Zan Maldive Tours and Safaris

Travel style: Beach holiday

  • Nakupenda Sandbank with Seafood Lunch

    Nakupenda means “I love you” in Kiswahili, and the sandbank earns the name. It sits a short boat ride off Stone Town, a strip of pure white sand surrounded on every side by shallow turquoise water. At high tide it shrinks to a sliver. At low tide it opens into a wide beach with nothing on it but your group, the shade tents and the sea.

    The day starts with a boat from Stone Town. On the way out you stop to snorkel over the reef, where the water is clear enough to see the coral and the tropical fish without effort. Masks, fins and life jackets come with the trip, and the crew stays in the water with anyone who wants support.

    On the sandbank your team sets up shade and serves a seafood barbecue: fresh fish, calamari, prawns and rice, with tropical fruit and soft drinks. After lunch the afternoon is yours to swim, walk the length of the bank or lie in the shade until the boat heads back.

    Morning and afternoon departures both run. Morning trips catch the calmest water and the best light for photographs. Afternoon trips work well if you are combining the day with a Stone Town walk.

  • Beach Resorts in Zanzibar

    Beach resorts are the practical choice when you want everything in one place. Pools for the low-tide hours, several places to eat, water sports from the beach, a spa, and entertainment in the evening.

    The largest concentration is at Kiwengwa and Pwani Mchangani on the east coast, where the beach is widest, with more on the north coast at Nungwi and Kendwa. All-inclusive board is widely available, which makes budgeting straightforward.

    The east coast resorts share one characteristic worth understanding before you book: the tide. The sea retreats a long way at low water, so swimming happens on a schedule. This is why the pools matter. On the north coast at Nungwi and Kendwa the sea stays swimmable all day, and resorts there charge accordingly.

    Tell us your dates, your party and whether swimming at any hour matters to you, and we will send properties matching what you actually want.

  • Mid-Range Hotels in Zanzibar

    The mid-range is where most visitors to Zanzibar actually stay, and where the value is. A comfortable beachfront room with air conditioning, a decent pool, breakfast included and a restaurant that knows what it is doing, without paying villa prices.

    Pwani Mchangani and the southern end of Kiwengwa offer the best value on the east coast for a comparable beach. Jambiani and Paje have a strong range of small mid-range hotels on the south-east. Nungwi has the widest choice overall, at every level.

    Our honest advice: spend a little less on the room and a little more on the excursions and the transfers. The beach is free. The days out are what people remember.

    Tell us your dates, your party and your nightly budget and we will send three or four properties we would put our own guests in.

  • Mnemba Island Half-Day Tour

    Mnemba is a small private island off the north-east corner of Unguja, ringed by a marine conservation area with the healthiest coral and the clearest water on the island. The island itself is a private resort and closed to visitors, but the reef around it is open, and it is the best snorkelling ground in Zanzibar.

    Boats leave from the beach at Matemwe or Kiwengwa in the morning, when the water is calmest. On the way out the crew look for the resident pods of bottlenose and spinner dolphins. Sightings are common but never guaranteed, and the crew keep a respectful distance and follow local guidelines on how to enter the water.

    At the atoll you snorkel over the coral gardens. The reef here drops away gently, so the shallows suit beginners while the edge rewards confident swimmers. Angelfish, parrotfish, moray eels and turtles are all seen regularly. Gear and life jackets are provided.

    At low tide the boat will also stop at a sandbank near the atoll before returning. Fruit and soft drinks are served on board, and you are back at your hotel in time for lunch.

  • Safari Blue Zanzibar

    Safari Blue is the classic full-day dhow excursion in Zanzibar, and it earns its reputation. The day runs from Fumba on the south-west coast, out into the Menai Bay Conservation Area, on a traditional wooden dhow with a local crew.

    The first stop is the reef, where snorkelling gear is handed out and you spend an hour over live coral and shoals of reef fish. From there the dhow sails on to a mangrove lagoon of extraordinary colour, then to a sandbank that surfaces as the tide drops.

    Lunch is served on an uninhabited island: a seafood barbecue with grilled fish, calamari, rice, salads and a spread of tropical fruit, eaten under the palms. The afternoon is free to swim, walk the shoreline or sit in the shade. On the sail home the crew raise the sail properly, and if conditions allow the day finishes with the sun going down over the water.

    The day is long, roughly eight hours door to door, and it is the single best value excursion on the island for anyone who wants sea, food and sailing in one trip.

  • Sunset Dhow Cruise

    Sunset over the Indian Ocean is the one thing every visitor to Zanzibar remembers, and the best place to watch it is from the water rather than the beach.

    The cruise runs about two and a half hours from start to finish. You are met with a non-alcoholic welcome drink and taken the short distance to the launch point, where your captain and guide explain the route and what to look for. The boat then heads out along the coast, with the guide talking through what you are seeing and stopping wherever the view earns a photograph.

    Light refreshments and snacks are served on board at the viewpoint. As the sun drops the crew turn the boat so everyone gets an uninterrupted view, and after sunset you sail back in the last of the light.

    The cruise suits couples, families and anyone wanting a relaxed end to the day. It also pairs well with a Stone Town walking tour, where the town visit fills the afternoon and the boat takes the evening.

  • The Rock Restaurant Experience

    The Rock sits on a coral outcrop in the Indian Ocean, a short distance off the white sand of Michamvi Pingwe on the south-east coast of Unguja. It is one of the most photographed restaurants in the world, and the setting is genuinely as unusual as the pictures suggest.

    How you reach it depends on the tide. At low tide you walk across the sand and rock from the beach. At high tide a small boat runs you over from the shore, usually at no extra charge, and the building appears to float.

    The kitchen focuses on seafood, and the atmosphere is relaxed and romantic rather than formal. It suits a long lunch, a sunset dinner, an anniversary or a proposal, more than a quick meal.

    We handle the part most visitors find difficult: the table. The restaurant is small and books out well ahead in high season. We reserve for you, arrange return transfers from your hotel anywhere on the island, and time your arrival to the tide.

  • Transparent Kayak and Drone Experience

    A transparent kayak turns a paddle into a viewing platform. The hull is clear, so the coral, the fish and the sand ripples pass directly beneath you while you stay dry on top. In the shallow, calm water off Nungwi and Kendwa the visibility is good enough to see everything without putting your head under.

    A local instructor briefs you on paddling and safety, then goes out with you. No experience is needed and the kayaks are stable enough for complete beginners, including children paddling with an adult.

    What makes this trip different is the drone. A professional operator films you from above throughout the session, and you receive the footage and stills afterwards. On clear water at the right time of day the aerial shots are the best photographs most guests take home from Zanzibar.

    The session lasts about an hour on the water and works best in the calm hours of the morning or late afternoon.

  • Prison Island and Nakupenda Sandbank

    A full day at sea, pairing the island’s most famous wildlife with its most photographed sandbank.

    The morning boat takes you across to Changuu Island, better known as Prison Island. There your guide introduces the colony of Aldabra giant tortoises, some more than a century old, and walks you through the 1893 prison and quarantine buildings. There is time to feed the tortoises, photograph them and hear the story of how they arrived from the Seychelles.

    From there the boat sails on to Nakupenda Sandbank, a strip of white sand surrounded by shallow turquoise water and nothing else. Your shade tent is set up and a seafood barbecue is served with tropical fruit and soft drinks. The rest of the afternoon is yours: swimming in exceptionally clear water, snorkelling the reef nearby, walking the length of the bank or lying in the shade.

    The boat returns to Stone Town in the late afternoon, and your driver takes you back to your hotel.