Based on a statement sent to the Observer from Johnson’s office, sister city agreements seem to be the kind of thing politicians love to point out but which mean absolutely nothing for the normal person who doesn’t get giddy over economics. The agreement includes “provisions for small business exchange programs and investment opportunities,” and is the first time Dallas has entered such a full-fledged agreement since 2010.
City records obtained by the Observer show that the trip came in around $40,000, around $13,300 of which is expected to be reimbursed to the city by the Dallas International Fund because the costs exceeded what the city typically agrees to pay for travel. For instance, the city won’t pay for its employees to fly business class, but as city staffers noted in planning documents for the trip, traveling to Tanzania requires “a difficult flight of more than 24 hours.”
Obviously, the mayor isn’t flying coach. Trip coordinators assured the city that the international fund would step in to pay for the difference between the regular people's seats and the seats that come with a little glass of Champagne during boarding.
The government rate (what the city is willing to pay using taxpayer dollars) for a hotel stay in Zanzibar, where Johnson spent two nights, is $301 a night. Johnson’s stay at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar cost twice that. Now, whoever says money can’t buy happiness doesn’t know about the Park Hyatt in Zanzibar. The website for the hotel shows four-post beds draped in creamy fabrics, balconies with blue sea views and an 18-meter infinity pool that surely left the mayor asking, “Do I really have to go back to Dallas?”
It’s a historic day for Dallas and Dar es Salaam! 🇺🇸🇹🇿 Today, Lord Mayor Omary Said Kumbilamoto and I signed an official Sister City agreement, formalizing the longstanding bond between our two great cities and fulfilling a promise I made with Ambassador Elsie Kanza (@eskanza)… pic.twitter.com/69u2LGYE1L
— Mayor Eric L. Johnson (@Johnson4Dallas) July 22, 2025
Now, this is where we must say we are not criticizing the mayor for this trip, even if we don’t really understand why it was necessary. For transparency, we love vacations here at the Observer. And looking at Johnson’s itinerary, we are deeply, deeply jealous.
We also think he should start traveling with a press pool, like the president, for transparency purposes. We volunteer.
In a statement to WFAA, the Dallas Foundation, which manages the international fund that Johnson’s office told the city would be responsible for reimbursing partial costs of the trip, said it is still reviewing the trip’s costs to ensure “they align with the guidelines and stipulations set forth in the fund agreement."
We asked SMU political science Professor Cal Jillson to look at Johnson’s financial records from the trip, and he stated that all seemed to be in line with what would be expected of a major city mayor. No ethics concerns stuck out to him, and he applauded correspondence between city officials like Chief Financial Officer Jack Ireland and Beth Huddleston, who serves in Johnson’s office as chief of protocol and international relations, for due diligence ahead of the trip taking place.
An expense sheet shows the mayor's expenses under the "actual cost" column, followed by how much the city is willing to pay and what amount will be reimbursed by private funds.
City of Dallas
“There are often small shows of selfishness, people taking advantage on the margins [with city finances], but frankly, I did not see that in this [trip],” said Jillson. “The cost did not seem to me to be out of line, once you assume that principals like the mayor of Dallas are not going to fly coach.”
Jillson added that while sister city agreements are pretty standard, he got a chuckle out of Johnson’s decision to partner with a city from Africa, considering Johnson’s switch to the Republican party, and President Donald Trump’s famous 2018 reference to African “shithole countries.”
“If I were the mayor, I would try to keep this from Donald Trump if at all possible,” Jillson said.
Now We’re Going to Make You Jealous, Too
The mayor spent three nights at the Hyatt Regency in Dar es Salaam, records show, for $1,805. That hotel, too, is about as lovely as you’d expect.But here’s where you’re going to be really jealous. A readout of the Johnson’s trip shows he spent four nights in Arusha, which is known as the safari capital of Africa and sits adjacent to the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. A standard Hyatt would not do for our mayor, here in Arusha.
Instead, he split his time between a luxury cottage tucked along the grounds of a coffee plantation and the ultimate glamping experience overlooking Africa’s wildlife migration path.
First up was the Legendary Lodge. The grounds are pristine, if photos do them any justice, and a smattering of private cottages overlook a working coffee plantation, which Johnson reportedly visited. A garden cottage rings in at $1,100 a night, and while the tropical gardens appear stunning, Johnson’s itinerary suggests he didn’t spend much time relaxing at the resort.
His readout states that after the coffee plantation tour, Johnson visited the Arusha City Cultural Heritage Center, met with conservation leaders, dined with Elsie Kanza, the United States’ Ambassador to Tanzania, and visited the Open Arms Clinic, a medical facility founded by former Texas Health Resources CEO Douglas Hawthorne.
Johnson’s office told us that his accommodations were selected by Tanzanian officials with consideration for the fact that his security detail did not come on the trip, “making safety an even more important consideration. The cost to the City of Dallas is the same regardless of the lodging selected, as the difference between the actual cost and the City’s standard policy rate is reimbursed to the City through the aforementioned Dallas International Fund.”
An interesting coincidence here is that Legendary Expeditions, which manages the Arusha properties where the mayor stayed, is owned by Mwiba Holdings. Mwiba Holdings is owned by Houston billionaire and active political donor Dan Friedkin.
“Has Mayor Johnson ever met or spoken with this guy?” We asked because we are nosy.
No answer.
The itinerary briefly mentions that Johnson traveled to the Serengeti, and financial records show he was staying at the Songa Migrational Camp. We will let the website explain what type of experience this is.
“Guests are granted a front row seat to the procession of more than two million wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s gazelle as they traverse across the vast grass plains,” the website states. “It’s not uncommon to awaken at dawn to the sounds and sights of wildlife just outside your tent, and out in these endless grasslands, time seems temporarily suspended as you’re struck by the utter vastness of the wilderness. Songa Migrational Camp puts you in the thick of it, in the heart of it … the wonder of the Serengeti ecosystem permeating every one of your senses.”
The website depicts stylish lounge seating around fireplaces, trendy dining table-scapes (or “bush picnics”) that overlook watering holes, a community lounge tent with a stocked bar and massive private tents fitted with king-sized beds and ensuite bathrooms. One night is $3,270.
Johnson has posted several photos from his Tanzania trip, but none from his time in Songa, even though there has literally never been a better place for him to wear an Indiana Jones hat.
Release the safari photos, mayor! Let us live vicariously through you!
