Greetings everyone,
I have recently returned from a 10 day trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar and I have mixed feelings. We were a group of 3 friends and we stayed 5 days in Tanzania mainland and 5 days in Zanzibar. The mainland part was great. We had an amazing 3 day safari in Serengeti and Ngongoro plus some excursions around Arusha and Kilimanjaro area.
However i can't say the same for our time in Zanzibar. I have never seen another place ask so much to deliver so little. What I mean by that is that the prices are very high even by western standards while the overall experience is that of a developing country. I have visited other developing countries as well. This is my 3rd trip to Africa and I have also visited the Middle East and Southeast Asia so I don't think that I had the wrong expectations going in. Even putting the high prices asside I found that there wasnt much interesting to see or do. There are basically 5 or 6 tours which are sold by every tour operator and they all involve some mix of boat ride and snorkeling. I guess If you are into wind surfing there is also that.The island is marketed as a tropical destination where you can relax on beautiful beaches and enjoy swimming in the sea. While the beaches may look very appealing in photos and on paper, once you actually get there, you quickly realize that they are not really suitable for either swimming or relaxing.
The water is extremely shallow — to the point where you can walk 50 metres out into the sea and the water is still only ankle-deep. The constant changing of the tides also brings large amounts of seaweed onto the beaches.
And even if you try to simply sit and relax on one of the beaches, you will find it very difficult to do so, because every couple of minutes someone will approach you trying to sell you something. The same thing happens when you leave your hotel and walk around the town. You literally cannot walk more than five metres without someone approaching you and trying to sell you stuff.
The locals often make you feel like nothing more than a walking wallet. There is a constant effort to get money out of you in one way or another. Almost every interaction you have with a local involves either trying to avoid some kind of scam or having to negotiate the price of something. After the 2nd day It got very tirring for me. We even had police officers asking us for bribes. We also had tour operators pretending that we had booked a tour with them, even though we had actually booked it with someone else. That and many others.
I understand that nowhere in the world is perfect but this is the first time im struggling to find even 1 good thing to say about a place. I understand that everyone experiences a place differently, and what I have written is simply my own personal experience and perspective. I am sure there are many people who have visited this place and absolutely loved it. Unfortunately, however, that was not my experience, and I would not personally choose to visit again nor recommend it to anyone.