Stone Town

Stone Town is the old quarter of Zanzibar City and the cultural centre of the archipelago. Built from coral stone through the 19th and 20th centuries, it was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 for the way Swahili, Arab, Indian and European building traditions sit together in one place.

The lanes are too narrow for cars, so the town is walked rather than driven. Within a few minutes you pass mosques, an Anglican cathedral built on the site of the former slave market, Hindu temples, the Old Fort, the House of Wonders and the seafront palaces of the Omani sultans. Darajani market runs all day, selling fish, fruit, spice and everything else the town needs.

Stone Town is also where the island’s stories live. Princess Salme grew up in the Sultan’s palace before leaving for Germany and writing her memoirs. Farrokh Bulsara was born a few streets away and became Freddie Mercury. The Swahili taarab singer Bi Kidude performed here into her nineties.

The town is not a beach destination. Most visitors stay one or two nights at the start or end of a trip, or come in for a day from the coast. Either works.

Stone Town is the only place in East Africa where a complete Swahili trading town survives intact. The carved doors, the coral rag walls and the lanes have barely changed in a century, and people still live and work in them. It is a living quarter rather than a preserved museum.

June to October is dry, breezy and comfortable for walking.
December to February is hot and humid but bright, and is high season.
March to May brings the long rains, when the town is quiet and prices soften.
Ramadan changes the rhythm of the town. Many restaurants close during daylight and the evenings come alive after sunset. Dates move each year.

Stone Town has boutique hotels in restored merchant houses, a handful of larger seafront properties and simple guesthouses in the lanes. Rooftop terraces are the thing to ask for. We book accommodation across every category and will match the property to your budget.

Stone Town is about fifteen minutes by road from Abeid Amani Karume International Airport and is the arrival point for the ferry from Dar es Salaam. We meet every flight and ferry with a name board and a fixed price agreed in advance.