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Zanzibar · Tanzania

Car hire and driving in Zanzibar

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

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In Tanzania traffic drives on the left. Picking up at ZNZ means 7 km (4 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 Zanzibar

Car rental from Zanzibar: distances and estimated journey times
RouteCountryDistanceEstimated time
Zanzibar to Dar es SalaamTanzania74 km (46 mi)about 1 h 7 min
Zanzibar to KibahaTanzania74 km (46 mi)about 1 h 8 min
Zanzibar to TangaTanzania122 km (76 mi)about 1 h 52 min
Zanzibar to HandeniTanzania154 km (96 mi)about 2 h 21 min
Zanzibar to MorogoroTanzania185 km (115 mi)about 2 h 49 min
Zanzibar to IfakaraTanzania353 km (220 mi)about 5 h 23 min
Zanzibar to MoshiTanzania375 km (233 mi)about 5 h 43 min
Zanzibar to DodomaTanzania382 km (238 mi)about 5 h 50 min
Zanzibar to ArushaTanzania418 km (259 mi)about 6 h 22 min
Zanzibar to IringaTanzania425 km (264 mi)about 6 h 29 min
Zanzibar to MtwaraTanzania469 km (291 mi)about 7 h 9 min
Zanzibar to SingidaTanzania515 km (320 mi)about 7 h 51 min
Zanzibar to MwanzaTanzania807 km (502 mi)about 12 h 19 min
Zanzibar to MbeyaTanzania703 km (437 mi)about 10 h 43 min
Zanzibar to KahamaTanzania775 km (482 mi)about 11 h 49 min
Zanzibar to GeitaTanzania854 km (531 mi)about 13 h 2 min
Zanzibar to TaboraTanzania717 km (445 mi)about 10 h 56 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 Zanzibar?

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.