Things to do in Dar es Salaam

Food · Kivukoni, by the harbour entrance

The city's fish market on the point where the harbour meets the ocean — auctions at dawn, grills going all morning.

Local tip: Come before 8am for the auction, then have your fish grilled at the stalls behind. It is loud, wet and the single most alive place in Dar.

Neighborhood · Kariakoo

The vast trading district that supplies half the country — streets organised by product, and an education in how the regional economy actually moves.

Local tip: Go with someone who knows it, keep your phone away, and go for a specific thing rather than to browse. Prices here set prices everywhere else in the city.

Nature · Oyster Bay

The city beach on the peninsula, busy with families and food vendors at weekends and quiet on weekday evenings.

Local tip: Sunday afternoon is when Dar comes here. Currents make swimming poor — this is a walking, eating and watching beach, not a swimming one.

Nature · Boat from Msasani slipway

A small marine-reserve island half an hour offshore, with clear water, grilled fish and almost nothing else.

Local tip: Boats leave from the slipway a few times a day. Go on a weekday and you will nearly have it to yourself; go Sunday and half of Masaki is there.

Culture · Central, near Ocean Road

Colonial-era buildings holding Tanzania's national collection, including hominid material from Olduvai, in gardens laid out in the German period.

Local tip: The Olduvai and Laetoli material is the reason to go and it is easy to walk past. Combine it with the Ocean Road seafront walk toward Kivukoni.

Culture · Kijitonyama, on the Bagamoyo road

Full-scale traditional dwellings from across Tanzania rebuilt on one open site, with craft demonstrations and weekend dance performances.

Local tip: Almost no international visitors and a genuinely good way to understand how varied Tanzania is beyond the coast. Go on a Saturday afternoon when the performances run.