Exploring Zanzibar: Unveiling the Top 7 Adventures in Paradise.
As the sun-drenched shores of Zanzibar welcome travellers with their pristine white sands and turquoise waters, this exotic archipelago nestled in the Indian Ocean whispers tales of ancient cultures and tantalising adventures. Renowned for its rich history, vibrant markets, and paradisiacal beaches, Zanzibar stands as a treasure trove of experiences waiting to be discovered. Whether you're drawn to the island's spellbinding history, eager to explore its underwater wonders, or seeking a taste of its aromatic spices, here are the top seven must-do activities that will awaken your senses and etch unforgettable memories against Zanzibar's breathtaking backdrop. Join me as we embark on an exploration of the six essential experiences that make Zanzibar an extraordinary destination for every avid traveller.
Stone Town Zanzibar
We were initially staying for 3 nights at the Park Hyatt in Stone Town itself, before then travelling across the island to the other coast for another 5 nights at Xanadu Villas. Both very different hotels and locations, but exactly what we wanted from the contracts and very different experiences.
Beach House Zanzibar Sunset
(1) Walk in Stone Town and visit the local markets
With staying at the Park Hyatt, Stone Town is literally on your doorstep. As soon as you’re out of the hotel entrance, you can either walk along the shoreline front, the beach, or walk through the back streets with interesting shops on your way to either some of the sites or the local markets.
(2) Freddie Mercury Museum
The Freddie Mercury Museum is located in the heart of Stone Town, Zanzibar. It is located in the same house where Freddie and his family stayed until they moved to England in 1963. This was literally only a couple of minutes walk from the Park Hyatt, where we were staying.
The Museum showcases a detailed accord of Zanzibar starting from the late 1800’s, the birth place of Farrokh Bulsara, his roots with the Zoroastrian Religion, his childhood and upbringing in Zanzibar, followed by his schooling in Panchgani, India, and then his extraordinary journey to becoming one of the greatest stars of all time.
(3) Private Culinary Discover of Zanzibar’s Spices
We had organised this through the hotel in advance of our arrival, and it was a good tour at only $45 per person on a private basis. We were met at the arranged pick up time of 10am in the hotel lobby by Ramadham, who would be our guide for the next two day’s outings, and taken to a waiting minivan with another driver.
Although there had been a bit of a rain shower at breakfast, the sky had cleared at the coast, but as we went about 30 minutes inland, by the time we got to the spice farm it was torrential rain. Note to self and others, when visiting a spice farm famed for its red soil, and in a climate which is want to be quite variable, be better prepared for all eventualities and don’t wear new pure white New Balance trainers!
Even though we had umbrellas provided by the hotel, the rain was relentless so we stayed in the car for a while to see if it would go off. After one failed attempt when the rain seemed to lighten, our guide decided that instead we would go first to the fruit tasting area, which is probably where we would have walked to end up at, had we done the spice part first.
We tried all sorts of fruits, most of them familiar, like pineapple, cucumber (is it a fruit?), Jackfruit, mango, banana, watermelon, Seville orange, normal orange, pomelo (grapefruit), and saw durian fruit on the trees but didn’t taste (nor smell). Although just a shack by the side of the road, the guys there were well organised with bottled water, napkins etc. for us to wash out hands first, and when peeling/cutting the fruit they always cleaned the knives first and were very careful to not touch any of the fruit we were eating. We certainly had no side effects afterwards and it was a good way to pass the time while the rain stopped.
We could see there was the ubiquitous tip box, and there was also a large display area selling all sorts of spices etc. There were small baskets for you to pick up sachets of spices, and we selected four. First off they wanted to charge us $25 for these four, which was just ridiculous considering the cost they would have been at home. Feeling like we were still being ripped off, we agreed on $10 after our guide kept asking for the best price. I’m sure $10 was still well above the market rate, but he also got us to choose another two “free” spices.
After the rain had stopped, we then went across into the spice fields and saw a whole selection of herbs and spices including nutmeg, black pepper, cinnamon, coriander, cardamom, ginger, turmeric , and lemongrass. We seemed to also pick up another impromptu guide, presumably a farm worker who our guide despatched to pick some of the spices for us to test. At a point in the walk, there was another tourist trap moment where sellers had baskets of natural soaps and oils for sale. We felt we had to buy something, and again for two (very small bar) soaps it was going to be $25. We setted on $10 again, and were able to get a third soap “free”. Again I felt ripped off, but just felt like it was part of the experience!
Having left my Apple watch charger at home, we stopped by the Michenzani Mall on the way back to the hotel to try and find a new one, which we did. I had at one point thought it might be somewhere for lunch, but it wasn’t a mall by any international/US/UK standards, so we visited the chemist and an electrical store and that was it.
Good morning out, and good value even with the tourist rip offs. We paid $90 for the tour directly to the guide, an extra $10 tip for him and $5 each for the farm spice guide and our driver.
(4) Private Sandbank Snorkelling and Discovering Prison Island
Again this was another tour organised by the hotel in advance, and we had the same guide Ramadham. With having the option to visit both Prison Island (home to a lot of giant ancient Aldabra tortoises) and also a sandback for swimming or snorkelling, we didn’t need a car but a boat. With the Park Hyatt being perfectly located right on the beach, we just were able to walk out the back of the hotel down the beach and onto a waiting boat. We could have done either the sandbank or Prison Island first, we opted to visit Prison Island then go onto the sandback later.
Prison Island, which was never actually a prison but a quarantine island instead for those arriving from other countries with suspected inflections like yellow fever, bubonic plague and cholera was only a short boat ride away. There wasn’t a huge amount on the island, the hotel that was there is currently under renovation, but it’s still very much worth a visit. There is a tortoise park with giant Aldabra ones which had originally been a present from the Seychelles Islands. We’ve seen them there too on previous holidays, and they’re majestic creatures that can live for well over 100 years. Once we’ve gone around to see these (and including some tiny baby ones too in the nursery) we then went a short walk across the island to see some of the original buildings, which now house a restaurant, couple of bars, a small gift shop, and a museum.
After we had visited the museum (not huge, but with some great photos) we decided to have a drink at the bar before moving on to the sandback as our next stop. At the Prison island bar, there was a good selection of local and international drinks, soft and alcoholic, but it did seem a bit of a rip off that a beer was either $5 or $7, and (what we had, a Tanqueray G&T and Coke Zero) was $16. Still it was a refreshing stop in what was relentless sun and did recognise that it would be the easiest to get supplies onto the island.
The cost of this trip was $120 ($60 per person, private basis again) and we topped this up with a $20 tip for our guide and $10 for the boat driver.
(5) Eat out and enjoy some great local restaurants
Beach House (by the Park Hyatt Zanzibar)
My favourite hotel restaurant was the separate Beach House, literally just a few minutes away from the hotel. Right on the beach, it was a perfect location to watch the sun go down, with a fantastic selection of cocktails and great food.
Cape Town Fish Market Zanzibar
A good quality waterfront restaurant, on a pier very near the hotel. We actually went to the Cape Town Fish Market for lunch twice; not the most extensive selection for a vegetarian but ‘Mrs’ loved the fish options.
Emerson Spice Secret Garden
The Secret Garden was amazing - such a special courtyard location, excellent service and although we only had the one course (I had a vegetable biryani which was incredible with a naan style bread baked over the stone dish) we loved the experience. Excellent cocktails too
There are four options of dining as part of the Emerson group and we tried two of them. There are two rooftop restaurants, this Secret Garden (which was our favourite) and also a private dining option at Emerson on Humunzi.
Emerson on Humunzi Rooftop Tea House
I’d seen that they offered two rooftop dining experiences, one a fixed three course (which is what we went for at Humunzi Tea House) and another five course at Emerson Spice Hotel, which was more fish based. Both needed to be pre-booked (easy online, and they were quick to confirm the booking and then you pay a $10 deposit each). The idea is that dinner will be served at a fixed time (7pm), but that you should aim to arrive from say 6pm to enjoy the rooftop sunset.
At the Huminzi rooftop Tea House where we ate (remember there are two locations, not too far from each other, but we got them mixed up and went to the wrong one first) there are options of both standard table seating or carpeted floor/stool seating. Although the food was excellent, and they easily accommodated my vegetarian request, we still preferred the Secret Garden. Although it was good food and service, there was just something a bit lacking in atmosphere which was there in spades at the Secret Garden, despite neither being anywhere near full. I think if there had been candles or something on tables at the Tea House, or music played in between gaps of the musicians playing, this might have contributed to a better ambience.
Karafuu Coffee House
The Karafuu Coffee House was not somewhere we went to, but looked really stylish and somewhere that we would have liked to have tried. After visiting the Slave Museum and Anglican Cathedral, we did try and find this to have a drink, but got a bit lost and ended up back at the hotel sooner than we had expected.
Upendo Zanzibar
Again not somewhere we visited, but would have if we’d had more time. Upendo Zanzibar seemed to be a collection of boutique hotels, restaurants, and a nice looking shop which first drew my attention. Definitely one to explore on a future Stone Town stay.
(6) Spa treatments and therapies
I had a few great spa experiences, visiting both hotel spas at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar in Stone and then at Xanadu Villas in Dongwe next on the other side of the island. I also visited Cinnamon Spa, literally just opposite the Park Hyatt.
Although all treatments were great, Cinnamon Spa having a wider choice of treatments available than the in-house spa at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar, my absolute favourite had to be the spa at Xanadu Villas.
(7) Maalum Zanzibar: Natural Swimming Pool
There were various tour options available to us from Xanadu Villas, but having done quite a few things when in Stone Town, we were opting just for a really relaxing time in the stunning villa or on the beach, as well as partaking of their excellent spa treatments.
Maalum Zanzibar Natural Swimming Pool
The one thing we did want to do was to visit the nearby Maalum Caves, a natural swimming pool. We’ve been to Mexico a few times and never actually visited a Cenote there, so felt it was time to do it in Zanzibar. It was all organised for us by the hotel, and we were taken by hotel minivan (and our butler Lissu came along too), with towels and mineral water. The journey was only about 15 minutes from Xanadu, and we went direct to Maalum. Once checked in, we were taken to an area to change, with lockers provided for personal belongings. We then were escorted to a shoe change area, where we had to put on reef shoes provided as the entrance into the pool itself was incredibly slippery with algae. Knowing this, both of us still slipped on the way in, you really do need to be extremely careful. Once we had our shoes on, there was an area to shower and then we walked along the path to the pool.
Thankfully it wasn’t busy, and there were a maximum of another maybe 6 guests there at any one time, and at some point we were the only ones there which was great for photography. You can use a drone here, but it has to be pre-arranged. A good visit, then it was back to Xanadu for cocktails and snacks before dinner. Highly recommended and a very efficient set up at Maalum.
$20 for adults and $10 for children, can book online with various slots throughout each day of the week with 90 minute slots.
My final thoughts on Zanzibar
As the sun sets on our journey through Zanzibar's wonders, it's clear that this mystical island has woven an enchanting tapestry of experiences. From the labyrinthine streets of Stone Town resonating with tales of the past to the crystalline waters teeming with marine life, each moment here feels like a stroke on a canvas, painting memories that linger long after the trip concludes. The seven remarkable activities we've explored merely scratch the surface of this captivating destination. Whether you find yourself lost in the spice-scented markets, immersed in the tranquillity of a secluded beach, or marvelling at the cultural mosaic that defines this island, Zanzibar stands as a testament to the beauty and diversity our world has to offer. As The Private Traveller bids farewell to this island paradise, we encourage you to embark on your own journey of discovery, ready to embrace the magic and allure of Zanzibar, leaving footprints in its sands and memories etched in your heart, awaiting your return to this mesmerising slice of heaven.
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