Best Things to Do in Zanzibar
Zanzibar rewards people who leave the hotel. The beach is the reason most visitors come, and it is the smaller half of what the island offers. Here is what is genuinely worth your time, grouped by the kind of day you want.
History and culture
Walk Stone Town. A UNESCO World Heritage site and a working town, not a museum. Carved doors, narrow lanes, the old slave market and Anglican Cathedral, the Old Fort, the House of Wonders and the Forodhani night market on the seafront. Go with a guide who can explain what you are looking at, then go back on your own the next day. See the Stone Town historical tour.
Prison Island. A short boat ride from Stone Town, with a colonial-era quarantine building and a colony of Aldabra giant tortoises, some of them well over a century old. Good snorkelling off the beach. See the Prison Island tour.
A spice farm. Zanzibar built its wealth on cloves, and the farms outside Stone Town are still working. You taste and smell your way around cinnamon bark, nutmeg, vanilla, lemongrass and cardamom, and usually finish with fruit and a Zanzibari lunch. See the spice farm tour.
Sea and sand
Nakupenda sandbank. A strip of white sand that appears out of the sea at low tide and vanishes again. Boat out, swim, snorkel, eat grilled seafood on the sand. One of the best half days on the island. See Nakupenda sandbank with seafood lunch.
Mnemba atoll. The best snorkelling and diving in Zanzibar, off the north-east coast. Dolphins are often seen on the way out. Boats leave from Matemwe and the north. See the Mnemba Island half-day tour.
Safari Blue. A full day sailing the Menai Bay conservation area on a traditional dhow, with snorkelling, a sandbank, a mangrove lagoon and a large seafood lunch. The most popular full-day trip on the island for good reason. See Safari Blue.
A sunset dhow cruise. An hour and a half on the water off Stone Town as the light goes. Simple and worth it. See the sunset dhow cruise.
Wildlife
Jozani Forest. The last significant stretch of indigenous forest on Zanzibar and the only place in the world to see the Zanzibar red colobus monkey. They are used to people and easy to photograph. The mangrove boardwalk on the same site is worth the extra twenty minutes. See the Jozani Forest tour.
Sea turtles at Nungwi. A natural tidal pool holding rescued green turtles, where you can swim alongside them. See the sea turtles sanctuary.
Dolphins at Kizimkazi. Boats go out early from the south coast. Go with an operator who keeps a respectful distance rather than one who chases.
Adventure
Quad biking. Through villages, spice plantations and back roads. Loud, dusty and the most fun some people have all week. See the quad bike tour.
Ziplining. Above the trees inland, with a view across the canopy. See the zipline adventure.
Kitesurfing at Paje. Steady wind, a shallow lagoon and several good schools. You can go from nothing to riding in a few days.
Horse riding on the beach. Along the sand and into the shallows. Suitable for beginners. See the horse riding experience.
Food
The Rock. The restaurant on a rock in the sea off Michamvi. You walk out at low tide and take a boat at high tide. Book ahead, always. See The Rock restaurant experience.
A Zanzibari cooking class. Shop for ingredients, then cook pilau, coconut curry and chapati with a local family. The best few hours you can spend learning what you have been eating all week. See the culinary cooking class.
Forodhani Gardens. The evening food market on the Stone Town waterfront. Grilled seafood, Zanzibar pizza and sugar cane juice.
How to fit it together
Excursions can be combined so you are not paying for the same drive twice. Stone Town with Prison Island, spice farm with Jozani Forest, Prison Island with the Nakupenda sandbank. A combination day costs less than two separate days and wastes far less time in a vehicle.
Tell us how many days you have and what interests you, and we will build the week around it, with hotel pickup and a fixed price agreed before you travel. Browse all Zanzibar tours.
