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5 Days
Daily Tour
Unlimited
English
This 5 day extension provides the perfect balance between exploration of the rich cultural heritage of the island and losing yourself on the beach. It includes time in Stone Town with a cultural walking tour, an afternoon trip to Prison Island and 3 days of beach relaxation on the island’s quiet northeast coast.
One hour morning flight to the Spice Island from either the Kilimanjaro or Arusha Airport. Transfer to Stone Town. Rest and lunch at your leisure.
Afternoon private guided Stone Town Walking Tour. Stone Town is rich with the history, culture, and architecture of the diverse peoples that have called the island home. A walking tour is the only way to truly experience this ancient city, which exists today much as it did when Zanzibar was a great trading center known the world over for spices, ivory, and slaves.
The two and a half hour tour takes you through the streets and back alleys to Stone Town’s famous and infamous spots, including the location of the slave market, Sultans’ palaces, Beit el Ajaib (House of Wonders), the old Arab Fort, artists’ studios, and museums. Feel the rhythm of life in the main marketplace, alive with the chatter of locals bargaining in Swahili and the vibrant palate of colors from the fabrics, tropical fruits, spices, and intricately carved wooden handicrafts.
The Zanzibar Coffee House provides a touch of magic and romance in the heart of Stone Town. The hotel is an exquisitely transformed mansion, originally built in 1885 in authentic Arab style by the Wazir to Sultan Said Bargash, containing harmonious interiors, antique furniture, rich fabrics and traditional Zanzibar four-poster beds. The day begins in the tower top teahouse for breakfast with fresh coffee and homebaked goods from the hotel’s cafe. At the end of the day, as you relax with the sunset and gaze across the minarets, there’s a feeling of timelessness that conjures up a bygone era.
Overnight: Zanzibar Coffee House
Meals: –
Rooftop breakfast. Morning at your leisure.
Afternoon trip to Prison Island. A mere 4 kilometers and 20 minutes boat ride from the bustle of Stone Town lies quiet Changuu (Prison) Island, which received its name from the prison that was built in 1893 under Zanzibar’s British administration. The buildings were never used as a prison and instead became a quarantine center.
The ruins are still intact and the cells can be visited. A protected colony of giant tortoises – some over 100 years old – live on the island. A number of rare bird species may also be seen on the island. The beach is superb and the crystal clear sea excellent for swimming, snorkeling, fishing, or diving.
Overnight: Zanzibar Coffee House
Meals: B
After breakfast, take a private island Spice Tour. Visit a spice plantation where you will have the opportunity to pick, smell and savor some of the world’s most exotic fruit & spices – many of which you have never seen on the supermarket shelf.
Cloves, star fruit, ‘bulls heart’, tangerine trees, lemon grass, mangos and lip-stick trees… perhaps you will fancy buying a basket of freshly picked spices to take home with you! Included are stops at the ruins of the Maruhubi Palace, the site of David Livingston’s house, and the Kidichi Persian Baths.
After the tour, your driver will drop you off in a quiet bay on the north east coast of Zanzibar. Pongwe Beach is a tranquil location — the ideal place to relax and enjoy Zanzibar’s distinctive, mellow pace.
Pongwe Beach Hotel’s 16 thatch roof cottages are set in a manicured garden fronting a long white sandy beach protected by an offshore reef, where the warm clear Indian Ocean is ideal for swimming. All the cottages have en suite bathrooms with Moroccan style walk in showers and private terraces where guests may enjoy the sunrise and a leisurely breakfast. The restaurant sources local ingredients, so you have the freshest island seafood, meats, fruits, and vegetables – all prepared with exotic tropical spices to your taste. The hotel’s traditional wooden long boat provides guests access to deep waters before and beyond the reef for fishing and snorkeling.
Overnight: Pongwe Beach Hotel
Meals: B,D
After breakfast transfer (1 hour) from Stone Town to Zanzibar’s northeast coast.
Relax at the beautiful beach at Pongwe or enjoy one of the multiple activities available: snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking, cycling, boating in a traditional wooden longboat, and swimming, among others. Some activities require an extra fee payable directly to the hotel.
Overnight: Pongwe Beach Hotel
Meals: B,D
After a final day at the beach, transfer in the afternoon to the Zanzibar airport for your short hop (20 minutes) flight to Dar es Salaam, where you can board your international flight home.
Meals: B
