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Zanzibar is an archipelago off the coast of Tanzania, and its main island, Unguja, is what most people mean by the name. For centuries it was a hub of Indian Ocean trade, and in the nineteenth century it became the seat of the Omani sultans, a center of the clove trade and, painfully, of the East African slave trade. Swahili, Arab, Indian and European influences meet in its architecture, food and language.
Stone Town, the historic heart of Zanzibar City and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the cultural highlight. At dusk, Forodhani Gardens on the waterfront fills with food stalls grilling seafood. The Old Fort and the House of Wonders stand nearby, while Christ Church Cathedral rises on the site of the former slave market, with a memorial and exhibits explaining that history. The town's narrow lanes are known for carved wooden doors, and Darajani Market shows everyday commerce. Boats run out to Changuu, also called Prison Island, home to giant tortoises, and spice farm tours explain why the islands were once called the Spice Islands.
Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park protects forest home to the endemic red colobus monkey. Beyond town, Nungwi and Kendwa in the north have beaches less affected by tides, Mnemba Atoll is popular for snorkeling, and Paje and Jambiani on the east coast suit kitesurfers.
WiserMap travel guideZanzibar Tanzania Stone Town and Mnemba Reef SnorkelingExplore Zanzibar from Stone Town's carved doors and Forodhani night market to Jozani's red colobus, Nungwi sunsets, Mnemba reefs and Paje's kitesurf beaches.Read the guide
A waterfront park in Stone Town that turns into a busy night food market at sunset. Stalls grill seafood skewers, lobster and octopus, and make Zanzibar pizza and fresh sugarcane juice. Agree on prices before ordering, choose food grilled in front of you, and arrive early to watch the sunset over the harbor.
The Old Fort is a stone fortress built by Omani Arabs in the late 1600s, now home to craft shops, a cafe and an open-air amphitheater. Next door is the House of Wonders, an 1883 sultan's palace that partly collapsed in 2020 and is under restoration. You can still admire its facade from the seafront.
An Anglican cathedral built on the site of Zanzibar's last open slave market, which closed in 1873. A museum explains the East African slave trade, and you can see underground holding chambers and a moving memorial sculpture. Guided tours are included with entry, and visits take about an hour.
Stone Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of narrow lanes, coral-stone houses and finely carved wooden doors with brass studs. Darajani Market is the main bazaar for spices, fish, fruit and household goods. Go in the morning when the market is busiest, and dress modestly as it is a conservative town.
A small island about half an hour by boat from Stone Town, where a prison was built in the 1890s and later used as a quarantine station. Today it is best known for its giant Aldabra tortoises, some more than a century old. Trips usually add snorkeling on the reef and time on a small beach.
A protected coral atoll off the northeast coast, known for some of the island's best snorkeling and diving, with clear water, reef fish, turtles and often dolphins. The island itself is private, so trips stay in the water around it. Boats leave from Matemwe and Nungwi, and calm mornings bring the best visibility.
Zanzibar has long been known as the Spice Island, and farms outside Stone Town offer guided walks among clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, pepper and lemongrass plants. Guides let you smell and taste each spice, and many tours end with a local lunch. Half-day tours are easy to book from Stone Town.
Zanzibar's only national park, protecting forest and mangroves in the center of the island. It is the best place to see the rare Zanzibar red colobus monkey, found only here, at close range. A boardwalk winds through the mangroves. Go in the morning with a park guide, and do not feed or touch the monkeys.
Neighboring beach villages at the northern tip of Zanzibar with white sand and turquoise water. The tides here are less extreme than on the east coast, so swimming is easier through the day. Nungwi still has traditional dhow builders. Sunset dhow cruises leave from the beach most evenings.
Villages on the east coast with long white beaches and a shallow lagoon where the tide goes far out. Paje is a popular kitesurfing spot with schools and rentals, while Jambiani is quieter, with seaweed farms worked by village women at low tide. Check tide times if you want to swim in deeper water.
A quiet peninsula on the southeast coast with calm beaches facing Chwaka Bay and sunset views. Nearby at Pingwe, The Rock is a well-known seafood restaurant built on a rock in the sea, reached on foot at low tide or by small boat at high tide. Book a table in advance, as it fills up quickly.
A community-run tidal lagoon in Nungwi where rescued green and hawksbill turtles are cared for before being released into the sea. Visitors can see the turtles up close and learn about local conservation work. The entry fee supports the project, and it is an easy walk from Nungwi beach.
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