Can you use credit cards on safari in Tanzania?
Can you use credit cards on safari in Tanzania? If you are getting ready for a trip to the African bush, you would not want to concern yourself with how to pay for a souvenir or a cold drink after a long day. A decade ago, Tanzania was not very friendly towards the use of cards, but now in 2026, it has become much more “card-friendly.”
However, it is still quite a distance from being a cashless society. One of the key aspects of your safari planning is figuring out where your plastic will work and where it will be useless. The rule of thumb for a safari in Tanzania is: Cards for the big things, cash for the small things. Here is a guide on how to handle your money while venturing in the wild.
Where Credit Cards Are Accepted
In big cities like Arusha, Dar es Salaam, and Stone Town (Zanzibar), most large hotels, international restaurants, and supermarkets will accept Visa and Mastercard. These cards are the most widely recognized in the country.
American Express and Diners Club are very rare, so it is not a good idea to depend on them. When you get into the national parks, your payment by card will be limited to palm lodges of large and established brands and luxury tented camps.
These places usually have card machines that are satellite-linked, which will allow you to pay your “incidentals” (laundry, spa, premium drinks, and others) at the end of your stay. Many high-end gift shops inside these lodges also accept cards for larger purchases, such as expensive Tanzanite jewelry or high-quality wood carvings.
The Hidden Cost of Swiping
Card payments are quick and easy, but in Tanzania they often come with a hidden charge. Most hotels and tour companies add on a surcharge of 3% to 5% to any credit card transaction to help them cover the high fees the banks charge them.
On top of this, your bank at home might charge you a “foreign transaction fee.” If you don’t want any surprises, always ask the front desk if there is a surcharge before you swipe. A 5% charge on a $500 lodge bill means an extra $25.
For this reason, many travelers think it’s cheaper to settle their lodge extras in cash if they’ve got enough of it. Besides, the internet in the remote areas like the Serengeti or Ruaha is often unreliable. If the “network is down,” it literally means no payment via card, as card machines won’t work. Therefore, you should always have a plan B.
Why You Still Need Cash
There are numerous moments of the safari experience when you cannot use credit cards. Most importantly, tipping is done in cash. Your safari guide and the lodge staff should be tipped in cash at the end of the trip, as is customary.
Only a handful of ultra-luxury lodges would give you the option of adding the tip to your credit card bill; however, this is not advised. It is always better to hand the cash directly so that it goes to the staff promptly and without being diminished by bank charges.
You will also need cash for:
Roadside Souvenirs: When you stop at a Maasai village or a roadside market, they will only accept cash.
Small “Bush” Camps: You will rarely find card machines at basic campsites or smaller, mobile tented camps.
National Park Gates: In many instances, your tour operator will have prepaid most park entry fees. For instance, if you are a self-driving tourist, you will have to pay at the gate. Although the government has officially mandated card payments at most gates, the cards may not always work, so it is very important to have cash on hand as a backup.
Tips for Using ATMs
ATMs can be found in towns such as Arusha and Karatu (which is on the road to Ngorongoro), but you won’t see any ATMs inside the national parks. So, if you have to be without money in the middle of the Serengeti for some reason, you just have to be patient until you get back to the town. When you withdraw money from an ATM in Tanzania you will get Tanzanian Shillings
not US Dollars.
Even though many tourist places demand USD, they will almost certainly accept Shillings at the prevailing exchange rate. Be sure to inform your bank before you leave home that you are going to Tanzania; otherwise, they may freeze your card the first time you try to withdraw money on the grounds of “suspicious activity.”
By 2026, a good plan for a Tanzania safari would be a combination of the two. Pay for your main tour package in full using your credit card and use it to settle your final hotel bills at luxury lodges. For everything else, such as tips, local markets, and emergencies “when the machine is out of order,” carry a nice number of US Dollars (printed after 2013) or Tanzanian Shillings. Once you have a good balance between your plastic and your cash, you can divert your attention from your wallet to the lions and leopards.
