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Indian Ocean
Zanzibar
Exotic, unhurried and closer than it sounds. Stone Town first, then a beach at the end of it.
In Ruaan's words
Why I send people here
Zanzibar is the island I recommend when somebody says they want a beach holiday but they would be bored by day four. There is a thousand years of trading history here, and Stone Town is a genuinely strange and beautiful place to spend two days before you go and lie down.
The tides matter more here than anywhere else I sell. On the east coast the sea walks out a long way twice a day, which is wonderful if you like walking on a reef flat and disappointing if you pictured swimming at four in the afternoon. Nungwi and Kendwa in the north hold their water. I plan around that rather than letting you find out.
It is also the best value luxury in the Indian Ocean right now. The same money that buys you a good room in Mauritius buys you a better one here, and the flights have improved a lot in the last two years.
What makes it
Three things that decide the trip
Stone Town
Two nights, not one. The doors, the market, the Forodhani food stalls at sunset, and a guide who actually knows the history.
The north
Nungwi and Kendwa, where the tide never strands you and the sunsets face the right way.
A dhow at sunset
The most photographed thing on the island, and still worth doing.
Photographs
Zanzibar, as it actually looks
Drag the gallery, click a frame, or use the arrow keys.
Sample itinerary
What you actually receive
Click the right hand page to turn it. This is the shape of the document that lands in your inbox after we talk, not a brochure.
Stone Town
Land, transfer into town, and an afternoon walk with a guide who lives there. Dinner at Forodhani.
Spices and history
A spice farm in the morning, the old slave market and the cathedral in the afternoon. Heavy, and worth it.
Spices and history
North to the beach
Transfer to Nungwi or Kendwa. The rest of the day belongs to you.
North to the beach
The dhow
Out on the water in the late afternoon. Sundowners on deck, back after dark.
The dhow
Slowly
Nothing booked. This is the day people tell me about afterwards.
Slowly
Or somewhere else
