Money & costs
Money
Tanzania’s currency is the Tanzanian shilling (TSh). There are bills of TSh10, 000, TSh5000, TSh1000 and TSh500, and coins of TSh200, TSh100, TSh50, TSh20, TSh10, TSh5 and TSh1.
The easiest places to reconvert currency are at the airports in Dar es Salaam and Kilimanjaro, but save your exchange receipts in case they are checked. The most useful bank for changing money is National Bank of Commerce (NBC), which has branches throughout the country. (Note that US$50 and US$100 bills get better rates of exchange than smaller denominations.)
Most branches of the NBC have ATMs that accept Visa, as do Standard Chartered, Barclays and CRDB ATMs in larger towns. A few ATMs also accept MasterCard.
Some top-end hotels, tour operators and a few midrange establishments accept credit cards – most with a 5% to 10% commission. Travellers cheques can be changed in Dar es Salaam, Arusha and other major centres at slightly lower rates than for cash.
Tanzania has a 20% value-added tax (VAT) that’s usually included in quoted prices.
On treks and safaris in Tanzania, it’s common practice to tip drivers, guides, porters and other staff if the service has been good.
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