Zanzibar Island general information
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Zanzibar is an archipelago made up of two main Islands, Zanzibar and Pemba Island, and several islets. It is located in the Indian Ocean, about 40 km from the Tanzanian coast, and 86 km south of the equator. Zanzibar Island is 96 km long and 36 km wide with an approximate area of 1464 square km. It offers white sandy beaches with fringing coral reefs, and filled with historic places like Stone Town, the oldest functioning town in East Africa. Zanzibar is also inhabited by smaller wildlife. In its rain forest you will find monkeys, bush-pigs, small antelopes and civets. Also found is a wide variety of bird life, and a large number of butterflies in the rural areas. The coral reefs that surround the East Coast are rich in marine diversity, making Zanzibar also a great destination for snorkelling and scuba diving. The population on Zanzibar Island is estimated on around 950 000. Swahili is the local language but most of the people can also speak English. Zanzibar Island forms part of Tanzania, and one only need to get one visa to be able to travel tough all the amazing Wild life parks and tropical Islands. Tourism has become Zanzibar's biggest form of income. Most of the local Zanzibari people are still involved with fishing and agriculture but plenty of opportunities has been formed tough tourism. Plenty of investment has pored into Zanzibar and a wide variety of accommodation from Guesthouses to 5 start resorts are found on the Island. |
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| Zanzibar offers ideal holiday weather for most of the year, with the only exception being April and May, which are seasonally subject to the long rain season. In November short rains can also occur but are typically only short rain showers. |
| JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | |
| AVE. TEMP (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 27 |
| AVE. HIGH TEMP | 32 | 32 | 32 | 30 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 30 | 31 | 31 |
| AVE. LOW TEMP | 24 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| AVE. RAIN (cm) | 5 | 6 | 14 | 32 | 28 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 17 | 13 |
| AVE. RAIN DAYS | 5 | 5 | 8 | 11 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 8 |
| Due to Zanzibar being very close to the equator, Zanzibar offers warm conditions all year round. Summer normally peaks around December, and winter around June. | |
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| Stone Town is the oldest functioning
Town in East Africa. With its small winding alleys, busy bazaars,
mosques,
Anglican
Church, old Arab ford, Old Slave Market, Sultan's Palace Museum and House
of Wonders it should definitely not be missed when travelling to Zanzibar.
The International airport is also situated about 10 minutes drive from
Stone Town. Stone Town also have plenty of accommodation option;
from small guesthouse/house like Coco der mer, to intermediate accommodation like, Dhow Palace and Tembo Hotel, to 5 start luxury Hotels like Zanzibar Serena Inn. Excellent hotels like Mtoni Marine and Mbweni Ruins are also found a couple of minutes drive outside of Stone Town. |
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| Zanzibar Island offers
some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The white beaches
with the warm turquoise water of the Indian Ocean makes Zanzibar a perfect
holiday destination. Some of Zanzibar Island's best beaches are found on the North Coast and on the East Coast of Zanzibar. On the North Coast you can stay at Baobab Beach Bungalows, Langi Langi Bungalows, or Mnarani Beach Cottages, all that are part of our budget saver packages. If you prefer a more upmarket accommodation, Nungwi Village Beach Resort is a good option to take. One of the best Resort hotels found on Zanzibar, La Gemma Dell 'est is also situated here. On the East Coast of Zanzibar you will find a large variety of hotels and resorts like Hakuna Majiwe, Blue Bay Beach Resort, Breezes Beach Club, Karafuu Beach Resort & Ocean Paradise Beach Resort. |
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| Dream World Adventures
specializes in fly-in package from South Africa to Zanzibar Island.
1time Airlines offers direct flights from Johannesburg to Zanzibar
International Airport. Dream World Adventures have special reduced
fares with 1Time Airlines, and with this can offer our clients more
affordable packages as shown on our Zanzibar special page. If you will not be travelling from South Africa to Zanzibar, KLM offers international scheduled flights to Zanzibar. Other Airlines like British Airways, Emirates Airlines and Swiss Air offers International flights to Dar es Salaam on the main land from Tanzania. From Dar es Salaam you will have two options to get to Zanzibar Island. Option one will be a domestic flight with one of the charter companies like Precision Air, or option two traveling by ferry from Dar es Salaam harbour to Zanzibar harbour. There are several sea ferry companies for a ferry trip to Zanzibar, but please note that the last ferry normally depart by around 16h00. FERRY TIMES (PLEASE ONLY USE THESE TIMES AS AN INDICATED AS IT MIGHT VERY) FROM DAR ES SALAAM TO ZANZIBAR: 07H30, 10H30, 12H00, 14H00 & 16H00 FROM DAR ES SALAAM TO ZANZIBAR: 07H00, 10H00, 13H00, 15H45, 21H30 If your international flight arrives in Dar es Salaam after 15h30 we would suggest that you do not take a chance and rather spend the night in Dar es Salaam. You will also not be able to get a charter flight after 17h30. If you prefer flying all the way to Zanzibar it is best to purchase a ticket that already includes the connecting flight to Zanzibar, and not just to Dar es Salaam. |
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Hello |
Jambo |
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How are you? |
Habari? |
| Welcome | Karibu |
| Please | Tafadhali |
| Fine | Nzuri |
| Thank you | Ahsante |
| Sir | Bwana |
| Mrs | Mama |
| Yes | Ndio |
| No | Hapana |
| No problem | Hakuna matata |
| Ok | Sawa |
| Where? | Wapi? |
| How much? | Beigani? |
| Shop | Duka |
| Water | Maji |
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STONE TOWN TOUR |
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On this tour you will get a comprehensive view of the Stone Town, it's sand
and stone ancient built houses, some of them have Arab/Indian carved doors
and the architecture which helps to make Zanzibar famous. We then proceed to the main City market which was opened in 1904, where tropical fruits, vegetables, spices and fresh fish from the island are sold. Our next stop will be at the Anglican Church of Christ which was built by Bishop Steers in 1873 on the side of the Old Slave Market. There is a cross in the church which is made of wood from the tree under which Dr. David Livingstone died. Next to the Church you will visit the slave chambers, tiny rooms in which the slaves were kept before being auctioned. From here we continue our tour to the Sultan's Palace Museum, House of Wonders (Beit-el-ajaib built in 1883 and bombarded by the British Fleet in 1886), next to this you can also see the Old Fort, (built in 1700), moving along the sea front we come to the Jamituri Gardens where you can spend your evenings leisurely watching the brilliant sunset while you are enjoying the locally made dishes. From here we drive you to The Africa House formerly known as English Club, we then come to Tippu Tip house, (A notorious slave trader). We round up our tour by taking you to the museum of Natural History and Peace Memorial Museum. |
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SPICE TOUR |
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| Zanzibar is also known as "The Island of Spices", whose name evokes a
romantic past embalmed in the aroma of cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and lemon
grass. This tour starts with a drive through a profusion of greenery in the
countryside seeing, smelling and tasting a variety of mouth-watering
tropical seasonal fruits, some examples are: jack fruit, pineapple, banana,
green coconut (madafu), dourian, love apple (matufaa), litche shoki-shoki),
soursop (mabungo) and starfruit (carambola). Some of the spices are cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, turmeric and nutmeg - are as exotic as the flavour. A full tour involves much more than spices and you will also have a chance to see the iodine plant, heena bush, ylang-ylang, the lipstick tree, cocoa and coffee trees. The tour also includes a visit to the Kidichi Persian Baths built in 1850 by Seyyid Said bin Sultan for his Persian wife Princess Sheherezade granddaughter of the Shah of Persia, you will also visit the Maruhubi Palace Ruins built by the third Sultan of Zanzibar Seyyid Barghash for his 99 concubines. |
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PRISON ISLAND TOUR |
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| Prison Island or Changuu Island is the middle island of the three visible from the Stone Town, it takes approximately 30 minutes to get there by boat. The prison on this island was built in 1893, which was later used as a quarantine Hospital, it has a frangipani lined path around the island where the former patients took their evening walks. Apart from the Prison ruins you can also see the beautiful peacocks and the enormous giant tortoises some of which are over a 100 years old. These tortoises were brought here from Seychelles by Sultan Said in the 1820's. Efforts are being made to pretect the eggs of the tortoise. The island is a superb scenario for the photographer. A self walking safari covers the island in 15minutes. On this little paradise one can also swim, snorkel, sunbathe or just relax and enjoy the peacefulness that this beautiful island has to offer. | |
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JOZANI FOREST TOUR |
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| Jozani Forest lies 35kms South-East of Zanzibar Town with an area of about
1,000 hectares, it is a natural forest where long ago you could find
leopards and antelopes. At present it is the habitat for the Red Colobus
Monkeys (Colobus badius kirkii) and the Blue Sykes Monkey. The Red Colobus
monkey is one of the most endangered and rarest species in the world, they
are very friendly creatures and love to be photographed and can be viewed at
close quarters by the help of your guide. You may also get a glimpse of various butterflies, birds and snakes. Other interesting features suitable for tourist in this forest include the coastal evergreen bushland, mangroove forest, saline grassland and ground water forest, though these may require longer walks to reach. |
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DOLPHIN TOUR |
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| The drive from town to the South takes one hours. On your way you might get a chance to see the famous Red Colobus Monkeys of the Jozani Forest. Kizimkazi fishing village is the home of several schools of the bottle-nosed dolphins, here you are taken by boat out into the sea to view the dolphins and if lucky will be able to swim quite close to them as they are very friendly and playful, Kizimkazi is also the site of a 12th Century Mosque, the earliest evidence of Islam in East Africa. | |
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SAFARI BLUE |
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HIGHLY RECOMMENDED !! |
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Experience the boat excursion at Minai bay in Zanzibar. After breakfast we will drive you to Fumba Village in the South West of Zanzibar where you will board a dhow with other guest to experience a beautiful Minai bay conservation area, and get a chance to see the dolphins, swim one of the prostine sandbanks, visit the islets and snorkel at the coral reefs. Safari Blue is a full day trip and includes use of snorkeling equipment with guides and instructors, ice cold sodas, mineral water and beer, buffet lunch with a delicious Zanzibari seafood include grilled fish, slipper lobster & calamari. Fruits and coffee will also be served. When the ride is high you will also explore the natural lagoon found on Kwale Island, this lagoon is surrounded by a mangrove forest where you will swim for an unforgettable experience. We round the day off by returning to Fumba by traditional lanteen sail. |
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TOUR TO THE NORTH |
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| This trip leads you through the Mangapwani cave which is a 30minute drive from Zanzibar town, upto 1911 the cave was a secret hideout from which the slaves were illegaly led out to the sea through a secret passage and then transported by dhow after the official closure of the Slave Market in June 1873. The tour then proceeds to Nungwi in the North of Zanzibar which is an hours drive from the cave. Nungwi has crystal clear waters an excellent place for diving, snorkelling, swimming and sunbathing. As Zanzibar is a turtle conservation area you will be able to see the natural turtle aquarium here.In this tour we also take you to a site where local villagers build dhows and boats to date using traditional tools. | |
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DREAM WORLD ADVENTURES
TEL
: +27 12 331 6730 (South Africa)
FAX
: + 27 86 500 4293 (South
Africa)
E-MAIL :
webenquiry@dreamworldadventures.co.za
