DETAILS

FULL LENGTH TOUR DESCRIPTION
Depart from the pier and start your day in Stone Town. You visit the City Market, formerly called “Sultana Market”, to experience the hustle and bustle of morning activities. Proceed to the Anglican Church built in 1874 by Bishop Steer on the site of the Great Slave Market, once the hub of the slave trade for the whole of East Africa. You may wish to visit the underground chambers, where the slaves were held before being taken to the market.

Next, drive along the seafront of Stone Town where the royal sultans once lived with their families. You pass the House of Wonders (National Museum) built as a ceremonial palace and proceed to the Old Fort once used for military defence. The city portion of your tour will end with a stop at the Sultan’s Palace Museum, where the last sultan ruled over Zanzibar before the revolution in 1964.

Then, drive to the central part of the island to a village called Kizimbani. Here you will learn about the importance of the two main spices during that time which were nutmeg and cloves. Villagers will also show you how they construct their mud houses and how they live their traditional lives in the village. Finally, visit a Muslim Koranic school called “matrassa” before you board your coach and head back to the pier.
 
SHORT LENGTH TOUR DESCRIPTION
This tour offers the main sights of Stone Town with an emphasis on the Royal Sultans who previously ruled Zanzibar. It also demonstrates life in a village, showing a typical Muslim school and the most famous spices harvested during the sultans’ era.
 
TIMING BREAKDOWN
00:00 – 00:15 Disembark, board the coaches and drive to the city market
00:15 – 00:45 Visit the market
00:45 – 00:50 Drive to Anglican Church
00:50 – 01:30 Visit Church and slave chambers
01:30 – 02:00 Drive along the seafront of Stone Town
02:00 – 02:20 Drive to central part of the island
02:20 – 03:20 Visit the village
03:20 – 04:00 Drive back to the pier

Approximate duration: 4 hours
 
OPERATIONAL NOTES
- Free bottled water on coaches
- One experienced guide per coach
- Air-conditioned vehicles
- Pre-paid tickets to the sites
- Uniformed staff with clear nametags guiding the tour
- Village difficult to access by wheelchair, depending on the weather (muddy surface)
- Solid, closed shoes are recommended
- Activity level is moderate: approximately 2 hours of driving and 2 hours of easy walking with several stops

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