Dates in country: 11 December 2008 – 8 January 2009
Currency: Metical Nova (36 – 37 Meticals Nova: 1 GBP)
Distance travelled : 4067 km
Fuel used: 452 Litres
Cost of fuel: 29.7 – 34.3 Meticals per litre
Visa /entry permit: Not required for UK citizens. 30 day entry permit granted at border. NB this can be renewed at immigration offices in larger towns
Carnet/Temporary Import Permit: Carnet not recognised (but customs officers at Ressano Garcia border were happy to stamp it). Temporary Import Permit is required - 30 day TIP granted at border (15 Rand), can apparently be extended without leaving country
Third Party Vehicle Insurance: Required, can be bought at petrol stations and shops on South African side of border (150 Rand).
Additional Requirements: One (possibly two?) warning triangles to be kept in vehicle in case of breakdown (in practice, the locals use tree branches to mark the frequent broken down vehicles) and ID cards or passports must be carried at all times
Customs: Chaos and delays at Ressano Garcia on entrance but no real problems either on entrance or exit.
Roads: Variable, with some brand new sections of (EU funded) tarmac highways but interspersed withy badly potholed tarmac or ungraded dirt tracks and roads in some towns areas (e.g. Mocuba and Quilimane) have enormous craters. The absence of meaningful road signs made navigating out of Maputo a case of trial and (mostly) error.
Police Stops: There are frequent police checkpoints and radar speed traps throughout Mozambique. We had no problems and were generally waved through (the police seemed more interested in checking the drivers and passengers of local chapas. The fact that we were British and driving a UK registered car at well below the speed limit may have helped – holidaying South Africans speeding towards the Mozambique coast seem to be regarded by the Mozambique police as a legitimate source of revenue.
