Before your trip, learn about Germany’s colonial history in Tanzania. Learn from and engage in dialogue with Black and/or Tanzanian historians, social scientists, artists and activists.
Question exoticising, racist clichés about Africa and the images you have of Tanzania – be open to new things and don’t use descriptions such as ‘primitive’ or ‘exotic’ when talking about your travels.
Be critical about where you spend your money and who benefits from your trip. Book with Tanzanian providers or small German businesses with diverse teams.
Visit colonial historical memorial sites with local guides who tell stories from a Tanzanian perspective and ask questions about resistance and pre-colonial history.
Reflect on whether and to what extent what is presented has been adapted to Western expectations and commercialized, when participating in cultural tourism activities such as visiting Maasai bomas. Culture is not for your entertainment! Are one-sided, clichéd narratives being reproduced, or is it about valuable exchange and culturally sensitive awareness-raising?
Stay in guesthouses or hotels run by Tanzanians instead of international chains. Avoid accommodation in former colonial buildings that market nostalgia.
Buy your souvenirs directly from artists and craftspeople. Avoid products that romanticise colonialism and stereotypes or those that originate from exploitative production conditions.
Choose Tanzanian safari operators that work in an ecological and community-based manner, and educate yourself about the colonial history of the national parks and current land conflicts. Avoid places of mass tourism.
Do not photograph people without asking, especially in poorer areas and children. What do you want to show with your motif? Is the photo respectful and dignified?
Pay attention to environmental sustainability: offset the CO2 emissions of your long-haul flight. Take the bus, train or bicycle for your travels within the country. Choose local food and drink over European imports, take your rubbish with you and don’t waste water.
Decolonial Travel Guide Tanzania 