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Stone Town and Prison Island: Zanzibar History Tour
4.8
28 Ratings
Stone Town
Explore Stone Town’s rich history, meet giant tortoises on Prison Island, and snorkel in crystal-clear waters at Nakupenda. Enjoy a seafood lunch on a stunning sandbank.
Explore Stone Town’s rich history, meet giant tortoises on Prison Island, and snorkel in crystal-clear waters at Nakupenda. Enjoy a seafood lunch on a stunning sandbank.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Stone Town - This historic district in Zanzibar’s capital is a treasure trove of history and a blend of diverse influences, including British, Portuguese, Indian, Omani, and Swahili. This tour uniquely allows exploration of Zanzibar’s Old City, the oldest historical site in East Africa. Visitors can explore significant landmarks such as the Old…
- Stone Town - This historic district in Zanzibar’s capital is a treasure trove of history and a blend of diverse influences, including British, Portuguese, Indian, Omani, and Swahili. This tour uniquely allows exploration of Zanzibar’s Old City, the oldest historical site in East Africa. Visitors can explore significant landmarks such as the Old Fort, House of Wonders, Old Dispensary, Freddie Mercury House, and many other fascinating historical sites.
- Prison Island - Changuu Private Island - Enjoy a scenic 30-minute boat ride with views of the Stone Town skyline. Upon arrival at Prison Island, a guide will share the island’s history, including its role in the slave trade and its later use as a quarantine hospital. Meet the Giant Tortoises and delve into the island’s intriguing past. This trip promises to be highly engaging.
- Nakupenda Beach Nature Reserve - Nakupenda, an incredible sandbank in the middle of the Indian Ocean, gets its name from its stunning beauty, meaning “I love you” in Swahili. Revel in the clear, crystal waters of the Indian Ocean at this vanishing island. Enjoy snorkeling to experience Zanzibar’s vibrant marine life. The refreshing ocean breeze, tropical fruits, soft drinks, and a seafood platter will ensure an unforgettable experience on Zanzibar Island. This is truly an amazing adventure.
What's Included
- Private transportation
- Tour guide
- Bottled water
- Lunch
- Use of snorkeling equipment
- All fees and/or taxes
- Private transportation
- Tour guide
- Bottled water
- Lunch
- Use of snorkeling equipment
- All fees and/or taxes
What's Not Included
- Alcoholic beverages
- Alcoholic beverages
Additional Information
Travelers will visit the historic district, the capital of Zanzibar, which is rich in history and showcases a blend of British, Portuguese, Indian, Omani, and Swahili influences. This unique tour allows exploration of the oldest historical area in East Africa, as Stone Town was the first town established in the region.
After exploring Stone Town, enjoy a…
Travelers will visit the historic district, the capital of Zanzibar, which is rich in history and showcases a blend of British, Portuguese, Indian, Omani, and Swahili influences. This unique tour allows exploration of the oldest historical area in East Africa, as Stone Town was the first town established in the region.
After exploring Stone Town, enjoy a 30-minute boat ride with a view of the Stone Town skyline. Upon arriving at Prison Island, the guide will share the island’s history and introduce the Giant tortoises.
The journey continues with another 30-minute boat ride to the middle of the Indian Ocean, where an amazing sandbank called Nakupenda, meaning ‘I love you’ in Swahili, awaits. Enjoy the clear, crystal waters of the Indian Ocean, with opportunities for snorkeling to experience Zanzibar’s incredible marine life. Tropical fruits, soft drinks, and a seafood platter lunch will be served.
Location
Stone Town
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(28 Ratings)
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608reeced
Apr 16, 2025
Great day out with lots to see - Our tour guide was able to give us lots of information about Zanzibar and all the attractions we visited. Friendly and fun experience. We saw the tortoises and we were not expecting to see so many they were from babies to 132 years old. Then we went for lunch in the Nakupenda were the views and island was so amazing. We went snorkelling and chilled in the sun. Before heading back to stone town although it was a wet day Husain was brilliant went at our pace provided lots of information and made it a truly informative day
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Harlemglobetrotter23
Apr 10, 2025
A Day Well Spent - Hassan was my tour guide for the day, and he was excellent. Very punctual with starting the day at 8:30a as listed, and from there on was very knowledgeable about the history of all the places we visited in Stone town and Prison Island. Ending the day at Nakupenda beach was the icing on the cake. The seafood lunch at that location was in abundance (I certainly couldn't finish it all) and I felt like the time we spent there was catered towards what I wanted to do. By the time I got home, I actually had to take a nap. I would highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Belinda_i
Apr 10, 2025
A Day Well Spent - Hassan was my tour guide for the day, and he was excellent. Very punctual with starting the day at 8:30a as listed, and from there on was very knowledgeable about the history of all the places we visited in Stone town and Prison Island. Ending the day at Nakupenda beach was the icing on the cake. The seafood lunch at that location was in abundance (I certainly couldn't finish it all) and I felt like the time we spent there was catered towards what I wanted to do. By the time I got home, I actually had to take a nap. I would highly recommend!
Review provided by Viator
Climber05404065538
Apr 8, 2025
Fantastic Tour with Hassan - This was an amazing tour. First, our tour guide Hassan arrived on time and was ready to make it a great day for us. Everything was mapped out perfectly but he also allowed us time to explore a little more as we were on the tour. He was very knowledgeable and it’s obvious he loves sharing the history of ZanzIbar. The lunch provided at the Sandbank was an incredible seafood platter which they bbq on the spot. You can’t go wrong booking this tour. If there is a way you can request a tour guide when you book, request Hassan. You will not regret it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nanette_m
Feb 23, 2025
A great way to experience the essence of Zanizbar and Stone Town - We had such a great day with our tour guide Sharif - he took such good care of us and was knowledgeable and easy to talk to. Prison Island is very crowded but he did a great job of navigating us around and through it all. Nakupenda was absolutely beautiful, and the seafood lunch was heavenly! Sharif will also look out for you with vendors - use his knowledge to get fair prices! Our walk in Stone Town was illuminating - we had walked around ourselves the day before but having his knowledge and context was great, and we even got a tour through the Darjani Souk, which I don't think we would have tackled on our own. We finished the evening back in Forodhani Park to watch the guys jump into the water at sunset! Overall it was a really wonderful day, and we're so grateful to Sharif for his kindness and generosity.
Review provided by Viator
Adedoyin_a
Feb 22, 2025
Hassan is amazing - Thank you Hassan for being the best tour guide, so caring and looking out for me to ensure I don't get scammed when making purchases. Will book more tours with him!
Review provided by Viator
J231ijjordanj
Feb 16, 2025
Amazing Day Tour!!! - My friend & I did the Stone Town, Prison Island, & Nakupenda Beach tour and it was AMAZING. Hassan, our tour guide, was very informative, timely, organized, and so considerate.
This tour is a great way to get a full Zanzibar experience in a short amount of time. Don’t hesitate to book!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Elizabeth_p
Apr 13, 2025
Great tour. Missed the snorkeling. - Overall tour was excellent. My guide was very knowledgeable sharing the history of stone town, prison island, and nakupenda. However, I paid for snorkeling and he was not aware that snorkeling was a part of my trip and therefore didn’t have the proper equipment.
Review provided by Viator
Daniela
Mar 8, 2025
All in all a successful tour - First of all, mega that the tour was also done for me alone. So actually, I had a private tour. I was picked up on time. We went to Prison Island first. There I had the opportunity to roam the museum in peace and to see everything. It's a shame you can't touch the turtles anymore. Then we went to Nakupenda. Once there I got a huge plate full of fruit. After that I had time to snorkel. However, you don't really see much there. Afterwards there was a huge platter of seafood for me alone. I didn't make it, but it was delicious. There were even lobsters to eat... Finally I looked at Stone Town: I would have liked to have had more time there. And the guide couldn't really tell much about the history of the slaves. Hence the one point less. The market is for strong stomachs... the smells and insights are quite different.
Overall, I really liked the tour
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Christine_m
Mar 16, 2025
Decent - Decent not really worth the price you can find someone to do it for cheaper my tour guide was over it he seemed bored but beautiful sight seeing
Review provided by Viator
