The easiest way to describe Zanzibar is that it’s just like PARADISE. I travelled slowly through Zanzibar for 2 weeks, and I had the most amazing, chilled time that you can imagine. The island looks exactly like the pictures you see online, and I would say, in some cases, even better. The majority of the time I spend just eating and chilling on beaches, so here is some inspiration for you to do the same.
🖱️ Don't forget to click on the place to see my personal notes.
● The main ways people reach Zanzibar are either by ferry or by plane. So the first option is by ferry. If you are flying to Tanzania's capital, Dar es Salaam, or if you are coming from other parts of Tanzania with a bus, you can take a direct ferry to Zanzibar City, which takes around two hours. The second option is just to fly directly to Zanzibar City, which is the main island airport, and all the international planes land there.
Day 1-3. Stone Town
● Stone Town in Zanzibar is a captivating and culturally rich destination with its labyrinthine streets, ornate wooden doors, and a harmonious blend of African, Arab, Indian, and European influences. This historic city offers a unique and picturesque experience, making it a must-visit for those seeking an authentic taste of Zanzibar's rich history and vibrant culture. Because of its rich culture, Stone Town is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Most people spend only one or two days here, but in my opinion, there are definitely interesting things to do here, so it's worth spending at least three days in the city. These are the things I did during the days:
This is where you go to get your suvenier spices. The market provides you a sense of everyday life in the city. There are so many items being sold there, from spices to seafood that has just come straight from the ocean.
The old slave market is an important historical site for African slave trading. Until the British closed it down in 1873, Stone Town was home to one of the world's last open slave marketplaces, presided over by Arab traders. You should definitely visit the market to learn about the local history. The price is around 5$.
If you like Queen music, you should know that Freddie Mercury was born in Zanzibar. You are welcome to visit his little residence, which is filled with various artefacts he has collected during his life.
The fort was built in the 17th century by the Portuguese, but as history and ruling changed, the fort passed through the hands of numerous different island occupants. There are now numerous souvenir shops there, and activities are held on a regular basis inside the fortress.
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Shiv Shakti Temple - Hinduu Temple with cute towers
Tortoise, tortoise, tortoise. Despite its name, Prison Island has never served as a jail due to a variety of historical factors. This place is now overrun by tortoises, the oldest of which is 198 years old. You can feed them, scratch their heads, and take pictures with them. This was without a doubt one of my favourite things to do in town.
A lovely sandbank that appears during the day when the tide is low. If you ask your hotel, they will most likely give you recommendations on how to organise a boat trip to the island. The visit to Nakupenda Beach is usually paired with an excursion to Prison Island. The price of visiting both sites is usually between 20$-40$.
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● You can definitely walk around Stone Town on your own and see so many interesting things, but I recommend taking yourself on a walking tour around the city so it wouldn't feel so much like a huge labyrinth. I did my tour with GuruWalk, which was free, and I had a nice time.
The meal is of good quality, and along with it, you will hear the waves, see children dancing on the beach, and smell the ocean. It is certainly a beautiful mix.
If you're looking for a vegetarian or vegan restaurant, this is the place to go. The rates are really low when compared to the majority of the places in Stone Town, and the food quality is truly exceptional. I tried a couple different curries here and was not disappointed.
This is a higher-end restaurant with a tourist focus, but it is still worth a visit if you want to spend an evening in style. The restaurant is very beautiful, with so many pants, and if you're lucky, they have live music evenings, so if you hear there's a concert going on at Secret Garden, you should definitely go.
Another stunning location for a sunset. I really enjoyed this restaurant because the costs were reasonable for the location and the meal quality was excellent.
This was my main breakfast spot. There were a lot of differed options to chose from, they served the food quickly, and the pricing was affordable, especially for a backapcer.
Nigh Food Market is the place to go if you want to try something new. There are so many different cuisine alternatives that your head will spin. The vendors will try to persuade you to take a tour of the market but will most likely end up showing you their food stand, which is really nice because you get to see all the different foods you can taste here. If you are a vegetarian or vegan, don't worry, you will find something to eat, I know I did ;).
A Simple but a lovely place to stay if you are traveling solo and you want to meet some people. The best thing about this place was manager who was so knowlagmebe abou the whole island and helped me with tso mant thing unrelated to my stay. So if you are satring your trip in Zanzibar and feel a bit woried this is the best place to come as you will get all the tips and advices fromt the staffIf you're travelling alone and wish to meet some folks, this is a simple but nice location to stay. The finest thing about the hotel was the manager, who was quite knowledgeable about the entire island and assisted me with numerous matters unrelated to my stay. So, if you're planning a vacation to Zanzibar and are nervous about being in a new place, this is the place to go because the staff will give you all the suggestions and guidance you need.
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Day 4 - 5. Paje
● Paje, which is on the east coast of the island, is really famous for kite surfing. Even in low seasons, there are so many people kiting. It's crazy it makes you wonder how all of them don't get tangled together. From Paje, you can easily choose to walk by the beach all the way to Pingwe, which is to the north of the town, or go to Jambiani, which is to the south. Besides that, these are the other things you can do around Paje:
Jozani National Park is the ideal place to visit while visiting Paje. The red monkeys that may be seen in this park are its main draw. We didn't see any animals at the start of the tour, so I was a little worried that we wouldn't see any the entire time, but in the end, we saw so many monkeys that I was definitely not disappointed. The entrance fee was 25,000 shilings, and you need a guide to walk through the forest, but don't worry, it's included in the price.
Although I haven't tried kite surfing myself, everyone I spoke with was incredibly fascinated by the sport, and several of them said that this was a great place to start learning how to handle the kite.
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🥘 Where to eat?
● Though there aren't that many activities that you can do around Paje, I found this town to have the most diverse food options compared to other parts of the island.
Finding this vegetarian/vegan cafe made me very happy. I ordered a chickpea curry, and it was undoubtedly one of the nicest meals I had while visiting the island. I wish I had spent more time just because of this cafe.
Another excellent location for vegans and vegetarians. This restaurant not only has excellent food, but it's in the ideal setting to feel like a beach restaurant.
The nice thing about this place is that, if you're searching for something a little less local, you can get different cuisine foods. This location offers kitsches ranging from Turkish to Chnies.
Tried a few hostels in Paje, and this one I enjoyed the most. The best thing if you are working remotely is that the wifi this place has is excellent.
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Day 6 - 10. Jambiani
● I think if I die and go to heaven, it will look like Jambiani. Jambiani is so peaceful compared to the rest of the other places that I visited. Honestly, if you are coming for holidays just to fully relax and drink cocktails by the pool, I think you should either skip all of the other places or at least plan your time so that you will spend the most days here. For the activities, there are many tours that you will be able to book in your hotel, such as a sunrise tour, going to see some local places where they make soap, and many other things made from seaweed. These are a few things that I did independently:
It's a bit out of Jambiani, but it's definitely a fun day activity. You can ask around in Jambiani for a taxi driver to take you there. I paid 8,000 shillings for the drive, and I got to choose how long to stay there.
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🥘 Where to eat?
● I felt that in Jambinai, you can find a lot of small local places for food.
Definitely the best place where I had local dishes. I would recommend staying away from European food and trying the local Zanzibarian food. What made this place even better were the prices. Considering how good the food was and how much it cost, this became my favourite place to eat in Jambiani.
Lovely place close to the beach. The food was delicious and not too expensive. I tried out the vegetable curry with potatoes and peas, and a local dish maharage.
I promise 9 out of 10 people who have been to Jambinain will know New Teddy's on the Beach. Through all of my years of travelling, I can say this place goes into the top 5 most beautiful hostels I have ever stayed in.
I heard really nice reviews from people who have stayed here. The nice thing about this hotel is that they really care about sustainability, and they are putting in a lot of effort to make their hotel as less harmful to the environment as possible.
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Day 11 - 14. Nungwi
● Nungwi is the party place on the island. If you get lucky and come during the full moon to Nungwi, they have the biggest full moon party on the island, which is really big here, even people from the capital come to the party.
Also, Nungwi is the best place to do scuba diving on the island. While Nungwi is a bit busier than other parts of Zanzibar, honestly, I enjoyed staying here so much that I wish I could have stayed for way longer.
Again, it is really popular to book activities either in hotels or on the beach, so that's how you are going to find your fun things to do. I definitely recommend doing a sunset cruise, and you can easily bargain on the beach for the prices. These are some activities I did on my own:
It's a really interesting place. They are a conservation park, protecting the turtles from poachers and treating the injured ones as well. A lot of people have mixed feelings about this place. In my opinion, the place is quite decent, and it did not make me feel sad seeing the turtles being there. But there are some people who said that they didn't like the place at all, so I would say to make your own judgement on how sensitive you are to these types of conservation places.
While this cannot be entirely classified as an activity like the others, it is very common to walk to Kendwa Beach when the tide is low, and if you walk past it all the way to a lagoon, you will reach a village with no tourists and only local fishermen.
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🥘 Where to eat?
● In Nungwi, I felt there was a variety of everything, from cuisine to places to eat to costs, therefore I included the places that I enjoyed the most and I definitely think you will find something you would be interested in trying from the list:
During the day, this place is full of sunchairs, and when the evening comes, it transforms into a restaurant. My favourite meal was vegetable curry, which had a different taste compared to all of the other curries, which I really liked.
This place uses fresh ingredients, which makes the food taste really, really good. The only thing is that the prices are on the higher end but in my opinion it’s worth paying for good quality.
It’s a place if you are looking for something different than local food. The food is definitely worth a stop, though everything is focused on Asian food.
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🎉 Where to party?
● So as Nungwi is a party place I had to include this part:
This is the place where you go to party. The parties happen here on Tuesdays and Fridays, and in my opinion, Fridays are the best day to go. The entrance fee is 10,000 shillings.
This is a bit of a different style of bar, it feels more local, and the music you get here is different compared to the previous bars mentioned, but it's definitely worth a visit at least once.
A fantastic place to stay. Everything, from the service to the amenities, is of the highest quality. The meal quality of their restaurant was among the best on the island. If you want to book this hotel, it's better to do so through their website because you'll get discounts on all food and drinks.
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💡 Useful Tips
🔹The local currency is the Tanzanian shilling.
🔹Tanzania's time zone is UTC+3.
🔹It is perfectly safe to get around with public transport.
🔹You don't need any vaccines unless you are coming from a Yellow Fever-infected country.
🔹You can get a visa on arrival or apply for it online (recommended at least 10 days before).
Hey there, I'm Kotryna, a passionate adventurer who's been exploring the wonders of the world for the past 5 years.
My journey has been a thrilling blend of outdoor adventures, serene beach getaways, and immersive city explorations. As a dedicated traveler, I've embraced a dynamic style that encompasses thrilling hikes, lazy days by the ocean, and captivating urban tours. Also as a huge food person, I love finding the best unique places to eat vegetarian/vegan food.
My goal is to share my love for travel by crafting comprehensive itineraries for various countries, each tailored to fit seamlessly into a one or two-week timeframe. Whether you're yearning for the tranquility of nature's beauty, the refreshing ocean breeze, or the vibrant pulse of city life, my itineraries will provide you with a blueprint to make the most of your time.
Join me on this exhilarating journey as we unlock the world's treasures one itinerary at a time. Let's turn your travel dreams into reality!
DM me via Instagram (@kokustravel) or email me (kotrynakus@gmail.com) to learn more about my personalized travel planning services.
