Mozambique

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Quick Facts

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Local name

Mocambique

Capital

Maputo

Government

Republic

Nationality

Mozambican

Population

17,480,000

Languages

Portuguese, Makhuwa, Tsonga

Religions

Christianity (Catholic, Zionist), Islam

Currency

Mozambican Metical (MZN)

Calling Code

+258

Time Zone

CAT (UTC+2)

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Introduction

moz_ibo_kakplaat

© All Rights Reserved liesjoen

Situated along Africa's southeastern coast, opposite Madagascar, Mozambique's prominence along the coast makes it an ideal tourist destination. Dozens of beaches are the country's best attractions, not only because of the excellent coral reefs that mark the coast, but also because many of the other attractions the country could offer are off-limits, due to the presence of landmines.

Indeed, the civil war which tore the nation to shreds has left a dirty stain on Mozambique's canvas, one the reformed government is finding very hard to remove. Maputo was once Mozambique's beautiful capital. Now, many buildings are collapsing or collapsed, with the city's former glory a mere shimmer.
Safaris are possible but don't count on seeing as much as in neighbouring Tanzania or South Africa for example. Thankfully, local culture compensates somewhat: the art produced by Mozambicans is some of the finest and most refined in Africa. And the indelible mark of Portuguese colonialism has its bright sides, with crumbling forts turning into crowd-drawers by the day.

Brief History

Geography

Regions/Provinces

Mozambique is made up of 10 provinces. The capital city Maputo also has provincial status.

• Cabo Delgado Province
• Gaza Province
• Inhambane Province
• Manica Province
• Maputo Province
• Nampula Province
• Niassa Province
• Sofala Province
• Tete Province
• Zambezia Province

Cities

• Maputo, the nation's capital.
• Xai-Xai
• Beira
• Tete
• Quelimane
• Nampula
• Matola

Sights and Activities

Limpopo National Park

The Limpopo National Park is part of the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, which also contains the Kruger National Park in South Africa and the Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe. Since many of the animals here were killed during the civilian war in Mozambique, there has been a huge translocation of animals from the adjacent Kruger National Park and a border between the two countries has been opened up recently as well. This way, it is possible to visit some more remote parts of the Transfrontier Park, but you will need the proper visa and vehicle (4wd) to get to the Mozambique parts, as infrastructure as well as accommodation is still basic. That said, there is no doubt about it that this national park is a good opportunity to see the wildlife (including the big five) in its natural setting, still without too much visitors and vehicles.

Bazaruto Archipelago

The Bazaruto Archipelago is located along the central coastal part of the country near the city of Vilankulo and consists of five islands: Bazaruto, Benguerra, Magaraque, Banque and Santa Carolina. There are great beaches to explore and the forest and wetland habitat houses a surprisingly high number of birds and many species of flora and fauna. The diving and snorkelling here is fantastic and you will definitely see numerous colourful fish, turtles.

Ilha de Moçambique

Ilha de Moçambique

© All Rights Reserved enrikx

Ilha de Moçambique (Island of Mozambique) is located in the north of the country along the coast near Nampula. It is on the UNESCO World Heritage List and not without reason. The Chapel of Nossa Senhora de Baluarte, built in 1522, is considered to be the oldest European building in the southern hemisphere and this places has been a port since the 15th century. The Fort of Sao Sebastiao (now called Stone Town) became the capital of Portuguese East Africa until 1898, when present day Maputo became the capital. Also the port function has been taken over by Nacala, but history remains in this fantastic place.

Maputo

The capital Maputo is vibrant and colourful place with many historical and cultural significant buildings, many of them dating back to the Portuguese colonial period.

Events and Festivals

Weather

Mozambique enjoys a tropical climate with generally warm to hot and humid weather. There are two seasons, a dry and cool season from April to October and a warm and wet season from November to March. Temperatures usually vary from around 25 °C during the day from June to September and around 30 °C from December to March, at night dropping to around 23 °C and 17 °C respectively. Highest rainfalls are recorded from January to March and these are probably the months to avoid if you can, because hurricanes can strike the country, especially coastline.

Getting There

By Plane

LAM Mozambique Airways is the national airline of Mozambique and has its base at Maputo International Airport (MPM) near the capital. International destinations include flights to and from Durban, Johannesburg and Nairobi. Other airlines serving the country are South African Airways (Durban, Johannesburg, Cape Town), TAP Portugal (Lisbon, Johannesburg), Air Zimbabwe (Harare) and Kenya Airways (Nairobi). Swaziland is served as well.

By Train

There are trains between South Africa and Mozambique though it's much faster by buses or minivans.
The Komati Line serves Johannesburg and the Komatipoort border post daily (13 hours), from where you can continue to Maputo by rail.

By Car

There is a well maintained road between Johannesburg and Maputo and it takes around 7 to 8 hours including border formalities. Other borders with Swaziland, Zambia, Malawi and Tanzania are open and possible to cross with your own vehicle.
Note that you are mostly not allowed to cross borders with Mozambique with your South African rental car!

By Bus

The capital Maputo is easily reached by frequent daily buses to and from Johannesburg in South Africa, taking about 8 to 9 hours via the busy Komatipoort/Ressano Garcia border crossing. Pretoria and Nelspruit (the latter is close to Kruger National Park) can be reached as well from Maputo. Check Greyhound, InterCape Mainliner, Panthera Azul and Translux to check and compare schedules and prices. Panthera has buses to Durban via Swaziland, originating in Maputo.

Minibuses travel between Maputo and Manzini and Mbabane in Swaziland, taking about 3,5 hours including border formalities.

There are many border crossings with Malawi. To and from Blantyre use the Zóbuè crossing between Blantyre and Harare (Zimbabwe), where vehicles depart Blantyre for the border via Mwanza connecting in Mozambique with minibuses to Tete. The Milange border crossing is convenient for Quelimane and Ilha de Moçambique, with regular buses from Blantyre via Mulanje to the border. In Mozambique, there are daily services to Mocuba, Quelimane and Nampula.
The crossing at Mandimba is convenient for Cuamba and northern Mozambique. There’s frequent transport on the Malawi side to Mangochi, where you can get minibuses to Namwera and Chiponde. Once in Mozambique, vehicles go daily from Mandimba to Cuamba and Lichinga.
To and from Lilongwe, you can use the Dedza border post, 85km southeast of Lilongwe, where minibuses run along the sealed route to Tete via Ulongwé. Otherwise, you can travel in stages via Moatize.

From Tanzania, pickups depart Mtwara daily at 6.30am to the Kilambo border post, and on to the Rovuma River, crossed via dugout canoe. Once across, two pick-ups daily go to the Mozambique border post (4km further away) and on to Moçimboa da Praia (four hours).

For Zambia, the main crossing is at Cassacatiza, northwest of Tete. Chapas go daily from Tete to Matema, from where there’s onward transport to the border, and vehicles to Katete (Zambia), and on to Lusaka or Chipata.
To Zimbabwe, the main crossings are at Nyamapanda (which lies on the route linking Harare with Blantyre via Tete), and at Machipanda on the Harare to Beira route. Minibuses go from Tete to Changara and on to Nyamapanda, where there are vehicles to Harare. You can also travel directly via Blantyre and on by bus to Harare, again crossing the border with Mozambique through Tete. From Chimoio minibuses go to Manica and the border. From here, onward transport is available to Mutare and here you can take a night train to Harare.

By Boat

There are ferries between southwestern Tanzania and Mozambique via Malawi on the MV Songea between Mbamba Bay and Nkhata Bay. From here it goes on to Likoma Island (Malawi), Cóbuè and Metangula (both in Mozambique) on the MV Ilala. The MV Ilala departs from Monkey Bay (Malawi) at 10am Friday, arriving in Metangula (via Chipoka and Nkhotakota in Malawi) at 6am Saturday, reaching Cóbuè (Mozambique) around midday, Likoma Island at 1.30pm and Nkhata Bay at 1am Sunday morning. In southern direction departures are at 8pm Monday from Nkhata Bay and at 6.30am Tuesday from Likoma Island, reaching Cóbuè at 7am and Metangula at midday.

Getting Around

By Plane

LAM Mozambique Airways flies between Beira, Chimoio, Inhambane, Nampula, Pemba, Quelimane, Tete and Vilanculos. Air Corridor has flights between Beira, Nampula, Quelimane and Tete.

By Train

The Companhia dos Caminhos de Ferro da Beira has more information about train travel in the country. Trains run from the towns of Moçambique and Nacala, via the junction at Monapo, to Nampula and Lichinga. Trains also run from Maputo to Goba and Ressano Garcia, and northwards on the line to Zimbabwe. A rail connection between Maputo and Beira is closed since 2005 but is expected to reopen in the near future.

By Car

The road network in Mozambique is far from complete and many roads are in a bad condition. Inland roads are mostly gravel roads. Tarred roads connect Maputo with Beira and Beira with Tete and are usually in a good condition, safe the few potholes. Many roads can be impassable after heavy rains and a 4wd vehicle is recommended. You can rent cars in Maputo, Beira and Nampula and a few other places, including the international airports. Traffic drives on the right and you need an international driving permit to rent a car.

By Bus

Buses connect all major cities and towns at least daily. To more remote places, you can also use the so-called chapas, which basically are converted trucks. Buses are relatively affordable, comfortable and reliable and there are many bus companies to choose from.

By Boat

There are no regular passenger services within the country, but you can go on organised trips or charter a local fisherboat to go out on the Indian Ocean for fishing, diving and snorkelling.

Red Tape

All visitors (except citizens of Swaziland, South Africa, Tanzania, Botswana, Malawi, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, & Zambia) need a visa. Most nationals (except people from Taiwan) can get a visa upon arrival on one of the airports or most border posts. Note that this might not apply to all border posts and getting a visa beforehand is advised. Your passport needs to be valid for 6 months from the date of issue of the visa and you need one blank page as well.
Visas are usually valid for 90 days and costs around $20 for single-entry and $40 for double/multiple-entry visas.

Money

See also Money Matters

Work

Study

Language

See also: Portuguese phrasebook

Eat

Sleep

Drink

Health

See also Travel Health

Safety

See also Travel Safety

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

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