When to go
Best Time to Visit Zanzibar: A Month-by-Month Guide
Zanzibar’s two rainy seasons, two monsoon winds and warm sea explained month by month, with the best timing for beaches, diving, kitesurfing, whale sharks and Stone Town.
Zanzibar travel guide
Zanzibar Travel Guide
Entry rules, flights and transfers, safety and customs, plus the planning questions that shape a good island trip — current as of September 2026.
Plan Your Trip
Where to stay
Where to Stay in Zanzibar: Choosing Your Coast
A coast-by-coast comparison of Stone Town, the north, the east coast, the south-west and the outer islands, with the tide explained and simple formulas for splitting your stay.
Honeymoons
Planning a Zanzibar Honeymoon
How to plan a Zanzibar honeymoon: stay styles that suit couples, romantic experiences timed to light and tide, the best months, how to split your nights and the etiquette to know.
Families
Zanzibar with Kids: Planning a Family Beach Holiday
Planning Zanzibar with kids: which coast to choose for swimming, stay styles that work for families, outings for short attention spans, health, logistics and school-holiday timing.
Practicalities
Zanzibar travel guide
Zanzibar travel guide
Zanzibar Travel Requirements: Visa, Insurance & Arrival
What you need to enter Zanzibar in 2026: passport and Tanzanian visa, the mandatory Zanzibar inbound insurance, yellow-fever rules for arrivals from Kenya, health screening and the arrival process.
Zanzibar travel guide
Zanzibar travel guide
How to Get to Zanzibar: Flights, Ferries & Island Transfers
Routes to Zanzibar from the US, Europe, Kenya, South Africa and mainland Tanzania, with the Dar es Salaam ferry, island hops to Pemba and Mafia, and transfer times to each coast.
Zanzibar travel guide
Is Zanzibar Safe? Safety, Dress Code & Local Customs
An honest answer to “is Zanzibar safe”: what the US and UK governments say, the everyday risks on land and at sea, and the rules on dress, Ramadan, alcohol and affection.
More Planning Guides
Zanzibar travel guide
What to pack for a safari
Clothing, gear and luggage limits for light-aircraft flights.
Zanzibar travel guide
Private vs group safari
What changes when the vehicle, guide and schedule are yours alone.
Zanzibar travel guide
How much a luxury safari costs
Price levels, what drives them and where to spend wisely.
Tell Us When You’d Like to Be on the Island
Share your dates, who is traveling and what you want from Zanzibar — beaches, reefs, Stone Town or a safari first. We’ll suggest the right coast and design a private trip around you, with nothing booked until you approve it.
Plan My Zanzibar Trip