Beit al-Sahel (Palace Museum), Stone Town, Zanzibar

Advantages: beeches, history
Disadvantages: not much nightlife

...The paradise island in the Indian Ocean . The main why I went to visit Zanzibar was for the beaches. Zanzibar has amazing white sandy beaches surrounded by the clear blue sea. It's the perfect place to simply, relax, get yourself a golden tan and admire the stuning views. It's very picturesque. There are altogether 25 beaches in Zanzibar, and my personal favourite is Kiwengwa. This beach is less crowded and so it's very peaceful. The only noise is the ocean. There is a place called Shooting Star Inn, which is quite small, but allows you to stay minutes away from the beach. Stone Town Stone Town is over 200 years old. It's very busy and crowded but it's the cultural centre for Zanzibar. It's made up of small winding alleyways and grand Arab houses. If nothing else, you must go to Stone Town to see these houses. They truely... Read review

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Advantages: Beautiful beaches, relaxed lifestyle, friendly people
Disadvantages: Delayed flights

...with a bedroom, a living room area and a beautiful bath tub made of stone. Right outside the window of our room was a narrow street with houses on either side. (Worth exploring) It was a lovely place to be in and being able to speak swahili was a great advantage for us. The people were friendly and very helpful...... Stonetown is full of richness...from the people, to the architecture, to the culture..... Then we moved to the coast in a town called Pongwe..... a beautiful, beautiful, place. Sort of like an undiscovered part of the world. The hotel was the only visible mordern structure in the area ..... you could see a few village huts in a distance. Where we stayed, there were 10 rooms with a direct view of the beautiful white beach and sea. The best things about this place was that it really was a honeymoon spot for couples. In total... Read review

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Advantages: Great market food and masai jewellery.
Disadvantages: You can't walk about on your own.

...The ferry across to the island from Dar es Salaam can be quite expensive, and tends to fluctuate quite a lot. We paid about $50, for the return trip. It takes about 3 hours to get across, and it can be very bumpy. We were met at the port by a guy called Halim, who took us to the hotel, arranged trips for us etc, etc, but it is very easy top get from the port to the centre of Stone Town by taxi – don’t worry, they will find you. The hotel was pretty run down, but comfortable, but we didn’t mind, as we knew that we would only be spending one night there before going up north to the decent beaches. There are many restaurants, most pretty awful, where you can get everything from pizzas to curries, and there are always plenty of people willing to guide you to them. Another option especially y for lunch is just to go to the local market... Read review

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