It’s an island located in Tanzania, 2 hours far from the continent by ferry, and 20 minutes by plane. That island is long and has a great infrastructure, mainly in the center of Zanzibar. We stayed in Paje beach, a place with a paradisiacal and very nice view.

Those days were wonderful, we enjoyed walking through the beach and visiting the villages. There aren’t so many options in those villages, but there are small street markets, restaurants and diverse stores.

Let’s talk a little about how that experience was.

Paje Beach

It’s east of Zanzibar. It’s possible to go from the airport or from the ferry boat, getting a taxi, transfer, or a dala-dala (which was our case, once it’s sooooo cheap, like 50 Km 5.00 reais).

We stayed there, because there are options such as restaurants, pubs, little markets and greengroceries, different of Jambiane Beach, which is to the right of Paje and has the highest concentration of resorts and hotels, yet the beach is not that good for bathing.

Through the sand of the beach, there are people who sell accessories (bracelets, necklaces), coconut water and offer tours to the other islands. You can take a tour to other islands, dive in Blue Lagoon, go snorkeling, go kite surfing, among other options. The price of those tours ranges according to what is hired, from 75 reais to 500 reais per person (with options of all-day long tours, and they may include meals), it depends on your deals and choices.

Pingwe Beach

Pingwe Beach, which is to the left of Paje, is where the famous The Rock Restaurant (house built on a crag which became a touristic attraction) is located, some steps inside the sea. To have lunch there, it’s necessary to book on the site, once it’s much visited, but there are also other restaurants quite near, with very attractive prices, excellent service, like the one we visited, Baladin Resort and Restaurant.

The sea nearby has very low depth, reason why Paje is better for bathing too.

The color of the water of the beach is another outstanding landscape, we can’t describe in words how beautiful it is to be seen. Even more with the blue sky, sun and white sand, really natural and indescribable beauties.

Puzzle Caffee Shop

In our return to the center of Zanzibar, we had the opportunity of visiting Puzzle Coffee, super nice place, and, the best: the owners are Brazilian (from the state of Minas Gerais), Léo and Taís. They were very friendly and thoughtful. We had a chat and enjoyed the coffee with delicious sweets.

It’s a place you need to visit, if you go to Zanzibar. Here’s the site for you to know

more: https://www.puzzlecoffeeshop.com/

Means of Transportation

There are two ways to access the island of Zanzibar: ferry and plane. By ferry, it costs $35 dollars per person, 2 hours in length, and, when arriving, it’s necessary to fill out the form and show the passport at the immigration (even though you have already done it at the airport). By plane, there are direct or connecting flights, and in 20 minutes you are already in the island. We used a ferry, it’s huge and very stable, the route was peaceful and calm.

Safety of the city

We thought it’s very safe during the time we stayed there, we didn’t even see any cops in the streets. We walked a lot through all over the beach and it was very peaceful, the people are super friendly and helpful. We greeted each other in the streets, we talked to the children where we passed through.

Kind of Currency

The local currency of Tanzania is Shilling, and the exchange in dollar for March/2019 is $1.00 to 2,308.65 shillings. We recommend to exchange the currency in a safe place such as an airport or at Exchange, a bank in the city. It’s always good to have the local currency, because they may accept dollar, but you lose in change or conversion. And it also assures that the coin is not counterfeit.

Expenses in Zanzibar

Our expenses in currency (REAIS) in Zanzibar during 6 days for the couple were the following:

Feeding: R$230.00 (market, snacks and drinks)

Transportation: R$815.00 (flight, ferry, taxi, dala-dala)

Lodging: R$289.00 (airbnb)

Visa: R$386.00 ($50 dollars per person)

That’s a place we absolutely want to go back to with more time, enjoy other regions and beaches. Go snorkeling with professionals and visit it in the season of whales (it’s said to be wonderful). That island has a lot of beaches, one more beautiful than the other, with their own beauties. Our days there were fabulous and unique. We’ll never forget the color of that sea. Believe it or not, it’s unique.