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Mtwara · Tanzania

Car hire and driving in Mtwara

Driving distances to the cities around, the rules that change at the border, and where to compare rental prices.

OverviewFlightsHotelsTrainsBusesCar rentalTours

In Tanzania traffic drives on the left. Picking up at MYW means 8 km (5 mi) into the centre before the trip starts. The emergency number is http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1061257 / http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q25648805 / http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2945964.

Drives from Mtwara

Car rental from Mtwara: distances and estimated journey times
RouteCountryDistanceEstimated time
Mtwara to Dar es SalaamTanzania396 km (246 mi)about 6 h 2 min
Mtwara to KibahaTanzania413 km (257 mi)about 6 h 18 min
Mtwara to IfakaraTanzania451 km (281 mi)about 6 h 53 min
Mtwara to ZanzibarTanzania469 km (291 mi)about 7 h 9 min
Mtwara to MorogoroTanzania473 km (294 mi)about 7 h 13 min
Mtwara to SongeaTanzania498 km (309 mi)about 7 h 36 min
Mtwara to IringaTanzania565 km (351 mi)about 8 h 37 min
Mtwara to HandeniTanzania588 km (365 mi)about 8 h 58 min
Mtwara to TangaTanzania590 km (367 mi)about 9 h
Mtwara to MakumbakoTanzania607 km (377 mi)about 9 h 16 min
Mtwara to DodomaTanzania668 km (415 mi)about 10 h 11 min
Mtwara to KatumbaTanzania729 km (453 mi)about 11 h 7 min
Mtwara to MwanzaTanzania1,179 km (732 mi)about 17 h 59 min
Mtwara to ArushaTanzania859 km (534 mi)about 13 h 6 min
Mtwara to MbeyaTanzania754 km (468 mi)about 11 h 30 min
Mtwara to KahamaTanzania1,101 km (684 mi)about 16 h 47 min
Mtwara to GeitaTanzania1,203 km (747 mi)about 18 h 20 min

Distances are straight-line; road and rail routes run about 15–25% longer. Times are estimates from distance and typical speeds, not timetables.

Where to compare car hire

ExpediaCar hire from the major suppliers, and the one to look at if the flight or hotel is already booked there. Part of Expedia Group.Check car hire on Expedia (opens www.expedia.com in a new tab)
DiscoverCarsCompares local and international suppliers. Read the counter reviews before you pick.Check rental cars on DiscoverCars (opens www.discovercars.com in a new tab)
Rentalcars.comBooking.com's car arm, with wide airport coverage worldwide.Compare suppliers on Rentalcars.com (opens www.rentalcars.com in a new tab)
Every link above leaves this site.

We take no bookings for these providers and hold no reservation with them. The provider you choose handles payment, confirmation, changes and refunds. How that works.

Common questions

Which side of the road do they drive on in Mtwara?

The left, as everywhere in Tanzania.

How are the journey times on this page worked out?

From straight-line distance and typical speeds for each mode, so they are estimates for planning, not timetables. Road and rail routes run 15–25% longer than the straight line.

Where these facts come from

  • GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
  • Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
  • OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
  • Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines

Data compiled 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.