Feb 2023
Zanzibar
Africa
Zanzibar is a gorgeous, small island just off the east coast of mainland Tanzania. It is a popular stop after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro or going on a Safari on mainland Tanzania. Here is a video of my quick Dos and Don'ts in Zanzibar. You can fly directly to Zanzibar from the mainland from many of the larger Tanzanian cities. We flew from Arusha Airport to Zanzibar with Precision Air and it was just over $100 per person. Precision Air is your typical small scale low budget airline but we had a fine flight and the plane actually looked newer and larger than some of the competing airlines in the area.
We stayed in Zanzibar for a week when we went, following a week of Safari activities on the mainland. Honestly, it was a bit too long. Zanzibar is still quite behind in terms of development and the accommodations and food were fine, but not overly comfortable for an entire week stay. It is also a tourist hot spot, so there are no shortage of pushy vendors, tourist traps, and subpar excursions to get into the longer you stay. I would recommend 3-4 days (2-3 nights) as the perfect stay if you are planning to visit. If I were to do it again, I would have spent just 2 nights, 3 days in Zanzibar and then spent the rest of our time in Egypt or Dubai to check one more place off the bucket list before heading home.
There are two main areas in Zanzibar that you can choose to stay in - the north or the east. The northern part of the island is the most popular area, with the majority of higher-end hotels. It is home to two popular beaches - Nungwi, known for it's diving and sunsets, and Kendwa, known for it's nightlife. Naturally, with being the most popular area, the north is also the most busy and crowded. Alternatively, the east side of Zanzbar, specifically, the Jambiani area, is much more quiet and chill. There are still several shops, restaurants, and bars (make sure to try the famous The Rock restaurant if you are in the area), and the
vibe of the area will make for a much for relaxed vacation. Either place is fine to stay in and both can be visited while you are there - it only takes 2 hours to drive from one end of the island to another - just choose one a coast based on what you are feeling for the trip. Here is what you should do if you go:
DAY 01-03
NUNGWI, ZANZIBAR
Relax
The Z Hotel has a very nice property in a central location in Nungwi. Here is a full tour and ratings for the hotel There is a nice, clean infinity pool overlooking the beach and crystal clear ocean. There are three restaurants on the property, including a high-end sushi restaurant and a rooftop lounge. They offer sunrise and sunset yoga on another rooftop deck, a small private beach area, a state-of-the-art fitness facility, reading and computer room, and full-service spa. The rooms themselves are honestly a bit disappointing compared to the perfection of the property - they are nice and have everything you need but a small double bed with only a top sheet for a comforter, AC that only works to 24 degrees Celsius, and a small bathroom. The benefits of the room are they were always clean, there was a mini fridge and a safe, a gorgeous balcony, any AC at all (this is not common in Tanzania from our experience), and the shower had great pressure and warms up quickly. I would recommend staying somewhere in this area, and it is up to you if this description of the Z Hotel sounds like somewhere you would like to stay. For the first 2 or 3 days, it was perfect! It just isn't a perfectly equipped and comfortable accommodation for an entire week in my opinion. If you are planning to stay longer, there are more apartment or bungalow style places to rent for a good price that I would recommend.
If you are staying at the Z Hotel and you want a seat at the pool for the day, wake up early and go drop your sunglasses and book and reserve it before you head for breakfast. They do fill up quick, and many people also save their spot, so go ahead and grab one if you would like to sit there for the day. You can book your stay to include a buffet breakfast and I would recommend doing so. If you are not staying here, I would recommend coming for breakfast while you are in Zanzibar. The Z Hotel has a good buffet breakfast with toast, salads, fruit, cereals, pastries etc ready-to-eat, and hot eggs, french toast, eggs Benedict, pancakes, etc. made-to-order. We tried almost all the options in the week we were there and they were all great! Even the eggs Benedict had real hollandaise sauce - yum :). The sushi restaurant at the Z Hotel is called Sexy Fish. It is well known in the area for it's sushi and seafood and is worth a stop if you are in Zanzibar. The sushi and sashimi were ok, there were some interesting appetizers like bacon lobster lollipops, and some good South African wines. One thing I will warn you about - they will ask if you want a private table on the beach. Every evening before dinnertime, the restaurant will set up a few tables on the beach out front of the restaurant for beachfront dining. It may look nice, but don't do it. Multiple times per evening different dance or gymnastics groups will come along the beach and perform outside of these restaurants, and the people sitting at the beach are put in a very uncomfortable position to feel the need to tip these groups multiple times throughout their dinner. To avoid this, sit at the restaurant. The two other restaurants at the Z Hotel are Rooftop (on the rooftop, of course), and Cinnamon. These two share a menu, and Sexy Fish has some of the same items as well. The chicken wings (both kinds), tacos, and french fries are great at these locations, as is the espresso martini and wine selection. The margarita is a bit sweet, so I would stay away from that one.
The yoga at the hotel was just ok! It was fine to do once and nice to try and I would recommend trying it if you are staying there - maybe it is more your speed than mine! I found it to be more stretching and slow movements (holding each pose for 5 slow breaths), and not as much yoga flow or balancing postures as I was used to. It is held on a stunning rooftop around sunrise and sunset, however, which is fantastic. It costs $15 US per class, and you can sign up 5 mins before at the front desk and charge it to your room.
If you want to go into town or to visit the markets, it is just about a ~2-5 minute walk from any of the hotels in the Nungwi area. Zanzibar is a mostly Muslim community, so if you are going into town, please be respectful of their culture and cover up. It is customary to cover your shoulders and upper legs in the town - both women and men need to wear shorts and a t-shirt at a minimum. We didn't see it happen to anyone, but we were told you can get a fine of $1000 USD for not complying with these regulations. All of the roads in this area are also very bumpy and uneven, so make sure to wear supportive comfortable shoes for your walk. There are tons of markets and shops along the beach and in town with small grocery items, pharmacy items, knick knacks and souvenirs. You can barter at the market - you may realize that the prices start much higher than you would expect but they do that because some people will pay it! Remember to barter, and remember to walk away if they won't meet your price. There are tons of similar shops and many of them sell the same items, so I ensure you will be able to find what you are looking for at the price you want. The majority of these shops also accept cash only - both Tanzanian Shilling or US Dollars are accepted. 1 US Dollar = 2340.00 Tanzanian Shilling, so don't be alarmed if they tell you a keychain costs 5000. Remember to ask which currency they are speaking in.
The area has mostly anything you would need. Beyond the stores and pharmacies, there is also an ATM in the area - just outside of the Z Hotel. The ATM has a security guard who monitors it 24/7 and we had no issues taking money from here - our card was charged the exact right amount. There are large fees associated with taking cash out at the ATM and a lot of places take cash only or charge fees for visa, so I would suggest to bring, or take out as much cash as you can to avoid further fees. $60 US a day should be plenty to budget for. Add more if you are a big shopper or a big drinker. If you need to do laundry while you are there as well, many of the hotels offer laundry service. It may be quite expensive, so if you are looking for another option, you can walk into town, up the hill and to the left before the speed bump to find a local laundromat. They charge a much more reasonable price for your clothing, and you get to go for a walk and explore the downtown a bit. There are also many barbers in the area who give a nice fade for around $10 if you need a haircut!
There are also many other restaurants nearby that you can try. The Fat Fish restaurant is close by the hotel and has a nice large shady patio with an unobstructed view of the ocean. It has a fairly large menu with different options and good prices, including their "famous" chicken wrap. The service is slow, but this is common in the Zanzibar culture - they call it "pole pole" meaning "slowly slowly" - no one is in a rush, so be ready to sit for a while and enjoy the view. Most of the restaurants in Zanzibar as well seem to get deliveries on Sunday or Monday, so as the week goes on, the options for drinks and food in stock goes down. Don't be surprised if you go to a restaurant on a Friday night and they don't have 3 of the appetizers on the menu or any light beer or soda available. There are quite a few hookah bars on the island as well, including the Fat Fish, which does have good hookah options if that is your thing! There are many similar establishments as you walk down the streets - all large restaurants with great views of the ocean. The food at a lot of these similar beach bar restaurants is honestly subpar and pretty consistent. The safest options are a curry rice type dish, a pizza, or a wrap. One place in the area that is a standout and a must-visit, however, is Mama Mia. It is an Italian owned modern style restaurant right on the beach in the Nungwi area serving great cocktails, pizzas, pastas, and gelato. I would recommend the cinnamon the cookies gelato, the spicy mango margarita, Zanzibar mule, any any pizza with the mushrooms, spicy salami, or bacon. You won't regret stopping here!
Now, let's talk excursions. Some common excursions you can do on Zanzibar are snorkeling or diving tours, a tour of Stone Town, a spice tour, aquarium tour, horseback riding, a jungle tour to see the monkeys, and a few others. If you are just staying for 3 days as I recommended, honestly, you don't need to do any of the excursions. The spice and stone town tours are fairly slow and uneventful. The snorkeling tours are taken on an ancient wooden boat with little to no seating or safety features, for that matter. The snorkeling is ok but very crowded, running into other people or boat lines consistency, and is not really worth the 1h + long boat ride in 8 foot waves on an old boat. They call some of them dolphin tours as well, but it really just means you might see a dolphin as you are driving to the snorkeling spot. Horseback riding is also fine, with a slower trot down the beach during low tide for a photo opp at the end of the stretch, before turning around to return back to the stable. I would especially not recommend the "swimming with the horses" activity - we saw many people fall off the horses in the water because the waves were too strong. Some just gave up on the excursion there and walked back to the beach. It is not as glamorous as it may sound.
Alternatively, how I would recommend spending your time in Zanzibar would be first, just relaxing at your hotel - reading by the pool and enjoying some vacation cocktails while soaking in the amazing weather. Second, you have to swim in the gorgeous ocean. The water is warm and clear and stunning and you can spend the majority of the day floating and jumping in the waves in the water by the hotels. Go for a walk on the beach and explore some nearby bars or restaurants. If you are walking on the beach, just make sure to tell the "beach boys" (you will know who they are when you are there) no thank you and that you are uninterested in whatever they are selling. If you don't establish boundaries, they can become quite bothersome. Then, take some time to explore the markets and nearby shops and maybe pick out a few souvenirs for those back home. Finally, if you want a little more adventure, go into town and find a shop that rents mopeds and do your own tour! You can rent a moped for about $25 a day, plus a $15 driving permit that can be approved same day. Use the moped to explore Stone Town or the other coasts of the island on your own, and make a day (or two) out of it! Driving in Zanzibar might seem daunting, but as fast and seemingly sporadic other drivers drive, they are all used to the craziness of the roads there so they are actually quite skilled drivers. Just go slow, stay to the side, and you will be fine!
The last suggestion I have is if you are also flying Precision Air, to check in online early before your flight to get your seats. You only need to show up at the Zanzibar airport an hour or so before your flight to have plenty of time to go through security and find your gate. Try not to get there too much earlier than that, because as expected, it is a tiny airport without much to do while you wait.
Have a great trip and enjoy the sunshine! ☀️
