File:View_of_Songea_city-2.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Songea
Songea is the capital of Ruvuma Region in southwestern Tanzania. It is located along the A19 road. The city has a population of 286,285, and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Songea. Between 1905 and 1907, the city was a centre of African resistance during the Maji Maji Rebellion in German East Africa. The city is poised to experience significant economic growth in the near future as the Mtwara Corridor opens up in a few years. It is projected to be the sixth fastest growing city on the African continent between 2020 and 2025, with a 5.74% growth.
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Place details
- Locality
- Songea
- Region
- Ruvuma
- Country
- Tanzania
- Population
- 286,285
Travel guide
Get in
Dar es Salaam – Sumry Tsh 32,000. You get a soda and a snack, plus there’s the Al Jazeera stop.
Moro – Scandinavia Tsh 28,000
Iringa – Super Feo
Arusha – Hood Tsh 35,000
Njombe – Fikiri Trans Tsh 8,000 Phone number for the Songea office: 0756-286-674
Masasi – Tsh 15,000
Get around
Taxi no more than Tsh 3,000 from anywhere to anywhere else in Songea town—it isn't that big a place.
Eat
Sorry—no cheese, no ice cream
Supercafe – Lots of little foods that can add up to big hela. They’ve got tiny burgers in big buns and warm banana bread. Get a glass of passion juice! Songea Bakery – The sign calls them lizatot, but Jenna calls them “Entimenes” they’re that good. The have tables inside and outside under an umbrella. Mtini Pub – It’s a kibanda under an mti. (There are cheap guest houses around here too; they’re noisy though from the bar crowd.) Agape Cafe – It has Tanzanian fare plus some baked goods. You can sit in a booth, watch television.
Sleep
There are guest houses all around the standi for Tsh 5000 to 10,000. Don Bosco – Tsh 5000 self-contained single (but the beds are double-bed size), big room with a television, the running water isn’t hot but the matron will bring you some if you ask, less than five-minutes’ walk from the bus standi. On Sunday mornings, you wake up to the entire Catholic mass over speakerphone from the church next door
Go next
Towards Lindi and Mtwara, a large section of the A19 road is under construction. From Nantumbo to Nangomba the tarmac road turns into a very rough dirt road. In the rainy season this stretch of road poses a serious obstacle, with mud, sand, rocks and flooding to contend with, and a 4WD or off-road bike is definitely recommended. It wouldn't hurt in the dry season either!
Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)
~3 min read
Article
5 sectionsContents
- History
- Education
- Administration
- Climate
- References
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name = Songea | other_name = | native_name = | nickname = | settlement_type = < City of Ruvuma Region | motto = | image_skyline = View of Songea city-2.jpg | imagesize = | image_caption = View of Songea city from Sinyanga Hotel | image_flag = Songea Municipal Flag.png | flag_size = | image_seal = | seal_size = | image_map = | mapsize = | map_caption = | pushpin_map = Tanzania#Africa | pushpin_label_position = bottom | pushpin_map_caption = Location of Songea. | pushpin_relief = yes | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Tanzania | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Ruvuma | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = Songea Urban | subdivision_type3 = | subdivision_name3 = | government_footnotes = | government_type = | leader_title = | leader_name = | established_title = | established_date = | area_magnitude = | unit_pref = Imperial | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = | area_land_km2 = | population_as_of = 2022 census | population_footnotes = | population_note = | population_total = 286285 | population_density_km2 = | timezone = EAT | utc_offset = +3 | timezone_DST = | utc_offset_DST = | coordinates = | elevation_footnotes = <!--for references: use It is located along the A19 road. The city has a population of 286,285, and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Songea. Between 1905 and 1907, the city was a centre of African resistance during the Maji Maji Rebellion in German East Africa. The city is poised to experience significant economic growth in the near future as the Mtwara Corridor opens up in a few years. It is projected to be the sixth fastest growing city on the African continent between 2020 and 2025, with a 5.74% growth.
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