TRAVEL
TIPS
| Driving |
TBA |
| Currency |
(LSL)
Loti/(ZAR) South African Rand |
| Electrical |
220 Volts |
| Telephones |
Country
Code 266, City Code, Lesotho 22+6D |
Time:
GMT + 2.
Electricity:
220 volts AC, 50Hz.
Telephone:
IDD is available to some cities. Country code: 266 (no area codes).
Outgoing international code: 00. There is a limited internal telephone
network.
Climate:
Temperate climate with well-marked seasons. Summer is the rainy
season; 85 per cent of rainfall occurs from October to April,
especially in the mountains. Snow occurs in the highlands from
May to September. The hottest period is from January to February.
Lesotho is a land of clear blue skies and more than 300 days of
sunshine.
Clothing:
During the summer, lightweight cottons with warmer wear for the
evenings is needed. In winter, medium- to heavyweight clothes
are advised. Waterproofing is necessary during the rainy season.
Food
& Drink: The main hotels in Maseru serve international
food, but there are also some interesting places to dine in the
main towns. Hotels and restaurants in Lesotho cater for all nationalities.
There are halal foods and seafood. Cooking styles include French,
Italian, Continental and Chinese in Maseru. Much food has to be
imported from South Africa, but freshwater fish is in abundant
supply.
Good beer is widely available and better establishments will have
a good choice of beers, spirits and wines.
Shopping:
There are many handicraft shops and centres selling items including
Lesotho’s famous conical hats; grass-woven articles (mats,
brooms and baskets); pottery; wool and mohair rugs; tapestries
and other textiles; rock painting reproductions; traditional seed,
clay bead and porcupine quill jewellery; silver and gold items;
copper work (particularly chess sets of African design) and ebony
items. Shopping hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1700, Sat 0800-1500.
Tipping: It is customary in restaurants and hotels
to give a tip as a reward for good service.
Currency: Loti (M) = 100 lisente. Notes are in
denominations of M200, 100, 50, 20 and 10. Coins are in denominations
of 500, 200, 100, 50, 25, 10, 5, 2 and 1 lisente. The plural of
‘loti’ is ‘maloti’ and the singular of
‘lisente’ is ‘sente’. The South African
Rand is accepted as legal currency on a par with the Loti (Rand
R1 = 100 cents).
Credit
& debit cards: Limited acceptance of Visa, MasterCard
and Diners Club. Check with your credit or debit card company
for details of merchant acceptability and other services which
may be available.
Travellers
cheques: These are widely accepted. To avoid additional
exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take travellers
cheques in US Dollars or Pounds Sterling.
