ADEA, (nr. bus stand). An arts and crafts cooperative producing high quality handicrafts, mostly based around tingatinga painting. �
Hendricks Family, (Ziwani). The Hendricks family are the most famous of the makonde carvers still in Mtwara. Their work is available in town, or you can visit their carving workshop in Ziwani village just outside Mtwara. It's easiest to reach by vehicle, head out of Mtwara on the airport road and take the turn off for Mozambique / Mnazi Bay Marine park. It's a couple of miles down that road. They are most famous for their 'cloud' carvings which are carved out of a single piece of wood and make a cage out of lots of interconnected branches. �
Carving Stand, (end of india street, nr posta). A small stand selling a range of Makonde carvings. If you're a good negotiator this is the best value place to buy your Makonde carvings. �
Gift shop, (at Msemo (see Eat)). The gift shop attached to the hotel/restaurant has a decent range of local crafts. �
Ray shop, (Bima). For general supplies there are a bunch of shops at the Bima made out of old shipping containers. They all contain fairly similar things but Ray Shop usually has the best selection. �
Makonde Mini Mart, Aga Khan street. A little more ex-pat orientated than the container shops at the Bima. If you can't find what you're looking for there this is probably the best bet. �
Market (soko), (nr bus stand). The market is the best place to pick up local goods from food and clothes to traditional medicines. Generally bargaining is not expected and the same price is given to locals and tourists alike. �
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Mtwara
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Mtwara - updated May 2024
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Mtwara Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
