After over 20hrs of travel, my first observation was that Qatar Airways is second only to Emirates! The seats, the food, the hygiene package and the restrooms were all impeccable. Hell, even the blanket smelt nice.
However, that was short-lived because I was snapped back to the realities of pandemic traveling after we landed. We had a Choose Your Own Adventure experience where we all had to register online and pay cash to get rapid tests at the airport then sort out Visas (even if you already had test results, vaccines and Visas). All in all, it took about an hour to be done with immigration.
While at the airport, I got a sim card with 6.5GB worth of data for $20. My recommendation is to get a package that includes call/text units and to verify that the amount of data you are paying for is what you are getting.
Tanzania is a predominantly Muslim country and though Zanzibar has high Tourism, the Indigenous women are mostly Hijabis. As a tourist, you can dress however you prefer, however, it is sensible to be respectful of the culture when not on the beach… clothing covering shoulders and below the knees are recommended, though no one will harass you if you dress otherwise. The primary language spoken in Zanzibar is (Ki)Swahili and in high tourist areas, English speakers can be found.
The drive from the airport to the hotel in Stone Town was about 20mins in a private taxi. They drive on the other side of the road, with the driver on the right, and favor minivans for taxis. Stone Town has lots of alleyways and big, beautiful tress along with varieties of palm trees.
| This lady made us fresh omelets and pancakes |
At 2:30pm, we walked down to the beach and rode across the blue and green waters on a long-tail boat to Prison Island, which is 30 minutes away from the coast.
A round trip is about $20, negotiable, with local boat owners. You can also go through a tour company for a guided tour but it will cost more.
Prison Island (aka Changuu) is an island where enslaved people with contagious diseases were kept in isolation, pending their recovery or death.
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| View of the Island as you approach |
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| What’s left of the prison |
Prison Island has a petting zoo of about 20-30 tortoises said to be the some of the biggest and oldest tortoises in the world. You can also feed them lettuce, provided by staff, if you so choose.
There are unfortunately huge, dead coral reefs on the island, due to the receding ocean.
The island also has a guest house and a restaurant.
Later in the evening, I changed $100 for 200k Tanzanian Shillings(TSh) went to look for food. I had seafood noodles for 27kTSh at a restaurant on the beach called Cape Town Fish Market.
Over dinner, we watched fisherman anchor their boats in the ocean as they turned in for the day. They would then get on canoes with their catch and paddle towards shore.
The restaurant is in Forodhani Garden which also has Night Food Market, a lively market where vendors sell varieties of street food each night.
We made mental notes to return there for dinner the next day… We then walked back into the city and ended up on the street where jewelers sell Tanzanite stones and and other kinds of jewelry.
Tanzanite is a blue and violet mineral zoisite only found in Tanzania.
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| Stock photo from Google |
Day 2
The next day, we had breakfast at the hotel then drove 30 minutes to the Spice Farm in Dole. I strongly recommend this experience! We hired someone to take us and paid $40 for the drive and tour. If you have a car, you can drive there and pay way less for the tour.
The farm had guides that took us around, showing us most of the spices, fruits and vegetables grown in the area while offering education about Tanzania/Zanzibar's history with colonization.
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| Jackfruit, the biggest fruit in Tanzania |
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| The minty root of cinnamon |
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| Anato, used in the past as lipstick |
We also saw lemon, pineapples, bananas, black pepper, turmeric, robust coffee (with green and red seeds), nutmeg, vanilla, cardamom and a host of others that I can’t remember.
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| Lemon grass patch |
After the tour, we tasted some fruits grown on the farm (including jackfruit) then had local lunch on a mat under the covering of a plantain thatched roof. Lunch was an additional $10 per person for lunch.
We got back to the hotel and passed out! In the evening, we took a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood and went back to Night Food Market to stuff our faces.
I had skewers of Calamari and octopus, lobster masala and beef samosa for about 50kTSh. It was definitely expensive, but worth it. Dipping sauce options were tamarind, chili and lemon, I tried them all and loved them all. If you go there and opt for seafood, pay attention to ensure you are getting something freshly made.
A few more photos from walking around Stone Town.
Day 3
We drove about an hour and half from Stone Town to Mnemba Island and went snorkeling with dolphins and nemo’s cousins.
Mnemba Island aka Bill Gates Island is rumored to be owned by Bill Gates and is one of the most exclusive lodges in Tanzania. Other rumors stipulate that Bill Gates does not own the island but he is the most famous repeat guest who also tends to reserve the entire island hence, the joke that he owns it. Either way, I mind the business that pays me and had me a good time on the water. I chased dolphins and swam with some beautiful fishes.
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| Forgot to take snorkel photos/videos |
A bank opened up on the waters during low-tide so we stopped there for snacks and photos. The water was clear up close but in the distant it looked turquoise with patches of blue... truly beautiful!
We had a platter of sweet mangoes, young coconut, cute little bananas and the most average tasting pineapples and watermelon. It was still a great time and by the time we left, the tides had risen and the entire bank was submerged.
Once we got back to the beach, we had lunch at a fisherman's stall and it turned out to be my favorite meal on the trip.
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| Tuna, octopus, calamari, lobsters, shrimp… |
Everything tasted like it was caught in the ocean just minutes prior. It was also only lightly seasoned, if at all, so we could enjoy the all natural flavors. The seafood was served with fries, rice and sauce. The snorkel gear, boat ride, snack, lunch and drives (Stone Town to Mnemba and then Mnemba to Nungwi) all cost a total of $150 for 2 people.
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When we were done at the island, we drove about an hour to our resort in Nungwi for the rest of the stay. Unfortunately, I'm not naming where we stayed on this trip because I don’t encourage resort/hotel vibes that exist an expense of local people. Eg while beach access is free, most of the resorts and hotels line the seashore so locals can’t walk through and they have to walk long distances to get access to the ocean for swimming and fishing. We didn't know any of this before we got there. To be transparent, my friend also planned the entire trip while I literally just showed up and asked what we were doing every morning so I couldn't complain.
The room had a river view, breakfast included, and we paid $940 for 5days. Buffet was $25 for lunch and $35 for dinner but if there was something we really wanted that was not on the menu, we could ask and they would make it for us at no additional charge. One night, I got them to make me Red Snapper and it was truly immaculate. I think knowing that no one else had the same meal that night made it taste even better.
After settling in, we showered and headed to Kendwa to watch the sunset. We had drinks at Mocco Beach Villa while waiting under the coconut leaf roof for the temperature to drop. I had Stoney Tangawizi (ginger flavored soda) for $2.
We then walked to the beach and watched some Maasai men swim and play games. The Maasai are indigenous Nilotic people that inhabit Kenya and northern Tanzania. Most of them speak Swahili and English, some of them are fully nomadic, and they are famous for their distinctive customs and outfits.
Day 4
Rest day around the resort
The ocean recedes at night and returns in the morning so you can walk through and see some aquatic life that didn’t go “back” with the waves.
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| Compare this photo, taken in the morning, to the one I took at afternoon on the first day |
The resort also had a pool, with a swim up bar with bar food and drinks, as well as another restaurant on the other end of the property so we had a great time chilling, eating and drinking on the grounds.
Later that evening, we went to Kendwa Public Beach for the Zanzibar Seafood Festival, entry was $20 each. It was supposed to start at 7pm and we got there sometime before 9pm unfortunately, after waiting for over an hour with no sign that it would be starting soon, we headed back to the resort at about 10/11pm and went to bed.
Day 5
Parasailing with Zanzibar Parasailing Water Sport Center Kendwa, $80.
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| That’s my friend up there |
Afterwards, we went to Nungwi for our COVID test, we had paid $80 online earlier. For an additional $40 we could have had them meet us at the hotel but we didn't know this and paid $60 for the taxi ride to Nungwi and back. Anyhoo, when we got back, we goofed about by the beach and took some photos.
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| Giving them unlooking vibes 😅 |
Day 6
We drove back to the airport in Stone Town from Nungwi for $60. Per usual, we had difficulty at the airport and this time because they required printed copies of our COVID tests... my friend had to walk around the airport, asking if anyone would be gracious enough to let him email them our results lol.
Here’s a video summary of the trip.
Needless to say, we got the number of our first driver and he took us everywhere, which was very convenient. If you want to go, let me know and I can connect you with him. Otherwise, if you stay in a hotel/resort, they can call a taxi for you OR if you stay in an Airbnb, you can develop a relationship with some drivers that you can call as needed. I don't know what the rental situation is but it certainly helped to have someone who understood the culture help us get around, negotiate better rates for us and introduce us to things we otherwise wouldn't have known about. I am usually opposed to these kind of experiences but it was honestly nice to sit back and be taken care of.
Were we stiffed? I'll never know.
Was it worth it? Yes! It was a small price to pay for partaking in a system that has made the rich richer.
Will I go back? Only to Tanzania Mainland, not Zanzibar.
Do I recommend Zanzibar? No, but for social justice reasons that might be misguided so, do your research and decide for yourself.