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Mozambique Budget & Travel Report

Many first-time visitors to Mozambique are surprised with the costs they encounter here — whether traveling independently or with a package tour. We found that the cost of just about everything for travelers is quite a bit more than in neighboring South Africa or Tanzania and had to adjust our Mozambique budget accordingly.

Here’s our Mozambique budget report covering food, lodging, communication, and other travel expenses by location for one month. We’ve also included our itinerary as well as tips on tracking travel expenses and cutting costs in Mozambique.

Mozambique Budget

Tracking Our Mozambique Budget Expenses

All of the following information comes as a result of tracking our expenses with the superb mobile app MoneyControl.

I paid for the full version of both the mobile and desktop apps, but have found that the mobile app is really all you need, as you can generate reports right on your phone and export them in a variety of ways.

Trail Wallet and other apps have been recommended to us (and I’ve tried them all) but have found that I prefer the ease of use, interface, and reports of MoneyControl.

The one advantage that Trail Wallet has over others is the ability to deal with a variety of currencies and conversions, but the functionality is currently limited.

For Lori and I, everything eventually gets converted back into USD anyway, as that is what we’re generally paid in and what our bank statements reflect, so I find it easiest to convert the amount to USD before entering it into the app.

A huge advantage of this is that it gives you an immediate sense of how much you’re actually spending, as £4 (British Pounds) doesn’t seem all that bad for a large gourmet coffee (until you realize that that’s US$6.40!).

Our 1 Month Mozambique Itinerary

We spent 30 days total in Mozambique (as long as our visa would allow), traveling from Ressano Garcia (South Africa border) in the far south to Pemba in the far north.

We utilized a variety of transportation including chapas (shared minivan taxis), machibombos (large coach-style buses), Tanzanianos or China chapas (shared minibuses), dhows (traditional East African sailboats), motorized dhows, ferries, private taxis, canoe, and finally, jet airliner from Pemba onward to Tanzania.

And of course, we covered countless miles on foot.

Our 30-Day Mozambique Itinerary

DateLocationStayTravel Time (to)
30 Sep – 6 OctMaputo6 nights9 hrs via InterCape bus from Nelspruit, RSA
6 Oct – 8 OctInhambane2 nights6.5 hrs via Post Bus + 0.5 hrs via ferry
8 Oct – 10 OctLinga Linga2 nights0.5 hrs via ferry + 0.5 hrs via chapa + 1.5 hrs via dhow
10 Oct – 13 OctTofo Beach3 nights0.5 hrs via canoe + 0.5 hrs chapa + 0.5 hrs ferry + 1 hr chapa
13 Oct – 15 OctBeira2 nights10 hrs via Post Bus
13 Oct – 15 OctQuelimane2 nights8 hrs via Nagi Bus
15 Oct – 17 OctNampula1 night6 hrs via Nagi Bus (usually takes 8-10)
18 Oct – 23 OctMozambique Island5 nights4 hrs via “Tanzaniano” chapa
23 Oct – 29 OctPemba area7 nights1.5 hrs via chapa + 5.5 hrs via bus
Lodging Expenses Mozambique

Mozambique Lodging

We stayed in 11 different guesthouses, lodges, and backpackers hostels in Mozambique.

The average cost of accommodation per night for two people was $37 USD, with our most expensive lodging being $51 in Nampula for a fairly basic room (a big surprise!), and our cheapest being $23 for a thatch hut in Linga Linga.

The best value for the money was Pensão Ideal — Double room with AC and en suite bathroom in a clean and safe guesthouse is pretty hard to beat in Moz.

The most overpriced accommodation was Ruby Backpackers in Nampula, but all accommodation in Nampula seemed much more expensive than average.

Mozambique Lodging by Location

LocationPropertyRateNotes
Maputo (1)Base BackpackersUS $39double / shared bath
Maputo (2)Base BackpackersUS $262x dorm beds / shared bath
Inhambane CityPensao MachibomboUS $39double / shared bath
Linga LingaFunky Monkey / Lucio’s PlaceUS $23double cabana / shared bath
Tofo BeachFatima’s NestUS $44double cabana / shared bath
BeiraHotel SavoyUS $26twin double / shared bath
QuelimanePensao IdealUS $26AC double / en suite bath
NampulaRuby Backpackers NampulaUS $51double / shared bath
Ilha de MoambiqueMooxeleliyaUS $32double / en suite bath
Pemba (1)Pemba Dive & Bush CampUS $40double “backpackers” / shared bath
Pemba (2)Residencial LysUS $42AC double / en suite bath
Pemba (3)Pensao BaiaUS $26double / shared bath

Wifi was difficult to come by in Moz during our stay. The Base had a very slow computer to get online with (and Pemba Dive & Bush Camp also supposedly had one, but we never used it). Fatima’s Nest in Tofo and Ruby’s in Nampula both had wifi in common areas, but from 7pm to 7am only.

Internet cafes and restaurants/cafes with wifi were also hard to come by. The best options for free wifi were Caffettissimo in the top of the Polana Shopping Center in Maputo, Bistro Pescador near the pier in Inhambane City, and O Escondidinho in Ilha de Moçambique.

If you’re planning a stay of any length in Mozambique, need to stay connected, and have an unlocked GSM world band smart phone (like an unlocked AT&T or T-Mobile iPhone, if you live in the U.S.), it pays to get an mCel SIM card and add a data package.

SIM cards cost about US$1.50 and can be purchased from any mCel store or any number of vendors on the street. Top-up credit costs a few bucks and should give you enough data to last a few days to a week.

Mozambique Expenses by Location

The following is an overview of our costs (for TWO travelers — a husband/wife couple) in each location we visited.

The table below does not include transport (see transport section below) or communication costs or incidentals such as water, toilet paper, etc. — but should hopefully give you some idea of what your own Mozambique budget might look like as an independent traveler.

Average Expenses per Day by Location

LocationTotalFoodLodgingSightseeing
MaputoUS $94 /dayUS $37 /dayUS $56 /dayUS $1 /day
Inhambane Province (I’bane, Tofo, Linga…)$65$28$37$0
Sofala & Zambezia Provinces (Beira, Quelimane…)$52$26$26$0
Nampula Province (Nampula, Ilha…)$68$30$35$3
Cabo Delgado Province (Pemba…)$63$30$33$0
OVERALL AVERAGES$68 /day$30 /day$37 /day$1 /day

Overall, transportation ran us US$260 for two people to get from Maputo to Pemba and everywhere in between. Transport was almost always shared public transport, with the few rare exceptions of 3 am private-hire taxis to bus stations.

2 thoughts on “Mozambique Budget & Travel Report”

  1. Great information, so detailed ! wow! GM

    Reply
  2. Shirley Northcraft

    Well done—And you make fun of me for keeping a running trick-or-treater count year to year.

    Reply

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