With over six million inhabitants, Dar es Salaam has grown into one of East Africa’s fastest-growing cities. For centuries, its harbor has been the gateway to the interior and it still plays a major role in the economy. Coffee, cotton, and cashew nuts find their way to the rest of the world from here, while on the streets, local life takes center stage.
Dar is messy, intense, and sometimes overwhelming. But those who look closely will discover, between the concrete buildings, mosques, and colonial architecture, a surprising amount of history.
That history begins with Mzizima, the city’s original name, and stretches from Arab traders to German colonists and British administrators, all the way to modern-day Tanzania. You can still see traces of it in the architecture, churches, mosques, and old administrative buildings around the city center and waterfront.
One of the best ways to explore it all is on foot or by bike with a local guide. You pass the National Museum, St. Joseph’s Cathedral, the botanical gardens, and the old State House, while hearing stories and learning facts you would never find in a guidebook.
