city in Mozambique
Cuamba is a city in Niassa province, in north-west Mozambique. It is an important rail and road junction, and is often used as a stop off on the way to/from Malawi.
The city's airport no longer sees scheduled flights, nearest major gateway is the international airport in Nampula.
Cuamba is along the major east-west route EN8 which runs from the coastal city of Nacala via Nampula continuing all the way to Mandimba on the Malawian border. The road is being upgraded but some parts remain unpaved.
There's now also a daily train from Nampula, departing early morning and taking 10-12 hours to complete the journey. The train even boosts its own restaurant car. A second class ticket costs 400 MZN.
Daily minibus service to the border town Mandimba starts collecting passengers early morning at 4AM and leaves when full, this procedure can sometimes take hours. Travel time is around 3½ hours. Minibuses also wait for the train from Nampula and quickly fill up with passengers continuing to Mandimba, Lichinga and elsewhere.
Cuamba is small enough to travel around on foot. Bicycle taxis and local transport are also available, as is the train to travel in and out on. The closest airports are Nampula and Lichinga.
Several shops are available offering quality food, clothing, construction supplies and other goods. Prices are cheaper in Cuamba than further outlying areas like Lichinga, the province capita