In this final post, we leave the Serengeti and head to our final destination in Africa, Zanzibar. If you’re familiar with Tanzania, then you’ll know that Zanzibar is nowhere near the Serengeti. So for us the only way to get there was to take a couple of flights from the Serengeti via Arusha on little prop planes. Beforehand I didn’t know much about Zanzibar, although I knew it was off the coast of Tanzania and different from the mainland. Zanzibar turns out to be gorgeous with stunning blue waters but also shockingly poor, and I’ll get into what I mean by that further down.

Flights from the Serengeti to Zanzibar

So how it works is that everyone leaving the Serengeti takes a flight to either other parks in Tanzania, head back to Arusha or head on to Zanzibar. All flights leave from a little airport near the Kenyan border called the Kogatende Airstrip and all flights are on little prop planes. This airport was packed with planes landing and taking off with all types of tour groups.

We said goodbye to our driver, he had to drive all the way back to Arusha in a car, and boarded our small prop plane with another couple. The plane is small but it can still fit around 10 people. This plane wasn’t direct either, as it landed at Seronera Airport in central Serengeti, Tarangire, and finally landed at Arusha, where we had to connect to another plane. Arusha’s domestic airport is nothing special and somewhat confusing, but at least there was a bathroom. We waited for maybe 30 minutes for our next plane, boarded, and then took off for Arusha. Immediately to our left we could see the top of Mount Kilimanjaro but still pretty hard to see since it was cloudy.

Tropical Zanzibar

Landing at Zanzibar International Airport is an amazing experience. The flight path leaves the mainland and heads into a tropical paradise with blue water, sandy islands and palm trees. It’s miles away from Serengeti in terms of feel and look.

The airport is kind of a mess as well. First of all our flight was directed to the international arrivals section and we were not arriving international, so that was confusing. In fact, I was asked to hand over my passport, and I didn’t have it, it was in my checked luggage. So I had to run past where they checked our passports, get my passport from my checked bag, and then run back to give my passport. This would never happen at an American airport. I mean, security was nonexistent, and it felt like a poorly run airport.

From the airport we drove with the Park Hyatt transfer shuttle for about 30 minutes until we got to Stonetown. Stonetown is essentially where most tourists stay when they come to Zanzibar as it’s probably the safest area plus has the most to do.

Stonetown is compact, tight and somewhat claustrophobic. The streets were obviously designed well before cars and so traffic into Stonetown can be a lot. After an early morning, some flights through Tanzania and a chaotic airport, it was nice to be at a beautiful hotel to relax.

Stonetown

Stonetown is charming, poor and somewhat wild. It is tourist friendly but I felt the need to be careful at night. It’s hard to describe, but it’s not exactly a place that feels overly welcoming. Zanzibar is poor and there is no way around that and it affected our experience. It feels weird to be coming out of a 5 star hotel onto a street with wires hanging from roofs, and men following us desperate for us to buy whatever cheap souvenirs they are selling. This is a place where I always felt the need to watch my bag and look over my bag.

At the same time Stonetown is charming and an interesting area to explore during the day. Most of the souvenirs sell the same items, so I didn’t feel the need to buy any of that, but there are some stores that are unique, like Al-Tamimi, a curio shop in the heart of Stonetown. The owner sells all types of unique goods, including their famous hidden boxes, comprised of a seemingly normal looking boxed with hidden compartments. The Amazing Race actually went here on one of their episodes, so for me it was a unique historic place to visit in the middle of Stonetown.

As poor as Stonetown is, there are many restaurants to consider. You can go from low budget to high-end restaurants, and although the food is somewhat up-charged for tourists it’s still pretty good. We ate near the Park Hyatt at the Beach House Zanzibar and 6 Degrees South, one was right on the beach and it was amazing to watch the sunset while sipping something alcoholic. The vibe is very beachy but in an upscale way because after all this island is still pretty conservative.

Overall Stonetown is a great place to stay, and probably where the majority of tourists coming to Zanzibar will stay. Because it’s the middle of the island, it’s a great jumping off point to other destinations like the party beaches up north or Pingwe to the west.

Park Hyatt Zanzibar

The Park Hyatt Zanzibar is a gorgeous 5 star hotel in the heart of Stonetown. But when we arrived, we did not have the most pleasant experience. Our car was the first to arrive and Roman and I were the first to check in except our room was not ready and the rest of our groups were. It was fine for the first 15 minutes but going on 30 to 45 minutes just sitting in the lobby, not very fun. And when we actually got to our room we had blood on our sheets, the maids were still in the room and our shower area was constantly flooding. To be honest we should have complained more and asked for something free because it was ridiculous.

That being said, the room was beautiful and the view was impressive. We had an ocean-view overlooking the Indian Ocean and it was gorgeous. We took some coffee on the patio and just watched the sunset with dhow boats sailing across the ocean. The hotel itself is amazing and well worth the stay but it is expensive, although I used points, having all those other problems early was a downer. But we made the most of it and the Park Hyatt is easily the best hotel in the area.

Kendwa

On the north part of the island there are famous beaches and today they are more known to be party beaches. Travelers do go there but it’s mostly the young, party type of traveler that hangs around. The beaches are beautiful with sugary white sand and turquoise waters but it also felt crowded and somewhat lacking in amenities. When we arrived there really was no place to lay out at and although there are restaurants, they felt somewhat lacking.

But no complaints because we are in Africa and the expectation for it to be like at home shouldn’t be there. In fact, Kendwa had more than what I was expecting and it wasn’t a bad beach to spend an afternoon. Yes it’s a little far from Stonetown but it was worth it to travel through the Zanzibar countryside. While going there and back we actually had to skip a city on the main road because it’s not safe for foreigners to journey through the city. These kinds of facts is what kept me on edge but that is the reality for travel in most of Africa.

Pingwe

To the west and on the Indian Ocean lies the city of Pingwe. It’s also about an hour and a half from Stonetown, and the drive to get there goes through the beautiful and lush interior of Zanzibar. Pingwe for me is actually more beautiful than Kendwa but it’s a far drive and there really is only one main attraction, which don’t get me wrong is totally worth it.

The Rock Restaurant

Here there is a restaurant that sits on a single lone rock in the ocean. In fact the only way to get there is to walk on the beach through the water at low tide. It’s not unheard of for people to have to take a boat or walk waist high through ocean water. Anyways, this place is unique and certainly worth a visit just for the pictures alone. Never mind that the restaurant was actually pretty good and offered amazing views of the surrounding Indian Ocean.

We decided to chill at the restaurant, have some alcoholic drinks and take a walk on the beach. The only thing that is bothersome is that the locals will beg to all the foreigners on the beach. They are mostly civil, but they will try to grab your bag or your stuff or ask for money and they are being told to do this by their parents. So yeah I felt it was important for us to keep track of backpacks and cameras at all times.

The drive is long but if you have a free afternoon, hire a driver and make it out to Pingwe. It’s not crowded like Kendwa or Stonetown and certainly offers an unique experience.

Thoughts on Zanzibar

Zanzibar is paradise in a way, but in others it’s totally not. It’s much poorer than it probably should be given how many tourists visit. Stonetown is pretty rundown, and although charming it’s not exactly safe at all times. But the views are undeniable and htoels like the Park Hyatt that overlook the beach, blue waters and with amazing sunsets are amazing. That part is nice to stay in a really beautiful hotel in a beautiful unique spot of the world. But Zanzibar is not the place I feel most tourists would want to hang around for long, at least we did. It can be rough going, and we felt like we had to have our guard up at all times.

Given that this was still a nice way to end our time in Tanzania and I’m thankful for the experience. We saw so many wonderful beautiful places and it was a trip to remember forever. As we packed and headed to the airport for Dubai and then on wards to home, we were excited to return home and we felt like we had accomplished all that Tanzania had to offer.