12 Best Things To Do In Zanzibar (My Two-Week Guide)
I spent almost two weeks in Zanzibar after climbing Kilimanjaro and completely fell for the place. The food was excellent, the people were lovely and, once my legs remembered how stairs worked, there was far more to do than lie on a beach.
My ideal first trip is simple: two nights in Stone Town, one organised day for the spice farms or Jozani, then four or five nights on the coast. Paje gives you atmosphere and kitesurfing; Kendwa gives you easier swimming.
For a proper coast comparison, use my Zanzibar beaches guide. This article is about what to do when you are not horizontal beside the Indian Ocean.
Table of Contents
1. Ride A Dala Dala
This is not number one because a bus is the finest attraction in Zanzibar. It is number one because you should ride one at least once. Dala dalas are cheap, crowded, confusing and a brilliant introduction to everyday island life.
Ask where it is going, confirm the fare before climbing in and expect the answer to your journey time to be somewhere between optimistic and completely fictional. Everyone helped me when I looked lost. Which was often.
Tip: Ask around Darajani / Creek Road for the right coastal route, pay cash on board and confirm your stop with the conductor. Number 309 runs toward Jambiani and Kuza Cave; allow 60-90 minutes from Stone Town to Paje, longer if traffic is sulking.
2. Get Properly Lost In Stone Town
Stone Town is a tangle of narrow lanes, carved doors, mosques, courtyards and buildings that seem to lean into one another. A guided walk adds the history, but leave another half-day to wander without marching between pins on Google Maps.
You will get lost. The old town is compact, the waterfront eventually resets your bearings, and getting mildly confused is more enjoyable than staring at your phone through every alley.
Worth booking: A three-hour Stone Town walking tour is the easiest way to make the doors, alleys and old trade history actually click. This private option starts from about USD 24, or roughly USD 25 with the Slave Market ticket included.
3. Visit The Old Slave Market
Zanzibar’s beauty sits beside a brutal history. The former slave market and the Anglican cathedral built on the site explain the island’s role in the East African slave trade far better than a quick history paragraph ever could.
It is heavy, uncomfortable and essential context for Stone Town. Give it proper time rather than squeezing it between coffee and souvenir shopping because the weather got too hot.
Allow about an hour if visiting independently. The better option is the Stone Town walking tour above with the market ticket included, because the cathedral, memorial and remaining chambers make far more sense with context.
4. Walk Through Darajani Market
Darajani is noisy, cramped and much more useful than another row of polished souvenir shops. Go for fruit, spices, fish, household goods and the general theatre of everyone trying to complete an ordinary day’s shopping around you.
Morning is the best time for the food sections. Keep your valuables sensible, ask before taking close photos of people and accept that you are going to emerge hotter than when you entered.
Give it 45 minutes to an hour and carry small notes. Darajani sits on the eastern edge of the old town, so it works well as the beginning of a walking day rather than a separate cross-island mission.
5. Stop At Zanzibar Coffee House
Zanzibar Coffee House is still one of the easiest recommendations in Stone Town: good Tanzanian coffee downstairs and an old rooftop above the surrounding maze of roofs.
The ground-floor cafe currently opens daily from 8:30am to 6pm, while the rooftop generally opens from 11am to 3pm. Give yourself an hour; the rooftop is the point, not a takeaway coffee sprint.
6. Spend An Evening At Forodhani
Start on the waterfront before dark. Local kids and young men launch themselves into the sea, flip off the wall and perform acrobatics as the sun drops. It is joyful, slightly chaotic and far better than watching sunset through a hotel window.
Then cross into Forodhani Gardens when the food stalls light up. Walk the full row before committing, choose somewhere busy and ask the price first. Grilled seafood, skewers, sugarcane juice and Zanzibari pizza all compete for your attention.
The pizza is not really pizza. This does not stop it being exactly what you want after wandering Stone Town all afternoon.
Arrive around 5:30pm for the sunset performers, then eat once the stalls are fully running. Carry cash, choose a busy stall, agree the price before anything hits the grill and allow a relaxed two hours for the whole evening.
7. Do A Spice Tour
A spice tour sounds aggressively educational until somebody hands you cinnamon bark, fresh turmeric, cloves and fruit straight from the plant. Zanzibar’s spice history shaped the island, so this is not just an excuse to smell nutmeg in a field.
Choose a working farm and a guide who explains the trade and history, not merely the medicinal superpower of every leaf. Tours are easy to arrange from Stone Town and often combine well with a cooking class.
Best version: Combine the spice farm with a cooking lesson rather than booking two thin tours. This spice farm and cooking experience takes about three hours, includes lunch, and starts from roughly USD 65 with Stone Town meeting-point pickup or about USD 85 from beach hotels.
8. Learn To Cook Zanzibari Food
Zanzibari food pulls together Swahili, Indian, Arab and Persian influences without tasting like a heritage lecture. A hands-on class makes the spice tour considerably more useful because you learn what to do with everything afterwards.
Look for a class that includes a market visit or a meal in somebody’s home. Making pilau, coconut sauces and chapati with a local cook is a much richer afternoon than standing behind a resort buffet trying to identify the least beige tray.
The linked tour above is the cleanest option I found: you harvest ingredients, help make coconut milk and cassava-leaf dishes, then eat the lunch at the farm. This is participatory home-style cooking, not a stainless-steel culinary school.
9. Learn To Kitesurf At Paje
Paje’s shallow lagoon and reliable seasonal winds have turned it into Zanzibar’s kitesurfing base. Even if you never take a lesson, the sky full of kites gives the beach an energy the quieter east-coast villages do not have.
Book an introductory lesson rather than renting equipment and discovering physics in public. Low tide can send the water an absurd distance away, so the school will organise timing around conditions.
10. Swim In Kuza Cave
Kuza Cave near Jambiani is a cool freshwater break from the beach heat. Stone steps lead into a limestone cavern with clear blue water, and the swim feels wonderfully strange after days of salt and sand.
Go earlier if you can. It is no longer an obscure hole reached by vague directions from Paje, and the atmosphere changes quickly when several groups arrive together.
Kuza Cave practicals: It is in Kibigija, north Jambiani; use the official directions. Travel time is about eight minutes from Paje or 45 minutes from Stone Town. Entry is currently USD 10 for adults, it opens daily from 8:30am-6:30pm, and one to two hours is plenty. You can swim, but the clear freshwater reaches roughly three metres deep, so bring water shoes and skip it if you are not confident in the water.
11. See The Red Colobus At Jozani
Jozani is the obvious nature stop to add between Stone Town and the east coast. The forest protects the Zanzibar red colobus, found nowhere else, and the Zanzibar Commission for Tourism lists it among the island’s core nature experiences.
Combine the forest with the mangrove boardwalk and keep your distance from the monkeys. They may look relaxed around people; that is not an invitation to crowd them for a portrait.
Planning Jozani: Allow around 90 minutes independently, or about three hours with hotel transfers. You can use the park guide on arrival, or book this private Jozani tour if you want transfers sorted. It works best on the drive between Stone Town and Paje or Jambiani.
12. Have A Sunset Drink At Park Hyatt
Park Hyatt is the civilised finish to a Stone Town day. The oceanfront terrace catches the sunset, the drinks are obviously hotel-priced, and for an hour you can pretend this is how you travel all the time.
Check the current drinks offer rather than building the evening around an old happy-hour time. I would still go for one drink and the view. Save the actual room decision for the accommodation section below.
A Few Things I Would Treat As Optional
Kendwa Rocks still runs its monthly full moon party. I missed it because my dates did not line up, so I cannot tell you it is essential. If you enjoy big beach parties, check the calendar.
Mnemba snorkelling can be excellent, but choose an operator that does not chase or surround dolphins. Prison Island is easy from Stone Town but increasingly feels like a crowded tortoise photo stop. Freddie Mercury’s museum is tiny and best saved for genuine Queen fans. None of these needs to define the trip.
How I Would Spend One Week In Zanzibar
My first-time route: Days 1-2 in Stone Town for history, markets, coffee and waterfront evenings. Day 3 for a spice farm and cooking class, or Jozani on the way east. Days 4-6 in Paje or Jambiani for kitesurfing, Kuza Cave and east-coast life. Day 7 in Kendwa for easier swimming and a final sunset.
If you would rather let somebody organise the moving parts, compare current Zanzibar tours here. I would still book one or two good guided days and leave the rest loose. Zanzibar is much more enjoyable when every hour does not have a pickup time.
Where I Would Stay In Zanzibar
Split the stay. Spend two nights in Stone Town, then move to the coast. Trying to visit Stone Town repeatedly from a beach resort wastes hours in a car and makes both halves of Zanzibar less enjoyable.
Zanzibar Coffee House: Character In Stone Town
Park Hyatt Zanzibar: The Stone Town Splurge
Zuri Zanzibar: The Beach Stay
Seven days covers the shape of the island. Ten days lets you stop treating the beach as recovery between tours. After Kilimanjaro, I was very happy to discover that doing absolutely nothing for an afternoon also counts.
Tanzania Travel Planning Cheatsheet 🇹🇿
🚑 Should I buy travel insurance for Tanzania?
100% YES! — Tanzania has now introduceed “free” healthcare but it’s only for citiens! Tourists need travel insurance in case anything happens on your visit. Also be aware many policies won’t cover high altitude hiking as it’s a high risk activity!
(That’s right, check the t&c’s on your complimentary credit card insurance)
I highly recommend World Nomads as you can get specific add-ons for high altitude hiking UP TO 6000m (Which most travel insurance companies don’t offer!)
🎫 Do I need a visa for Tanzania?
Probably not — Tanzania now provide a visa on arrival (VoA) for most western countires which allows you stay for up to 90 days. However, some other countries do need a pre-approved eVisa (check here!). VoAs cost $50 USD for a single entry – Note, US Citizens are required to get a Multi-Entry visa which costs $100 USD. (View visa prices here)
If transiting through Kenya (a lot of people fly via Nairobi), you’ll need a Kenyan visa too. Visa’s cost $20 for a 3 day transit visa and $50 for a toursit visa
(By the way, on both my interactions with the imigration officers in kenya they tried to scam me, so know what your obliged to pay and BRING THE EXACT CASH for the visa!)
💉Do I need any vaccinations for Tanzania?
YES! Make sure you are up-to-date with all your vaccines. Common travel vaccines include Hep A/B + Typhoid, and Diphtheria + Tetanus.
A yellow fever vaccination isn’t a requirment to visit Kilimanjaro but is for neighbouring areas in East Africa. In reality, you will might not be allowed back into your home country on your return (I was asked for proof of vaccination upon returning to Australia) so getting this jab prior made for good peace of mind.
Rabies is an issue in Tanzania but the vaccine is expensive and ineffective as a preventative measure (it only lasts a few years and you’ll need to get them again if you require treatment). If bitten by a stray dog seek immediate medical attention!
As always, talk to your GP or specialised travel doctor a few weeks BEFORE you leave.
🏩 What’s the best Kilimanjaro Tour operators?
Your only realy two options here are Kumano Travel and Booking.com. Its a complicated process so I wrote this guide here on the best kumano kodo accomodation options
If you don’t want to figure it all out (it’s meant to be a holiday after all) you can book a package tour. Here are my recommendations for both guided and self-guided.
💸How do you pay for things in Tanzania?
Cash is king in Tanzania, so you’ll want to get some folding tender out from an ATM when you land. Larger businesses and hotels will take Debit / Credit Card but most resturants, and street vendors want cash. I even had to pay for my Kili trip in cash!
I personally use a Wise debit card for all my international money needs as they only convert the funds when you make payment, plus they offer a much better spread (margin on the true exhange rate) than the banks do. They work in all the Tanzanian ATMs I tried.
🚌 What’s the public transport like in Tanzania?
There is a good basic network of local and inter-city busses in Tanzania and travel this way is very cheap. Domestic flight are also very affordable and a far more comfortable option. Checkout Busbora for booking bus tickets online.
📲 How do I get internet/data/wifi in Tanzania and on the mountain?
This one needs a whole nother article, but the short version is prepaid SIM cards are cheap and availible to tourists and locals alike (You don’t need a pricey tourst SIM!)
Your cheapest option is buying a physical sim card on the street corner once landed and getting the shop assistant to help you set it up. I went with Vodacom and had generally good coverage, even up on Kili!
Another option is the Saily eSIM. This is a little more expensive but works from the moment you land is is SOOOOO much easier. It also gives you connectivity across 14 neighbouring African Countries and connectivity the moment you step off the plane!
TIP: I used to use Airalo but now find Saily a much better product – you can get 5% off with code SPECIAL5
✈️ What’s the best site to buy flights to Tanzania?
For finding cheap flights, I recommend Skyscanner. Once you find the flight you’re looking for, I’d then suggest booking directly with the carrier (even if it costs a few $$ more than with one of the agreggators/agencies).
💧Can you drink the water in Tanzania?
Safest not to — tap water in Tanzania may be OK (the locals drink it) but is generally untreated and not reccommended for tourists. Purchase bottled water for drinking and teeth brushing.
🏔️💧Can you drink the water on Mount Kilimanjaro?
Yes — Your tour company with ensure the water provided to you is safe to drink by either carrying in bottled water, or by treating stream water with purification tablets or by boiling it. If you want to drink water from the rivers and streams you generally can but should do so at your own risk. ALWAYS follow best practice and drink from fast flowing water as far up stream as possible. I’d also recommend a Brita Water Bottle for rehydrating on the trail safely.
