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Stone Town - Jozani Forest - Southwest of Zanzibar
Discovery of the West
This coast offers Stone Town which needs to be discovered, the wealth of fish and other marine life and of course a beautiful beach. Most important in the southwest of Zanzibar is the area of Mbweni, Menai Bay and Fumba and Chumbe Island where snorkeling is superb. And don't forget Kizimkazi!
It’s on the western coast that you will enjoy the beautiful sunsets of Zanzibar! And if you are interested in a true nature walk then Chumbe Island is the right place for you. It's a unique travel destination on a private island which can be visited under the guidance of trained Park Rangers. You can leave from Mbweni for a full day-trip.
Menai Bay, near Fumba, known as a sea-turtle breeding area, has heaps of marine life and dense mangrove forests. Migratory whales visit the Bay from July to November every year. Dolphin and whale watching has become a popular eco- tourism industry in the Menai Bay.
Duration : 7 Days
Travelstyles : Beach Holidays
Activities : Diving & Snorkeling
Parks & places : Chumbe Island Coral Park, Jozani-Chakwa Bay National Park, Prison Island (Changuu Island), Stone Town, The beaches of Zanzibar, The dolpins of Kizimkazi - Menai Bay Conservation Area
Itinerary
Day 1 : Arrival at Zanzibar (Unguja)
Arrival at the airport or harbour to meet our company representative who will transfer you at the hotel of your choice in Stone Town. You will have a briefing about your stay.
There is a huge range of hotels in and around Stone Town fitting different budgets. Stone Town can be noisy and we therefore recommend one of the hotels at the waterfront.
Depending on your time of arrival you can make an excursion to Prison Island or book the sunset cruise, an excursion on a traditional Dhow, starting in the late afternoon and cruising along the Zanzibar (Unguja) coast. Romantic!
Stone Town: For many centuries there was intense seaborne trading activity between Asia and Africa, and this is illustrated in an exceptional manner by the architecture and urban structure of the Stone Town. Zanzibar has great symbolic importance in the suppression of slavery, since it was one of the main slave-trading ports in East Africa and also the base from which its opponents such as David Livingstone conducted their campaign.
Accommodation : 236 Hurumzi (***), Africa House (***), Beyt al Chai (****), Dhow Palace Hotel (***), Mtoni Marine (****), Serena Inn (*****), Tembo Hotel (***)
Parks & places : Prison Island (Changuu Island), Stone Town
Day 2 : Discovery of Stone Town
Our Guide will pick you up after breakfast for a half-day guided historical tour. Stone Town is the cultural and historical heart of Zanzibar and very fascinating. The best way of getting around the town is on foot. Distances are relatively short and most of the streets are too narrow for cars. During your historical tour, your guide will show you the most important places not to miss: The House of Wonders with its balconies, which houses the Zanzibar National Museum of History and Culture, the Portuguese cannons, the Arab Fort, the Great Slave Market and much more.
In the afternoon we recommend you to continue your discovery of Stone Town. You can spend many idle hours and days just wandering through the fascinating labyrinth of narrow streets.The guided tour in the morning will help to find your way in Stone Town.
You can do some shopping; a good place to start with is the Central Darajani Local Market on creek Road. Do not buy the first thing you see, take your time and you must always bargain with the vendors or try to set the prices off against each other. This is their way of doing business!
There are good tourist shops in Stone Town: Zanizbar Gallery (Kenyata Avenue), Memories of Zanzibar (opposite the post office) and Hurumzi Art & Craft Gallery (Hurumzi Street).
At the end of the afternoon we propose you to experience one of Zanzibar’s oldest tradition for a rendez-vous at the "Sunset Bar " at the Africa House Hotel along Shangani Road. Enjoy with a drink the fantastic panorama as the sun sets over the magical Indian Ocean!
In the evening you really need to visit the Forodhani Gardens. The name “forodhani” means a ship’s cargo or a reloading place. This alludes to the slave trade, when slaves landed here and were being taken to the market. You can relax here during the day but the place really comes alive after sunset. Then it hosts the best street food market with an enormous variety. It’s one of the cheapest places to eat but it’s always good to check if everything is really fresh (especially in low season) .
Overnight at hotel of your choice. B/B
Stone Town is a UNESCO world heritage cultural site: It's a fine example of the Swahili coastal trading towns of East Africa. It retains its urban fabric and town scape virtually intact and contains many fine buildings that reflect its particular culture, which has brought together and homogenized disparate elements of the cultures of Africa, the Arab region, India, and Europe over more than a millennium.
Accommodation : 236 Hurumzi (***), Africa House (***), Beyt al Chai (****), Dhow Palace Hotel (***), Mtoni Marine (****), Serena Inn (*****), Tembo Hotel (***)
Parks & places : Stone Town
Day 3 : Jozani Forest Tour and transfer to the Southwest
Early morning departure from your hotel at Stone Town.
Jozani Forest is part of the Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park. There are several nature trails, so you can stay an hour or a half-day. An official guide is recommended and obligatory if you want to see the monkeys inside the Forest.
The best time to visit Jozani is early in the morning or late afternoon when the wildlife is at its most active. The light is superb for photographing the Zanzibar red colobus monkeys. If you go in the morning you will have to leave Stone Town very early, it's about 38 km to the Forest.
The brackish water that flows through the mangroves is a nursery ground for hundreds of species of tropical fish. Bird life is also good.
After your guided nature walk transfer to your hotel at the Southcoast.
Accommodation at you choice.
Nature Lovers will appreciate this Guided Forest Walk where you can observe the endangered red colobus monkeys at a close range.This excursion can be easily made at any time from your hotel located at the Southeast coast. Your nature walk is ideal for escaping the heat!
Accommodation : Chumbe Eco (**), Fumba Beach ****, Mbweni Ruins Hotel (***)
Parks & places : Jozani-Chakwa Bay National Park, The beaches of Zanzibar
Day 4 : Relaxing at the Southwest Coast
Today you have the choice between a lazy day at the beach or visiting the ruins of a nineteenth-century Christian mission and freed slave colony at Mbweni, 7 km south of Stone Town. In the botanical gardens Sir John Kirk, who was an authority on East African flora, introduced many of the 650 species. Sir John Kirk, a botanist by profession, accompanied Livingstone up the Zambezi. In the Mbweni Ruins Hotel you will find a restaurant to take lunch.
Perhaps you prefer to visit Chumbe Island Coral Park, one of the richest and finest coral gardens in the world. Coral growth and diversity along the shallow reef is among the highest in East Africa. We don't need to tell you that snorkeling is superb. Scuba diving however is prohibited. Chumbe Island is also known for its forest with a rich variety of flora and fauna. The survival of the forest is largely due to the absence of humans byt forest can by explored along a number of nature trails that have been carefully laid. At low tide you can also walk around the island and see mangroves. There's no beach but you really won't miss it!
Accommodation at your choice.
Accommodation : Chumbe Eco (**), Fumba Beach ****, Mbweni Ruins Hotel (***)
Activities : Diving & Snorkeling
Parks & places : The beaches of Zanzibar, The dolpins of Kizimkazi - Menai Bay Conservation Area
Day 5 : Relaxing at the Southwest Coast
You have the choice between another day at leisure at the beach or in your hotel or an active day at Kizimkazi, a pretty fishing village.
The beaches at Kizimkazi are beautiful but beware of stepping on sea urchins. Most tourists come here on a dolphin tour. The waters off Kizimkazi are home to bottle-nose and humpback dolphins. Calm days are best, as rough seas force the dolphins into deeper water. If you decide to go, allow the dolphins to come to you and do not try to touch them.
You can also visit the Dimbani Mosque, on the main road. It is East Africa's oldest standing mosque. The mosque is still in use. From the outside it has a rusty corrugated metal roof and only a roadside plague indicates its importance. The mosque was rebuilt in 1770 but the inside retained the simple and graceful form of twelfth-century Persian mosques.
Near Fumba, you can visit the Menai Bay which is a sea-turtle breeding area with coral reef, heaps of marine life and dense mangrove forests.
Menai Bay has been dedicated as a conservation area since 1998. It was designed to give Zanzibar-is in the Fumba area interest in their environment. The project is to learn the villagers how to conserve their natural heritage and how to exploit it in a sustainable way. Eco-tourism plays an important role and Fumba Beach Lodge is the first and only lodge on Fumba Peninsula.
Return to accommodation at your choice.
Accommodation : Chumbe Eco (**), Fumba Beach ****, Mbweni Ruins Hotel (***)
Activities : Diving & Snorkeling
Parks & places : The beaches of Zanzibar, The dolpins of Kizimkazi - Menai Bay Conservation Area
Day 6 : Relaxing at Southwest Coast.
An active snorkeling or diving day or a day at leisure in the accommodation of your choice.
Depending on the departure time of your flight and your choice of accommodation, it might be necessary to return to Stone Town for overnight. You can choose to leave in the morning and spend a half day at Prison Island or if you have missed the sunset cruise book it for the late afternoon at Stone Town.
Alternatively you can stay at Mtoni Marine Centre which is on the waterfront North of Stone Town (15 min).
Accommodation : Chumbe Eco (**), Fumba Beach ****, Mbweni Ruins Hotel (***)
Activities : Diving & Snorkeling
Parks & places : The beaches of Zanzibar, The dolpins of Kizimkazi - Menai Bay Conservation Area
Day 7 : Departure
You will be picked up at your hotel to be transferred at the airport for your depature! Zanibar International Airport (Kisauni) lies 6 km South of Stone Town.
Please keep in mind that there is a departure tax of $ 30 at the airport! The airport tax is not included in your ticket!
Ref. holiday package: ZNZ004!
This holiday package can be tailor-made! Different hotel categories are available. Ask us more information!
Meal plans at your choice depending on offered possibilities: Bed & Breakfast, Half board, Full Board or all Inclusive.
What is included?
The holiday package includes: airport transfers, hotel accommodation, meal plan at your choice, half-day guided historical tour of Stone town, half-day guided Jozani Forest tour. Optional: Visit of Prison Island, Sundown cruise departing from Stone Town, diving & snorkeling arrangements and other special interest tours. It Excludes: Airline ticket, beverages, tips, visas, Zanzibar departure tax and personal expenses.
What to bring?
Money for your personal expenses, $ 30 departure tax, light clothes are advisable, sun protection is a must (sunglasses, sun cream, sunhat), malaria protection, mosquito repellent for use in the evenings, your own diving mask if you have, plastic shoes of sandals are recommended for shoreline walks at low tide, camera
Flights to Zanzibar: Several large carriers fly to Entebbe, Kilimanjaro, Nairobi and Nairobi with connecting flights to Zanzibar. There are also domestic flights. flights between Zanzibar and Tanzania's main cities and National Parks. We can assist and arrange your flights.
Departure tax: Harbour tax $5 p.p. - international flight tax $30 p.p. - Domestic flight $5 p.p. - Cash only!
Visa & passports: All visitors require a passport, valid for the duration of their stay, most visitors can get their visa at Zanzibar International Airport at $ 50 per person. Ask us more information.
