Uganda to Lake Tanganyika? - Horizons Unlimited

**oerg** · #1 2 Mar 2005

What is the best route to travel from Uganda to Kigoma/Lake Tanganyika?
Did anybody ride west round the lake Victora and down to Kigoma?
Is it better to ide around Lake Victoria or to take the ferry and railway?

Best Thanks!

**ydv** · #2 4 Mar 2005

Hello, not mine, second hand info from my good friend who did it few month ago:

* ferry from Burundi (Rumuje) to Tanzania (Kigoma) costs 4.000 TSH, departs everyday at 3 PM, duration 12 hrs. Immigration at Kigoma starts operations at 8 a.m. so the ferry has to wait for this time, c.a. 5 hrs drifting nearby.
* ferry from Bujumbura to Rumuje is 2.000 BFR, 2.5 hrs
* ferry from Byjumbura to Kigoma departs on Tuesdays only. 3 classes of tickets: III - sitting 25 usd; II berth - 30 usd; I bed - 35 usd. Departs midday, arrives 8 AM next day.
* Rwandan visa at the border is 60 usd for 2 weeks (?).
* Burundi visa at the border 40 usd for 2 weeks, 20 or 10 (?) usd for 48hrs transit.
* Tanzanian visa at the border with Burundi is 50 usd.

Cheers!

**Matt Roach** · #3 8 Mar 2005

Does anyone have any current info on the state of the roads or the border crossing between Tanzania and Burundi?

I am currently in Dar and planning to ride to Arusha and then across to the Burundi border. I know the wet season has just started however from reading my Michelin map, several hundered kms of the route looks sealed, whilst the rest seems unsealed.

Any advice on road conditions or potential problems at the Burundi border would be appreciated.

cheers
Matt Roach

**bernd s** · #4 11 Mar 2005

Hi

Meanwhile it is more than two years ago that we drove the Uganda to Tanzania route. At this time heavy roadwork was going on, so I expect the Tanzanian part of the (dirt) road as pretty good.In Uganda it was the usual sealed road with potholes. At least the part from Bukoba to Kigoma was well maintained due to all the UN support for the refugee camps around Kigoma.

Friends came directly from Burundi told us that the first stretch of the road on Tanzanian side is pretty bad, but that was 2001.

More Infos at
www.afritracks.de
www.afritracks.net

Best regards
Bernd