Zanzibar - Dreams in the Sun

We flew directly to Zanzibar with the new charter service (operated by Mango). It is a quick 3 to 4 hour flight and before you know it, the aircraft circles to land on a small flat island. The charter flight is a weekly flight departing on Tuesdays from Johannesburg. Do not expect any of the modern luxuries such as luggage carousels or air-conditioning at the airport in Zanzibar. Jambo means welcome in Swahili and it is the slogan there. The people are truly friendly and welcoming.

Zanzibar’s is made up of coral and sandstone and with the whole island being flat and is no larger than 86km by 34km. The roads are mostly paved and traffic is not heavy. It took about an hour and a half from the airport to our resort. Our transfer operator was very good and the air-conditioned bus was in a good condition. Zanzibar’s beaches are protected by a coral reef surrounding the island. At most resorts the tide goes out quite a distance, and some resorts have especially built paths for bathers so that they can get out to the sea for a swim during low tide. The weather is tropical and the rainy monsoon season is normally from April to May. The average maximum temperatures vary from 28 – 32 degrees Celsius (minimums from 21- 24 degrees Celsius)

The island has a great variety of beach resorts to choose from and these vary from being very basic to complete luxury. Zanzibar resort packages offer very good value for money (as most resorts offer an all-inclusive plan at a very reasonable rate). It is important to get expert advice in order to select the correct resort for your required holiday - be it honeymoon or adventure. The standards can vary and the star ratings can be very misleading there. The best part of a Zanzibar package holiday is to enjoy the resort’s pool, beach, drinks and food. There are excursions that one can do on the island from:

Ocean Blue Cruise – Enjoy a full day cruise on a hand built sail boat (Ngalawa) including snorkelling equipment and lunch & entertainment on a sand island – this is the most amazing local experience. The snorkelling is excellent.

Spice Tour – See and taste first-hand how spices are grown – this was ‘’Spice Island’’ after all.

Stone Town – a UNESCO world heritage site, the buildings are amazing and it seems as if some of it at least is being renovated.

There are also forest walks and many other excursions available.

Zanzibar is truly an escape holiday, into Africa and away from it all!