Best Time to Visit Zanzibar

June to October, December to February

Months to avoid: March to May (long rains, heavy daily downpours, rough seas, many dive operators suspend trips)

Recommended stay: 5-8 days

Plan Zanzibar for June to October, December to February. Give it 5-8 days. The window to avoid is March to May (long rains, heavy daily downpours, rough seas, many dive operators suspend trips).

What the season gets you

• Stone Town at 6am before tour groups arrive, the call to prayer echoes off carved doors and fishermen are dragging catches up from the harbour
• Snorkelling at Mnemba Atoll puts you in water with hawksbill turtles, reef fish, and occasional dolphins, visibility regularly hits 20 metres
• A half-day spice farm tour north of Stone Town is 90 minutes of someone handing you leaves, bark, and pods to smell and taste, nutmeg, vanilla, ylang-ylang, all growing in the same acre