Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Dar es Salaam (Tanzania). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Askari Monument, St. Joseph's Cathedral, and Azania Front Lutheran Church. Also, be sure to include National Museum in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Dar es Salaam (Dar es Salaam).
Table of Contents
Askari Monument
Also known as: Sanamu ya Askari
Historical landmark in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Askari Monument or Dar es Salaam African Memorial in Kivukoni Ward in Ilala District of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, is a memorial to the askari who fought in the British campaign against the German Army in East Africa in World War I. It was unveiled in 1927. The monument is located at the centre of a roundabout on Samora Avenue at the perpendicular junction to Maktaba Street and Azikiwe Street, a place that reportedly also marks the exact centre of downtown Dar es Salaam.
The monument was erected in honour of the King's African Rifles and the Carrier Corps. The main feature of the monument is "The Askari", a bronze sculpture of an African soldier. It was realised in the United Kingdom by British sculptor James Alexander Stevenson, who worked for Westminster's Morris Bronze Founders. Stevenson signed the statue with his pseudonym "Myrander". Before being sent to Dar es Salaam, the statue was exhibited at the Royal Academy, receiving critical praise. The soldier has a rifle with bayonet pointed towards the Dar es Salaam harbour. The statue stands on a stone pedestal. On the narrow sides of the pedestal are plaques with a dedication in Swahili (Arabic and Latin script) and English; on the wide sides of the pedestal are two pictorial plaques showing fighting African soldiers and the Carrier Corps. The English inscription includes "If you fight for your country even if you die your sons will remember your name".
In the place where the Askari Monument is located, there used to be another statue, namely that of German explorer and army major Hermann Wissmann, governor of German East Africa in the late 19th century. This former statue, unveiled in 1911, represented Wissmann standing, one hand on his hip and one on his sword, looking towards the harbour; at his feet, an African soldier covering a dead lion with a German flag. When the British entered Dar es Salaam in 1916, they removed this statue along with those of Karl Peters and Otto von Bismarck.
The monument in Dar es Salaam belongs to a group of three Askari Monuments that were unveiled in the same year in what was then British East Africa; the other two are at Mombasa and Nairobi. A separate Dar es Salaam British and Indian Memorial, commemorating by name more than 1,500 British and Indian officers and men who died in East Africa during and after January 1917 and who have no known grave, is now in Dar Es Salaam War Cemetery.[1]
St. Joseph's Cathedral
Also known as: Kanisa la Mtakatifu Joseph
Cathedral in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Saint Joseph's Metropolitan Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It is a Gothic church located in Sokoine Drive, facing the harbour, close to the White Fathers' House. It was built by the Germans between 1897 and 1902 and consecrated as a Catholic church in 1905. The cathedral is the seat of the Dar es Salaam archdiocese. One of the most notable features of the church are the stained-glass windows behind the altar.[2]
Address: Sokoine Dr, Dar es Salaam
Azania Front Lutheran Church
Also known as: Kanisa Kuu la Azania Front
Cathedral in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Azania Front Lutheran Church is a Lutheran church in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, serving as a cathedral for the local diocese. It is among the most well-known landmarks and tourist attractions of the city. It is in the city center, close to the ocean, facing the harbour. It was built by the German missionaries in 1898, in the Bavarian style of the time, with a red-tiled roof, tiled canopies over the windows and bright white walls.[3]
Address: Kivukoni Rd, Dar es Salaam
National Museum
Exhibits on Tanzania's history and culture. The National Museum of Tanzania is a consortium of five Tanzanian museums whose purpose is to preserve and show exhibits about the history and natural environment of Tanzania. The consortium developed from the National Museum of Dar es Salaam, established in 1934 by Tanganyika governor Harold MacMichael. Four more museums later joined the consortium, namely the Village Museum in Dar es Salaam, the National History Museum and the Arusha Declaration Museum in Arusha, and the Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere Memorial Museum in Butiama.[4]
Address: Shaaban Robert Street, Dar es Salaam
Uhuru Monument
Monument in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Uhuru Monument is a landmark monument and tourist attraction in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It is a white obelisk with a replica of the Uhuru Torch mounted at its top. It is located at the Mnazi Mmoja Park in the city centre and is partly fenced.[5]
Makatumbe Range Rear Lighthouse
Lighthouse. The Makatumbe Range Rear Lighthouse is located on the island of Outer Makatumbe close to the coast of Dar es salaam, Tanzania. The lighthouse assists ships waiting in the strait that are about to enter the Kivukoni channel.
The lighthouse structure is similar to that of Ras Mkumbi Lighthouse and is a square masonry tower with a red lantern and gallery. The lighthouse structure was refurbished between 1997 and 1999 in a project that saw the overhaul of Port of Dar es Salaam infrastructure.[6]
Ikulu
Ikulu is the official residence of the president of Tanzania in Dar es Salaam which was founded by Majid bin Said of Zanzibar in 1865.
The State House blends African and Arabian architecture, with wide verandahs and covered walkways. It is white-walled with floors of African terrazzo, and stands in over 33 acres (13 ha) of grounds overlooking the Indian Ocean on the east and Dar es Salaam to the west. The brass-studded west doors are surmounted by a replica of the Republic's Coat of Arms and flanked by two giant drums. During 2001 one of the entrances after the car gates was adorned with two male Lions overlooking guests as they would be welcomed to the State House of The United Republic Of Tanzania.
The building contains a number of gifts from state visitors, including an Ethiopian shield with crossed spears, given by Emperor Haile Selassie and a representation of the coat-of-arms of the Republic of Tanganyika, given by the government of India in 1961, that acts as a backdrop to the President's seat in the Council Chamber.[7]
Address: Dar es Salaam, 11400, Kivukoni, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve
Also known as: Hifadhi ya bahari ya Dar es Salaam
The Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve System is a group of marine wildlife reserves in Tanzania, situated off the coast of Dar es Salaam Region. The reserve system consists of nine uninhabited islands, four north of Dar es Salaam and five south of the city. It provides protection for several important tropical ecosystems; coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds.[8]
Pangavini Island
Also known as: Kisiwa cha Pangavini
Island in Tanzania. Pangavini Island is an uninhabited Tanzanian island in the Zanzibar Channel, about 1.5 km off the mainland, north of the country's capital city, Dar es Salaam and is one of the nine islands of the Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve System. The island is small, only about 250 m long; it has a rocky coastline without beaches.
Pangavini Island is an important breeding, resting and feeding site to a variety of rats, birds and reptiles (snakes and lizards). There is also an assortment of insects including butterflies.[9]
Nyumba ya Sanaa
Art center in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Nyumba ya Sanaa, also known as the Mwalimu Nyerere Cultural Centre or Julius Nyerere Cultural Centre, was a cultural centre, art workshop and art gallery in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It was established in 1972 to promote local modern art and craftsmanship. Situated in a privileged location, it was replaced in 2010 by a tower building with residential and commercial facilities.[10]
Address: Ohio Street, Dar es Salaam
The Institute of Finance Management
The Institute of Finance Management is a public Institute in Tanzania established in 1972. It stands as the oldest higher learning financial institution in Tanzania. The institute has been involved in teaching, research, and consultancy.[11]