Reality Brief: Manzini

Current alerts

No official alerts recorded for this region.

Essentials before you arrive

• Passport: France, United Kingdom

  No visa is needed for tourist stays of up to 30 days for French and British nationals.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, entry and residenceGOV.UK (FCDO), Eswatini travel advice: entry requirementsGuide: Entry and residence

• Passport valid for more than 6 months after departure according to France (3 months after arrival according to the UK), with 2 blank pages, plus 2 more if you also travel through South Africa.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, entry and residenceGOV.UK (FCDO), Eswatini travel advice: entry requirementsGuide: Entry and residence

• The 13 border posts (11 with South Africa, 2 with Mozambique) are not open at night, usually 7 am to 6 pm. A vehicle not registered in Eswatini pays an entry fee of at least 50 lilangeni or rand, in cash.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, entry and residenceGuide: Entry and residence

• Police 999, ambulance 977, fire 933.

  GOV.UK (FCDO), Eswatini travel advice: getting helpFrance Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, safetyGuide: Health

• The country is generally safe, but assaults, sometimes violent, cannot be ruled out: do not walk at night in central Mbabane and Manzini, and leave your papers in a safe.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, safetyGuide: Safety and emergencies

• Driving on the left, international permit required. Avoid night driving and minibuses outside towns; take care with animals (notably at Hlane), fog and dirt roads in the rainy season (October to April). Speed checks are frequent.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, useful informationFrance Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, safetyGuide: Safety and emergencies

• The currency is the lilangeni (SZL); rand notes are accepted and widely used. Cards are accepted in most large hotels and some restaurants.

  Government of Canada, Travel advice: EswatiniGuide: Money and banking

Living in Manzini

• The country is generally safe, but assaults, sometimes violent, cannot be ruled out: do not walk at night in central Mbabane and Manzini, and leave your papers in a safe.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, safetyGuide: Safety and emergencies

• Driving on the left, international permit required. Avoid night driving and minibuses outside towns; take care with animals (notably at Hlane), fog and dirt roads in the rainy season (October to April). Speed checks are frequent.

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, useful informationFrance Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, safetyGuide: Safety and emergencies

Field experience

• Tip

  Pharmacies, clinics and hospitals

  Listed in OpenStreetMap (not exhaustive): pharmacies (2), clinics (1), hospitals (10). Locate those near your home in the first days and check opening hours and on-call services locally.

• Tip

  Where to shop for food

  Listed in OpenStreetMap (not exhaustive): markets (2), supermarkets (12). Compare a few basic prices between market and supermarket before settling into habits.

• Tip

  Banks, cash machines and exchange

  Listed in OpenStreetMap (not exhaustive): banks (3), cash machines (2), money transfer (1). Withdraw and change money at these official places, preferably during the day, never in the street.

• Tip

  A shop for your SIM card

  Listed in OpenStreetMap (not exhaustive): phone and internet (2). Go with your passport: SIM registration is often mandatory.

• Tip

  A furnished flat for the first weeks

  Listed in OpenStreetMap (not exhaustive): furnished apartments (2). A furnished flat gives you time to visit several neighbourhoods before signing a lease.

• Emergency numbers

  Police 999, ambulance 977, fire 933.

  999977933

  GOV.UK (FCDO), Eswatini travel advice: getting help· Oct 2, 2026

• Embassy of France in Mozambique

  Passport: France

  Covers Eswatini.

  Avenida Julius Nyerere, BP 4781, Maputo, Mozambique+258 21 48 46 00

  France Diplomatie, Travel advice: Eswatini, useful contacts· Oct 2, 2026