Bujumbura Travel Guide

Bujumbura is the capital of Burundi. The city is located on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, about one day's drive north of Ujiji, Tanzania (Kigoma) where Stanley and Livingston met and where Stanley spoke the famous words "Dr. Livingstone I presume?"

With a population of over 500,000 inhabitants, it's a pretty busy place. A 10-year civil war ended in 2005, and nearly all of the country lives in relative peace. The area was colonised by Germany at the end of the 19th century, and there is still architecture dating from that period of Burundi's history, including the Postmaster's House. Other attractions include three museums and the Islamic Cultural Centre. There are excellent cafés and restaurants throughout the city.  There is also a colorful market, the best in the country.

The Department of State continues to warn U.S. citizens to defer travel to Burundi due to the uncertain security situation within Burundi and the surrounding Great Lakes region. However, many expatriates are returning to Burundi since peace has returned, and many travel freely throughout the country. Please do read all travel warnings, but understand that many of these are out of date or extremely cautious. Burundi is a beautiful country and the people are very friendly.