True Holiday Safaris
Travel Magazines
Practical travel notes for Tanzania — visas, packing, tipping, park flights, and what to expect on the road.
Direct Flights to the Parks
True Holiday Safaris arranges direct bush flights into Tanzania’s national parks — so you spend less time on dusty roads and more time where the wilderness begins.From scheduled light-aircraft transfers to carefully timed park airstrip landings, we connect you to Serengeti, Ruaha, Nyerere, and other remote circuits with comfort, safety, and a seamless safari flow.
- Reach remote parks in hours instead of long road days
- Arrive fresher for afternoon game drives
- Enjoy aerial views of plains, rivers, and crater country
- Flexible routing tailored to your itinerary and lodge airstrips
Visa Application
Visitors who wish to come for holiday or tourism are advised to apply for an Ordinary Visa. Holders of American passports who come for holiday or tourism will have to apply for a Multiple Entry Visa.Applicants who are not Americans and wish to apply for a Multiple Visa are strongly advised to read carefully and observe the requirements for Multiple Visa.Any visa wrongly applied or which lacks sufficient attachment(s) may be rejected. No refund will be made in respect of any rejected visa application.As reflected in the Client Service Charter, normal visa applications may be processed within ten days. However, some applications, as may be determined by the authority, may call for more processing time.After making payments, applicants are required to wait for approval of their visa before they start their journey, even if the stipulated time frame expires.Approval notifications will be sent to applicants’ e-mails. If for any reason the applicant does not receive an email notification of visa approval within the specified time, they may download the Visa Grant Notice through: https://eservices.immigration.go.tz/visa/checkapplicationstatus.If the visa is not issued within the specified time frame, applicants may follow up through the official email: info@immigration.go.tz.There are two options to obtain a Tanzania visa: the Online Visa Platform and the On-Arrival Visa Platform. After introduction of the Online Visa System, visas are no longer issued at the Embassies.The On-Arrival Visa facility may only be used by applicants whose nationalities do not fall under the Referral Visa category. Despite having the On-Arrival Visa facility, it is recommended for all applicants to use the online visa platform.Online visa applicants are strongly advised to read carefully the Visa Guidelines before making an application, and to apply only through the official Tanzania Immigration website (www.immigration.go.tz) or directly through visa.immigration.go.tz — not through any other links.Packing List
- Luggage (recommend 20kg per luggage)
- Binoculars, flashlight or headlamp and power adapters
- Bug spray (e.g., mosquitoes), sunscreen, lip balm
- Clothing (light layers, neutral colors, hat, jacket)
- Cameras with extra batteries and memory cards
- Personal first aid kit (medications, band-aids, antiseptic)
- Reusable water bottle
- Sunglasses and wide-brimmed hat
- Toiletries (biodegradable soap, wipes)
- Travel pillow or neck support
Tipping Guidelines
All the staff at your service hope for tips to supplement their salary. Depending on your satisfaction, a tip of 10% to 15% (or more) of the total amount of services will be greatly appreciated. Most tourist accommodations have a “Tip Box” at the reception. You can tip individually or drop it in this box.Basic tips per day and per group of travelers — on safari:- Driver/Guide: 25 to 30 US$
- Cook: 10 to 15 US$ (only camping safari)
- Head Guide: 50 to 60 US$
- Assistant Guide: 40 to 50 US$ per assistant
- Cook: 10 to 15 US$ per cook
- Porter: 5 to 10 US$ per porter