Zanzibar’s 5 highlights

Nature
The wow factor for nature - does it show nature at its best? Doesn't need to be the wildebeest migration or diving with hundreds of hammerheads. Rather make you pause as you realise just how awesome the natural world can be
6
Culture
How much does this experience showcase some of the better and finer things that us humans can offer? Sure, it can be ancient ruins and renaissance churches, but it can also be festivals or soaking up some of the great modern cities of the world
8
Fun factor/activity
Very simple - was it fun? This is usually linked in with doing some kind of activity - i mean, walking along some cliffs is nice, but paragliding from them, now that is fun. Its a vastly underrated factor in a truly great experience
7
Avoid the crowds
Big tour groups and being surrounded by loud fellow tourists can sap the life out of even the greatest of travel experiences. This score is to reflect just how much you can avoid this. But. . . The score also takes into account if the crowds actually add to the experience, such as with a party town or a bustling local market
3
World famous
How world famous is the experience?
8
unique
How hard is it to have a similar experience in other places round the world?
9
Overall TE Score
The overall travel experiences score:  fun factor + avoid the crowds + (best of nature or culture) + (best of world famous or unique). Then convert into a score out of 100
67 *What the scores mean and where do they come from
RANKING
How this travel experience ranks compared to all the other experiences on this site, based on the travel experience (te) score
192nd/454
Top 40%
continent
Africa
country
Tanzania
Length of time
1-2 days
Typical daily price
This gives you a rough idea of the daily price based on 2 people travelling where they can split costs like accommodation. It excludes travel there and back, and factors in inflation the numbers in brackets show the price range for the full time of the experience (so not necessarily daily). It is a range to reflect different budget vs higher end
$90 ($75-$250 in 2025 prices)
Time of year visited
January
Primary Tags
Click on any of the tags to see all travel experiences with the same tag
Beaches Islands Old town
All Tags
Boat trip Gardens Jungle Snorkeling Swimming UNESCO world heritage site Wildlife - Dolphins Wildlife - Tortoises
Wow Factor
The wow factor reflects just how much you’re likely to say “wow”. As there’s a lot of experiences in the world, and a lot of wows, i’ve gone with a simple ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ to ⭐️ score, and a separate category for the truly "gash"
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Summary

Zanzibar – just the name itself conjures up images of exotic lands, distant empires and tropical islands.  And the reality actually does a good job of living up the expectation.  The highlight is obviously Stone Town with its rich mix of influences from India, Arabia, Africa and Europe shinning through in winding alleyways with carved doors, lattice balconies, spices and museums showcasing this fascinating place’s history.  But there are also some other things to do that surprised us and are a must if planning a visit

Highlights
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#1 Wandering through the alleyways of Stone Town - the most famous highlight and one of the best places in the world to see the combination of Arabian, African, Indian and European cultures infusing together.  As with all such Old Towns, bets to just get lost in the alleyways and let the wonder of the place take you as you find hidden surprises around each corner

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#2 Take a Spice Tour around the island -  Zanzibar is full of plantations that grew the most valuable commodity for much of the past centuries - spices.  It was super interesting to have one of the locals show you how they grow and the sheer variety growing on Zanzibar

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#3 The white sand beaches of the east coast - we knew Zanzibar had beaches but we were pleasantly surprised that many of them would fit in the "world-class" category.  Many people visit those on the northern tip, which is also a spot for full moon parties, general lash / partying and is easy to access with a boat trip from Zanzibar Town.  But also consider taking a trip to the east of the island which has more beautiful beaches and is far quieter

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#4 Go to see the Giant Tortoises - yes, you can see tortoises in other parts of the world, but if you haven't seen something like this before, it can be really fun tagging this onto your spice tour of the island

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#5 Taking a Boat Trip - whether this is part of a busy tour (ideally not) or something a bit more private, its beautiful to take in the island from the water, be able to visit some of the hidden spots not as easily accessible by road and go snorkelling in some of the reefs.  Most trips will leave from Zanzibar Town but, as with the east coast beaches recommendation, see if you can grab one on the east coast.  We were fortunate enough to see dolphins twice on our trip, which we hear is quite common

Experiences nearby

The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences

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Score Detail

The scores above are the real point of this site.

Over 20+ years and 100+ countries, I’ve tried to rank the world’s best travel experiences — from genuinely mind-blowing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to the properly gash.

Every one of the 500+ places on this site has both a Wow Factor rating and a more analytical Travel Experience (TE) score based on the things that actually make travel memorable.

If you're curious about the thinking behind it, head to the About page.

Otherwise, explore the map above or on the Home page and see which places truly deliver maximum wow.

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