Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 0784-762424; r Tsh15,000, without bathroom Tsh8000; ) A newish, clean place
with squat toilets, but real showers. The attached bar doesn't get too noisy. It's on a side
street west of the bus station.
Moravian Hostel
GUESTHOUSE $
(s/tw without bathroom Tsh5000/6000; ) Unlike its sister sleeper in Sumbawanga, this is
a dog-eared set-up without a lick of charm. But it's good enough for the price, quieter than
the competition (most other cheapies have attached bars), and convenient for early morning
buses.
New Super City Hotel
HOTEL $
( 0783-309608; r Tsh12,000-17,000; ) Rooms have much wear and many quirks (like
sinks without taps), but it's friendly, popular and the restaurant is probably the best in town.
It's at the southern roundabout.
GETTING THERE & AWAY
Bus
Mpanda's bus station is east of the Sumbawanga road, near the southern roundabout, but
most companies have ticket offices near the half-built Moravian church in the town centre,
and their buses actually start at them before going to the station.
Sumry serves Sumbawanga (Tsh14,000, five to six hours) via Sitalike (Tsh3000, 45
minutes) at 6am and noon; NBS goes to Tabora (Tsh18,000, eight hours) on Tuesday and
Saturday at 6am; and together NBS and Adventure offer daily buses to Kigoma (Tsh20,000,
eight to 10 hours) via Uvinza (Tsh15,000, four to five hours) at 6am.
Trucks to Kigoma pass the roundabout near the train station (go early and expect a long
wait) while trucks heading south towards Sumbawanga and east to Tabora pass New Super
City Hotel.
Train
A branch of the Central Line connects Mpanda with Tabora via Kaliua. For schedule and
fare information,
Click here
.
If you're heading to Kigoma from Mpanda, you'll need to
spend at least one night in Tabora. You can wait for the Kigoma connection at Kaliua, but
as there are only simple guesthouses and little to do, most travellers wait at Tabora.
Katavi National Park
Katavi, 35km southwest of Mpanda, is Tanzania's third-largest national park (together with
two contiguous game reserves the conservation area encompasses 12,500 sq km) and one
