Is Tanzania safe?

Last checked: 2 October 2026

Tanzania is a good country to travel in, as long as you know where the risks lie. They sit in a few predictable places, and a well-organised trip takes most of them off your hands.

We have lived in Moshi since 2009 and have been driving guests through this country since 2010. This is what we tell them.

Where the risks lie

The risks follow a handful of patterns, and they look much alike. Almost always, they involve travellers finding their own way through a city they do not know.

1. On arrival. At airports, bus stations and ferry piers, travellers are sometimes lured into a taxi, for instance with an offer to share the fare.
2. On the street. Pickpockets and bag snatchers on motorbikes, especially in Dar es Salaam.
3. At the cash machine. Tourists are sometimes robbed and forced to withdraw money.
4. After dark. Do not take a bajaj, the three-wheeled taxi, in the evening.

What a well-organised trip takes care of

Put that list next to a safari with your own guide, and you see where the difference lies.

You land and you are met. Your transfers are arranged before you leave home. You walk out of the arrivals hall and your guide is there, holding a sign with your name on it. No haggling, no searching, no getting into a car with someone you do not know.

You ride in your own vehicle, with your own guide. Nobody else gets in. We know everyone who drives for us personally, and we chose each of them ourselves.

You sleep in the parks. Your evenings are spent at a camp or lodge, not on a city street. A bajaj at ten at night is simply not part of your trip.

You need little cash. Your trip, your meals and your nights are paid in advance. What you carry is for tips and souvenirs. See our page on money in Tanzania.

None of this removes every risk. Theft happens here, as it does at home, and your common sense travels in your hand luggage. But on a trip built like this, the situations listed above rarely come your way.

As a woman in Tanzania

Sexual violence against female tourists is a risk here. It belongs on this page, so it is here.

What makes the difference is the same as above. Not walking the streets alone at night, no taxi from someone who approaches you, and a guide you know. Every year a group of women travels through Tanzania with us on the Women in Business Retreat. That is how we build that trip, and that is how we build every trip.

On clothing, there is no dress code on the mainland. Zanzibar is different, and away from the beach you cover your shoulders and knees. More on that on our page about Zanzibar, safety and clothing.

On safari among the animals

The animals are not the risk people fear. In the vehicle you are safe, and your guide knows when you can step out and when you cannot. Cases of an animal attacking a guest are rare. In all our years, we have not had one.

What does count is that you follow what your guide tells you. Even when you want that one last photo.

Health

On safari, malaria and the right vaccinations deserve more of your attention than crime. Read our pages on malaria in Tanzania and vaccinations. Drink only boiled or bottled water.

Where to read the current advice

Travel advice can change. Read the current version on your own government's travel advice website, and on our page on Tanzania travel advice we set out what it covers.

Call us, we live here

Doubts about safety are not settled by a web page. Tell us what is on your mind, and we will tell you how things work here and how we would build your trip. We will call you back.

Plan a call

Rather read first how a trip with us works? View our itineraries