From Stone Town’s old lanes to Mnemba’s reef and the south-east flats, the island unhurried.
10 nightsIslandStone Town · Matemwe · Paje
The journey
Ten nights is when Zanzibar stops being a beach and becomes a place. By the fourth morning you know which hour the tide turns.
Two nights in Stone Town first, among carved doors and spice markets. Then four on the north-east coast opposite Mnemba, and four on the south-east, where the lagoon drains and villages work the flats. Only two hotel moves in all.
Zanzibar Ten Nights is our 10 day Zanzibar itinerary for travellers who want three faces of the island, not one beach: old town, reef and working coast. The cost is two hotel moves, one a half day across the island. For four to six nights, choose Shores of Zanzibar.
Stone Town, then two coasts, with the tide table as your timetable and every night shaped on your terms.
Moments along the way
Old stone, open water.
01
Stone Town at seven
Shutters opening, coffee sellers clinking cups and the lanes still cool before the day’s heat.
02
The spice farm
Cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon in your hand, and the story of why the world sailed here.
03
Mnemba’s reef
Masks on over the coral, the boat rocking gently while your guide reads the water.
04
A dhow at dusk
Sail full, the sea turning silver, and nowhere left to be.
05
The south-east flats
When the tide pulls out, seaweed farmers work the flats; ask before photographing anyone.
06
Kites over Paje
Kitesurfers on the lagoon, in season and only when the wind allows.
Where you’ll stay
Each stay adds to the story.
From a simple Essential stay in Stone Town to a Private Collection retreat on the coast, each stay is chosen for what it adds. The levels need not match, so put more into the coast and keep Stone Town simple.
Select an idea to carry into your brief. Nothing is added to a booking or priced automatically.
BEFORE YOU ENQUIRE
A route with room to breathe
Here’s how it comes together.
Zanzibar airport → Stone Town → Matemwe → Paje → airport. Three bases, two hotel moves, drives of up to about two hours. Your proposal confirms drive times and boat slots.
Preparing the route map…
A sense of the days
The rhythm of the journey.
Land, settle in, then walk the old town to Forodhani Gardens at dusk. Cover shoulders and knees, and ask before photographing anyone.
Walk with a guide to the cathedral on the former slave market, where an exhibition remembers the people sold there. A spice farm follows.
A Mnemba boat morning timed to the tide, a dive if you want one, and long days on the beach.
A slow transfer with a stop at Jozani Forest, where Zanzibar’s red colobus monkeys live. Fees apply at the gate.
Kitesurfing in season, a Menai Bay sandbank day, village walks and the seaweed farms on the flats.
Transfer to the airport for your flight, or fly on to Pemba, Dar es Salaam or the mainland.
Typically two nights in Stone Town, four near Mnemba on the north-east coast and four on the south-east: ten in all, with two hotel moves.
Clear from the beginning
What’s included.
Typically included
Accommodation at your chosen level
Meals as set by each stay
Road and airport transfers
Guided experiences you choose
Boat days arranged around the tide
Drinking water on outings
Not included
International flights
Visa and first-port inbound insurance
Marine and forest entry fees
Premium drinks
Gratuities
Kitesurfing and other optional extras
Every journey is quoted in full, with no surprises.
Good to know
Zanzibar, in context.
Stone Town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. The east coast is tidal: at spring lows the lagoon drains for hundreds of metres, so swims follow the tide table, while the north-west swims at almost any tide. Mnemba’s reef lies in a marine conservation area: non-East African adults pay US$10 to US$25 there, depending on the zone, at September 2025 rates. One e-visa covers Zanzibar and the mainland.
Each base does a different job: Stone Town for history on foot, the north-east for Mnemba’s reef, the south-east for village life, kites and wide flats. Four nights on each coast lets the tide shape your days, with only two hotel moves.
Nobody can promise either; what you see depends on the day, tide and water. On Mnemba’s reef, do not stand on coral or touch a turtle, and wear mineral sunscreen. At Kizimkazi, boats should stay back from a dolphin pod and never chase it.
June to October is an easy window to plan, mostly dry with the kusi wind. December to February is also mostly dry. Treat April and May with care: the long rains fall and some hotels close, so confirm each stay is open.
Two in Stone Town, four near Mnemba, four on the south-east coast. Ten days on the ground usually means nine nights, so take one from either coast. Dropping a coast leaves six, close to Shores of Zanzibar. Our how-many-days guide compares lengths.
Yes. Every non-resident visitor needs Tanzania’s government inbound insurance, even with a personal policy. You buy it once, for your first port of entry, and entry may be refused without it. Our insurance guide covers the details.
Choose Shores of Zanzibar for four to six nights, or Zanzibar & Pemba to add a quieter island. If you must swim at every tide, base on the north-west coast instead, because the east-coast lagoon drains at low tide.
Government advice, checked October 2026: the US rates Tanzania, Zanzibar included, Level 3, Reconsider travel (issued 31 October 2025). The UK advises against all but essential travel only within 20 km of the border with Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province, and reports armed crime across Tanzania, including in Stone Town and on popular Zanzibar beaches. Read both before you travel.
Malaria risk covers all of Tanzania below 1,800 m, Zanzibar included. Tanzania asks for a yellow fever certificate from travellers arriving from a country on its risk list, Kenya among them. This is general information, not medical advice — consult a travel clinic.
A seasonal snapshot for Zanzibar. Your coast and interests matter as much as the calendar, and hotels set their own closures.
Typically drierLonger rainsMore variable
Jul / Main dry season
Kusi wind and a dry coast.
Mostly dry on the island, with the south-east kusi wind from about June to September for kitesurfing at Paje. Tides still set the east-coast swims and reef trips, whatever the month.
Broad seasonal guidance — not a forecast, availability calendar or migration promise. Picking a month sets it in your plan.
