Moshi

Introduction

Moshi sits on the lower slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro, the dormant volcano that is the highest mountain in Africa. It is the capital of the Kilimanjaro Region in northeastern Tanzania, and its name is said to refer to the smoke that rises from the nearby mountain.

The municipality is small in area, covering roughly 59 square kilometres, and it is here that the mountain's presence shapes the setting.

Before you go

Getting there

To enter Tanzania you need a visa, which you can arrange in your home country through an embassy or consulate, or on arrival at the airport or a border crossing. Most visitors reach Moshi by air, landing at Kilimanjaro International Airport about 30 minutes away, where taxis and buses meet arrivals; flights connect from a range of non-domestic destinations, including daily direct service from Amsterdam and direct flights from Doha. Flying into Dar es Salaam is another option - farther from Moshi but almost certainly cheaper - followed by a bus of roughly 7 hours. Nairobi in Kenya is significantly less expensive to fly into, but requires a Kenyan transit visa (available on arrival) and an 8-hour bus ride.

Buses are the cheapest way to travel and arrive in Moshi from all of the main cities in Tanzania, including Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Mwanza, Tanga, Mbeya, Dodoma and Nairobi. The bus station is extremely chaotic, though many drivers vying for your fare can work to your advantage. Do not over-economise on bus travel: cheaper companies often have poor safety standards, and you do not want to risk a drunk driver. Twice-weekly passenger trains run from Dar es Salaam, faster and more comfortable than buses but subject to the delays and cancellations that have long plagued the network, so check at the railway station whether the train is running. Passenger trains also run from Arusha, 86 km by rail in two hours, four times a week.

Getting around

Moshi is compact enough that walking covers most of what you'll want to do in the city itself — the main streets, markets and guesthouses are all comfortably reachable on foot, and there's no metro, tram or conventional city bus network to figure out. One firm caveat: it is strongly advised not to walk around at night, for your own safety, so plan to be back at your accommodation before dark or take a taxi for evening trips.

• Daladalas: The local minibuses are the main public transport, running both within Moshi and out to surrounding villages such as Machame and Marangu. They are 16-seaters that in practice carry far more people, along with children and sometimes livestock. Listen for the conductor shouting the destination as the vehicle passes, and feel free to shout your own destination back; some display stickers in the front window. They are very cheap. Check that the vehicle is in reasonable repair and that the driver is sober, and avoid travelling this way up muddy tracks after very heavy rain.
• Taxis: Plenty of them, and the easiest step up from walking. Always agree a price before getting in, and most fares within the city shouldn't cost more than a couple of dollars. It's worth saving the mobile number of a driver you trust for emergencies or early departures, and again, avoid muddy tracks after heavy rain.
• Boda bodas: Motorcycle taxis are numerous but the most dangerous way to travel. Drivers are legally required to provide a helmet — make sure the strap actually works. Some drivers are reckless, and there have been reports of drivers taking passengers to remote areas to rob or assault them, so exercise real caution.
• Hiring your own vehicle: For more independence, you can hire a Land Cruiser with a driver, or a motorcycle, the latter costing less if rented for a week or more.

Where to stay

Moshi has a wide spread of places to sleep, from cheap guesthouses and hostels to mid-range hotels and lodges on the edge of town. Wherever you look, avoid touts: if you are travelling as a couple, one of you can sit in a lobby or restaurant with the bags while the other scopes out rooms. You are likely to get a cheaper price without them, and you will not be targeted by touts who raise the price for their commission and may follow you and wait outside signalling reception.

• Budget options include Buffalo Hotel, described as cheap but decent, safe and clean with decent food; Camel Hotel, next door to Kindoroko, with a/c, clean bathroom and a double bed; Haria Hotel, with bright, large rooms and a beautiful roof top bar and restaurant, popular with volunteers; and Zebra Hotel, with clean rooms, friendly people and decent food and bar.
• Hostels include Hostel Hoff, the only Western-style hostel in Moshi, run by an Irish woman, with very clean rooms, dinner included, links to local volunteering and a partnership with the safari company Path to Africa; Hostel Foot Prince in Soweto, a Western-style hostel including breakfast and dinner, free volunteering projects and safari and mountain-trekking with Foot2afrika; and YMCA Hostel on the edge of downtown towards Shantytown, which has a pool.
• Other budget beds include Kilimanjaro Backpackers on Double Rd near Chagga Street, with clean, simple, cheap rooms and breakfast included (avoid eating there); Mt. Inn in Kiborloni, a base hotel for climbers with Indian and continental food and a swimming pool; Shira Place Bed & Breakfast on Rose Garden Road, a large Mediterranean-style house with gardens and a view of Mt. Kilimanjaro; Springlands Hotel in the Pasua Area, a good base for mountain walking trips and safaris; Tarn Hut Resort on the Moshi–Marangu gate road, a small decent place with friendly services; Tembo Tamu Bed and Breakfast in Rau, a family-run B&B in a village environment that can organise safari and Kilimanjaro climbs; Twiga Home in Soweto, a new and modern hostel/budget hotel with private bathrooms, hot water, free shuttle to Moshi town, free WiFi, restaurant, bar and garden terrace; and Honey Badger Lodge in Msaranga, with camping, dorm rooms, self-catered rooms and ensuite rooms, spacious lush gardens and a large clean swimming pool.
• Mid-range choices include Bristol Cottages Kilimanjaro; Kindoroko Hotel, with tiny single rooms but great doubles and an awesome roof top restaurant and bar with an amazing view of Mt Kilimanjaro, plus an in-house tour company; Parkview Inn on Aga khan road, with well-furnished, exceptionally clean rooms and restaurant and poolside service; Mount Kilimanjaro View Lodge, high up against the rain forest near Uru Shimbwe, ideal for acclimatising before an ascent and offering mini hikes to waterfalls; Kibo Executive Lodge, a small, clean bed and breakfast with a quiet residential garden setting and ensuite rooms; and Sal Salinero Villa Kilimanjaro, with beautiful gardens and a pool.
• For a splurge, Protea Hotel Aishi sits outside Moshi in Machame, and Weru Weru River Lodge, in the 2-bridge area outside town, is a more Western-style hotel with 32 rooms.

Food & drink

Moshi's restaurants cover a wide range of cuisines and prices, with most meals falling somewhere in the affordable middle. In town, IndoItaliano opposite the Buffalo Hotel serves good pizza and Italian dishes alongside Indian food, with beer and wine available and a balcony that works well for lunch or dinner. The Salzburger Cafe on Kenyatta Street runs like a steakhouse with a limited but decent menu, notable for its Volkswagen decor and waitresses in leopard print. Deli Chez on Hill Street offers a varied menu spanning Indian, Chinese, pizza, burgers and American dishes, with plenty of vegetarian choices plus ice cream and milkshakes, though no alcohol. Nearby on Hill Street, the Coffee Shop is a favoured lunch spot with good soup, spaghetti and milkshakes, and will bake cakes to order. Kilimanjaro Coffee Lounge on Chagga Street is the alternative lunch option, known for bagels, fruit and veggie plates and excellent smoothies, while Union Cafe near NMB bank roasts its own coffee and serves espresso drinks, sandwiches, milkshakes, pizza, burgers, salads and breakfasts. For Indian food in Shanty Town, El Rancho Kilimanjaro is an Indian specialty restaurant. Outside the centre, Panda Chinese in Shantytown is run by the only Chinese family in Moshi and suits large groups, Italian Passion offers good wine and dinner, and the Impala Hotel is ideal for a Sunday lunch by the pool. Further out towards Dar, Honey Badger Lodge's J & Ds restaurant in Msaranga serves a fusion of Swahili food with international flair, with dinner from a set menu or a special group BBQ by arrangement.

If you want to try local food, ask for ugali — stiff porridge, a bit bland but harmless — or "wali na maharage", beans and rice. Many nameless restaurants serve as decent lunch spots, and a busy one is always a good sign. For groceries, the local market is easy to find from the double roads or the alleyway by the Tanzanian Coffee Shop on Chagga Street, while Abba Ali's Hot Bread Shop sells excellent bread, honey, doughnuts and desserts, especially cakes, and Aleem's Grocer opposite is a decent grocery store.

Moshi sits on the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro and is largely populated by members of the Chagga tribe, known for their warm hospitality and love of a good drink, so finding a beer is rarely a problem. In the daytime and early evening you can head to the Police mess, The East Africa Bar, the KNCU restaurant on the top floor of the KNCU building, or the Siesta inn, a short walk from the main street; all serve food so you can keep your stomach lined while you sip. Local beers include Kilimanjaro, Safari and Tusker — don't bother with European imports, which are no better but considerably more expensive. The most common local liquor is Konyagi. Glacier, off Lema Road in Shantytown, is a nice outdoors pub with local music nights, good for group nights around the fire. Pub Alberto keeps the party going into the small hours and has a reputation as something of a seedy dive, with a dance floor mixing tourists, locals and ladies of negotiable virtue; leave your valuables at home and take only what you need. La Liga is the biggest night club in Moshi, playing mostly European music with some local bongo flavour, and Sundays are ladies' night. Honey Badger Lodge's Leila's Bar in Msaranga is a spacious outdoor bar where you can swim by day and sit by the bar at night, and Pamoja is a relaxed bar popular with volunteers.

What to see and do

Moshi is the base for climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, and safaris are the other essential activity here. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Lake Manyara National Park and Arusha National Park are all within fairly easy reach. Arrange tours through established companies rather than individuals on the street, ask other travellers who they used, or ask your accommodation for a referral. Booking ahead costs more; bargaining within reason is normal. Most of what you pay covers park fees, lodging, food and fuel, and guides rely heavily on tips, so tip well and include any cook in the total.

• Visit the market, even if you are not buying anything.
• See the mosque near the centre of town, the most notable of the town's many religious institutions.
• Visit the Commonwealth War Cemetery opposite the Magistrate's Court.
• See the former German administration office between Kilimanjaro Co-operative Bank and the BP petrol station on Mawenzi Road/Nyerere Road, where the metal pillar used for hanging convicted people is still visible.
• Explore the smaller communities outside the main town: Shantytown up Kibo Road past the YMCA, an area of relative wealth with restaurants, hostels and hotels; Majengo east along Station Road, significantly worse off; and Soweto west along Boma Road, with more expensive homes, the FalconCrest Hotel and Pub, the Scorpion Pub for a night out, and a good market nearby.
• Take a cultural trip to a Maasai village, though be aware most are not authentic.
• Hire a local guide, available at virtually any hotel, for an inexpensive way to see parts of Moshi you would otherwise miss.
• Take a day trip to the Marangu Waterfalls, where you can stand underneath the waterfall, jump off one and swim, or to Lake Nyumba ya Mungu for local fishing culture, aloe vera and sugar cane plantations.
• Walk across the rice paddies and visit the local forest to see monkeys, usually arranged through a safari company and much cheaper since you pay only for a guide.
• Visit the bus station for its chaos, and take a daladala at least once.
• Swim at the YMCA north of town, which has a large, deep pool.
• Join the Social Reality Tour, a three-hour walk with a social worker through deprived areas of Moshi, visiting people affected by HIV/AIDS; the fee supports the NGO KIWAKKUKI and its home-based care programme.
• Volunteer: Give a Heart To Africa runs a vocational school for adult women; Light in Africa is a locally managed orphanage, school and dispensary; Moyo Mmoja is a women's centre open only to women volunteers; Hostel Foot Prince, run by Foot2afrika, charges only for food while project accommodation is free; TEATEM places volunteers in education and marketing and needs fundraising help; World Unite! places volunteers and interns with NGOs, hospitals and government institutions and runs its own development projects.

Three days in Moshi

Day one: Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport, the gateway to Moshi and the Kilimanjaro Region, with connections from Amsterdam, Doha, Nairobi and Kenya. Settle into Moshi, where English and Swahili serve you well, and take your time around town before an early night. Buses link Moshi with Arusha, Mwanza, Tanga, Mbeya and Dodoma, and daladalas cover shorter hops, so you can plan the days ahead.

Day two: Give the day to Mount Kilimanjaro, the mountain that defines Moshi and draws travellers from across Africa and beyond. Choose a route such as Machame or Marangu if you are climbing, or spend the day on the lower slopes and trails. The Chagga, Maasai and Pare peoples live around these highlands, and most Maasai you meet keep their herding traditions.

Day three: Head for the Pare Mountains for a change of scene, then return to Moshi for your last evening. If time allows, look towards Dar es Salaam as an onward stop, or fly out again from Kilimanjaro International Airport. Knowing a little Swahili helps you along the way, and twice-daily passenger services make leaving straightforward.