Zanzibar

This tour begins with a visit to Zanzibar ’s colourful market. Alive with the buzz of locals bartering fresh vegetables and baskets of tropical fruit, amongst the heady smell of Jack fruit and many other exotic fruit, we continue on to the site of a cathedral built in 1874, which signifies a potent time in Zanzibar’s history and stands on the sight of a past slave market. Abolished in 1873 by decree of the Sultan of Zanzibar, the cathedral’s high altar stands on the exact site of the whipping post that was in the market.

From here we visit the residence of the late Sultan of Zanzibar, ‘Tip Tip House’, the Old Fort, ‘Peoples Palace’ and the ‘House of Wonders’, full of intrigue from days of long ago. The tour ends with a stroll down the narrow streets of the old stone town, the heart of Zanzibar’s vivacious history. The Stone Town Tour can be customised to meet your requirements.

The ‘Spice Tour’ is guaranteed to awaken your senses where you will have the opportunity to pick, smell & savour fruits & spices that you have probably never seen on the supermarket shelf. Commencing at the ruins of the Maruhubi Palace, via the site of David Livingstone’s house (one of Africa’s greatest explorers) the journey continues towards the Kidichi Persian Baths.

From here, continue to the rural areas where local farmers live & produce some of the world’s most exotic fruits and spices: cloves, star fruit, ‘bulls heart’, tangerine trees, lemon grass, mangosteen and lip-stick trees to name but a few, are what you can expect to see – according to the planting season. Perhaps you will fancy buying a basket of freshly picked spices to take home with you.

This half day boat ride to the island in a small wooden motorized boat is a must when visiting Zanzibar. Earning its namesake as a former prison for slaves, and a quarantine station for Kenya, Uganda and then Tanganyika, the island now gives you the chance to escape for some peace and quiet! A hundred year old Giant Tortoises acts as an unlikely vigilant over the island and you cannot not help but wonder what tales it would tell if it could talk! The island is approximately 1km long and a 0.25 km wide – perfect for swimming & snorkelling after a stroll round the island. Keep the best till last because it really is like diving into champagne – the water is crystal clear.

Jozani Forest lies about 35 km south-east of Zanzibar township in Zanzibar’s Southern region. It is a narrow neck of land between the Chakwa Bay in the north and Uzi Bay to the South. Jozani is the only remaining natural forest on Unguja Island (which along with Pemba make up the islands of Zanzibar). Features include a re-plantation of species of trees from different part of the world, most of which are medicinal plants and over 100m long. The forest sustains a wide variety of wildlife and birds, including the rare Red Colobus Monkey. The 10 km of swamp forests and evergreen thickets provide a unique glimpse into a secretive world.