Swaziland

The currency of Swaziland, the lilangeni plural: "emalangeni", is tied to the South African rand at 1:1. Shops in Swaziland often accept and make change for both currencies indiscriminately. This is not the case in South Africa, however, so if you are planning to visit South Africa also, you may prefer to request rand in exchange for emalangeni at banks in Mbabane or Manzini: proof of identity is required. It is impossible to exchange your emalangeni at Johannesburg Airport, as well as in the UK. All Swazi vendors will take Rand, but no South African vendors will take emalangeni.

Note that when traveling on the kombis in Swaziland, the operators will NOT take Rand coins.

For souvenirs, one must not miss these highlights:

Swazi Candles

(http://www.swazicandles.com/), located in ezulwini valley where you can buy beautifully waxed colorful animal figures in all sizes.

Ngwenya Glass

(http://www.ngwenyaglass.co.sz/), located just next to the ngwenya border post on the mr3. here you can find lots of glass works made on location. animals, plates, glasses, etc. are all to be found here, and they are cheaper here than in other places. one can also visit the factory and see the glass blowers at work.

Gone Rural

(http://www.goneruralswazi.com/), located in ezulwini valley next to the house on fire concert stage. here you can find various woven baskets, placemats etc. for very cheap prices.

Next to these highlights there are also smaller stores, where you can buy everything from Swazi Foods to Swazi wooden sculptures and handmade bags.