Zanzibar Pemba & Mafia Island

Zanzibar Island is also known locally as Unguja. Zanzibar Island is also made up of Pemba on the North plus other numerous smaller islands. Zanzibar is known for its exotic stone town with its narrow streets, palm fringed beaches and pristine coral reefs. Zanzibar main attractions is the stone town with its white washed ,coral – rag houses ,quaint shops bazaars , mosques, courtyards and squares ,attractive hilly terrain , beautiful beaches offshore islands and one of the best areas for superb diving. Some of the major features of stone town are:

• House of Wonders (Beit el –Ajib). This is one of the most prominent buildings in the old stone town and one of the largest structures in Zanzibar which was built in 1883 by Sultan Barghash as a ceremonial Palace.
• Palace Museum (Beit al – Saleh). This was a palace just north of the house of wonders which served as the Sultan’s residence until 1964 when the dynasty was overthrown and has now been turned into a museum.
• Old Fort. This is a massive bastioned structure originally built around 1700 on the site of a portuguese chapel by oman Arabs as a defence against the Portuguese and now is renovated to be the Zanzibar Cultural Centre.
• Old Slave Market and Anglican Cathedral. This an Anglican church built on the site of the old slave market.

Mafia Island is becoming another destination from Zanzibar. Mafia Island is famous because of its Marine Park. Mafia is a green wedge of land sorounded by waters reflecting enticing shades of turquoise and dotted with white sandbanks. The main attraction is its underwater environment which hosts a vast number of aquatic species and striking diverse coral formations. Mafia is also notable as a breeding ground for green and hawksbill turtles which have nesting sites along the eastern shores of Mafia and on the nearby islands of Juani and Jibondo. Mafia Island is accessible by air from Dar es Salaam or from Zanzibar.

Pemba islands are a part of Zanzibar Archipelago and are around 50kms from Zanzibar Island commonly known locally as Unguja. Unlike Zanzibar which is flat and sandy, Pemba’s terrain is hilly, fertile and heavily vegetated. Pemba islands main economic activity is clove farming. Pemba‘s most attractions are offshore, where coral reefs, the sleepy dropping walls of the Pemba channel and an exceptionally diversity of marine offer some of the best world – class diving areas. On the shore much of the shore is lined with mangroves but there are few beautiful stretches of beaches.