Historic spice island, a short hop from Africa, where ancient settlements nestle amid lush plantations of tropical fruit and coconuts and palm-fringed beaches.
One of the jewels of the Indian Ocean, the spice island of Zanzibar, with its tiny neighbours, Pemba, Chumbe and Mnemba, lies 35 kms off the coast of Tanzania. Just 85 kms long and 38 kms wide, it is an historic and ethnic blend of Africa and Islam. The population of 380,000 (veiled women and white pillar box hats for the men) reside mostly in the fertile north and western parts, the eastern side being largely coral country with superb, blinding white, palm-fringed beaches gently shelving into the azure waters of the Indian Ocean.
Once the eastern gateway to Africa, Zanzibar has long been a meeting place of the world. The first visitors arrived over a thousand years ago from Arabia and the East to trade finely worked ornaments, glass vessels, wheat and crisp cotton cloth in return for African ivory and slaves, tortoise shell and rhino horn. The traders discovered an island of such loveliness that they filled parchment manuscripts with tales of it. So idyllic was this scented land of coconuts and spices that the Sultan of Oman decided to move his empire to these shores and it is no accident that the explorers Livingstone and Burton also had homes here. The Oman Arabs who once ruled Zanzibar left behind the Sultan's Palace, the Arab fort and the Beit el Ajaib, the island's tallest building. In 1890 the Sultanate became a British Protectorate and in 1964 Zanzibar gained its independence and became part of Tanzania.
To visit Zanzibar is to step back several centuries, such is the atmosphere of the colonial era, of which the haunting ruins of the ancient slave market are a poignant reminder. Memories of this extraordinary past of sultans and slaves float on the warm breezes through ancient ruins and cool, shady cloisters, while the call of muezzins resounds from minarets over a maze of tightly-tangled streets and dazzling sunlit squares of coral stone houses, embellished by the ornate, lacework patterns of Zanzibar's legendary carving.
Above all, Zanzibar and its outlying islands are characterised by the heady aromas of spices, (cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and the world's largest clove market) and exotic fruit like oranges, bananas, coconuts, guavas and paw paw. Beyond the shadow-filled alleys of Stone Town, a world heritage site, the romance of spice plantations and fishing villages, the bustling souk, the vibrant colours of rural markets and the dreamy quality of white sand beaches lapped by the sparkling Indian Ocean combine to produce an intoxicating cocktail.
Climate Zanzibars climate is equatorial, with sunny and warm days nearly all year round but heavy rainfall during April and May and further short rains in November. The best months are from July to March, average June to September temperatures of 25° rising to 32° in February and March, the warmest months.
