. Thus with a good memory or a photograph, you should be able to tell which tribe lives inside which house, when you see it.

Inside each house are some of the tools that you would find being used by these tribes, including stoves, spears, bows, arrows as well as cooking and drinking equipment. So feel free to try using some and get a feel of the day to day lifestyles of Tanzanian rural tribes, or take a photo or both. There also are cards next to the houses and equipment that explain further their use, history and customs of their people but if you are not up to the extra reading, you still could get somebody to give you a guided tour for an extra fee.

When done, there also is a wide array of souvenirs that you could actually take home with you, from hand made jewelery and clothes near the main gate, to miniature houses to decorate your home with.

Best time to visit
Throughout the year, although the rainy season (march to june) would see some of the houses damaged and in need of repair, just like you would find in the actual houses. Most traditional houses have to be frequently repaired, something that you could see for yourself if you get the chance to go around the countryside during the rainy season. In any case, the museum officials are constantly repairing and improving them.

Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Ofisi Ya Serikali Ya Mtaa Msisiri B, Mwananyamala Hospital Rd, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

A unique visit local people and have time with them

Duration: 1 hour