Excursions Tours

The stone town tour, the city tour, takes you around the capital town to experience historically, culturally and architecturally richness of Zanzibar Islands. Usually the tour starts at 8:30 am and take 2 to 3 hours depend on the places to be visited. Most of the important buildings and places (historical monuments) are within the town’s municipal environs such as Anglican Cathedral built on the former slave market, the house of the famous slave trader (Tip Tip house), Hamamni Bath, Darajani market (fish and fruits market), the Old Portuguese Fort, the house of wonders (Zanzibar National Museum of History & Culture) and the home of world famous musician, Freddy Mercury. The guide will also show you the beautiful pattern of Zanzibar door and on the way you will have a chance to walk around the narrow streets of Stone Town where most of the houses date back more than 150 years. You will see many bazaars, curio shops, restaurants, and variety of stores selling souvenirs.

Steeped in history, Stone Town in Zanzibar was once the biggest business center of East Africa. In it’s earlier days it was the hub for trading ivory, spices and slaves. Power has changed hands numerous times over the years; the Portuguese, Arabs, Sultans of Oman and English have all had their influence on this unique and fascinating town which has created an incredible mix of architecture and culture. It is a fascinating look into the history and culture that has shaped this island and is something that should not be missed

Spices from Zanzibar are famous around the world and a holiday to Zanzibar would be incomplete without a visit to the spice plantations. The spice tours are actually quite informative and good value. Spice tour is probably the best way of seeing the countryside and meeting members of rural communities. Any authorized guide or tour company can arrange a spice tour for you. The geographical nature of the island makes the spice tour to be organized in many villages both in Unguja and Pemba. However, the very popular village for spice tour is Kijichi or Kizimbani, approximately 5 kilometers from Stone town. The tour starts from 8:30 am and takes 2 to 3 hours depending on the activities to be done.

You will be overwhelmed by the abundance of botanical species growing in these gardens – exotic spices, fruits and vegetables. Many of the spices have medicinal properties and are still used by the local population to cure certain maladies. Savor different spices, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, vanilla or black pepper. Taste a variety of fruits ranging from the rose apple to the guava. Some rare plants like henna, perfume tree and lipstick tree are used for their value in preparing cosmetics. Tour guides will take you on a walking tour of the spice farms at Kizimbani or Kidichi; picking bunches of leaves, fruits and twigs from bushes and inviting you to smell or taste them to guess what they are. Pretty much all the ingredients of the average kitchen spice rack are represented – cinnamon, turmeric, garlic, ginger, chilies, black pepper, nutmeg, cloves and vanilla – the list goes on and on. Tour guides also take you to the interior of the island, so you’ll get an idea of village / farm life in Zanzibar.

he Safari Blue is definitely an experience to remember. If you want to snorkel in beautiful waters.visit a white sandy beach have a delicious local Zanzibar lunch and visit mangrove. A safari blue is parked with adventure which takes place at Menai Bay. Menai Bay is scattered with isolated sandbanks, rugged island scenery, uninhabited islets, pristine marine life and crystal-clear turquoise waters. It contains extensive tropical fish species, sea grasses, coral reefs and several small islets supporting mangrove forest. The area also has diving and snorkeling sites which offer underwater cliffs, wrecks, canyons, caves and spectacular reefs. The aquatic life within these waters is often very prolific and one usually sees moray eels, scorpion fish, lion fish, large groupers, octopus, lobsters, rays and, occasionally, and manta rays and dolphins. The Safari Blue Activities includes sail, snorkel, swim, sunbath, explore, feast and observe.

Tour begins after breakfast when you are picked up from your hotel and transfered to the fishing village of Kizimkazi. Before the tour start you will be given a life jacket demonstration followed by a briefing on the day’s excursion. You will then board the dhows and set off in search of the Dolphins (85% chances). The species frequently found at Menai Bay are Spinner and Bottlenose dolphins. You will be able to swim with the dolphins as long as they stay close to the boat, but is unlikely to be able to touch them, as they are of course wild animals. During the tour the guide will send youto one of the selected snorkeling locations. On the way to your hotel you will have an opportunities to visit the site of a 12th Century mosque, the earliest evidence of Islam in East Africa, and is thus worth a visit for both natural and cultural reasons

Prison Island also known as the Changuu Island lies jusy off the Old Stone Town about 30 minutes by boat from stone town. Changuu Island was used as a penitentiary for rebel slaves by the sultans from the 1860s until the end of the slave trade. After which the British began building a prison on the island under the guidance of First Governor, Lloyd Matthews. This was completed in 1894. However, the ‘prison’ was only ever used as a quarantine centre for possible yellow-fever victims. Nowadays the island gives you the chance to escape for some peace and quiet. the island is a home to giant land tortoises that were imported from Seychelles in the 19th Century. The tour starts from 9:00am-3:30pm, there you will be able to see the Giant tortoises, beautiful marine creatures, coral reef and it is also a best site for doing Snorkeling.Once on the island ,you have the opportunity to feed and pet the tortoises, some of which are over a hundred years old. If you have time you may also like to take a stroll through the forested interior where you will see a wide variety of birds,colorful peacocks, bats and beautiful butterflies.Keep your eyes peeled too for the shy and elusive Duikers – an unusual tiny antelope species.

The Jozani Forest is located in the centre of the Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park, 38 km South East of Stone Town. The forest is a great place to encounter many indigenous varieties of flora and fauna, including the Zanzibari Red Colobus Monkey.

Other species that you might catch a glimpse of include Blue Sykes’ Monkeys, Bush Pigs, Aders Duiker Antelopes, Elephant Shrews, Chameleons and numerous birds and butterflies. The best time to see the wildlife of Jozani is early in the morning and it is open daily from 07:30am to 5:00 pm.

Visitors are advised to keep three metres between themselves and any wildlife and asked not to visit the forest if suffering any cold or flu like symptoms. The monkeys, though susceptible to human diseases, have practically no resistance to them.

Jozani has an excellent nature trail and the guides are well trained and informative. A walk through this impressive flora and fauna is one of the highlights Zanzibar has to offer. At Jozani, you will also visit the Mangrove swamp and walk around the Mangrove forest.