Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020

Zanzibar help and tips needed :)

Country forums / Africa

Hi everybody!
We are a honeymoon couple and need some advice :)

We are heading Zanzibar after 15 days trip in Ethiopia, and we are mostly looking for peace and quiet, sea, sun and pool…

The program: 9 nights.
First 4 nights at Konokono / Essque Zalu
4 more nights at The Residence Zanzibar
Last night not yet chosen.

Here are the questions and advices needed
1. Essque Zalu or Konokono?
On the one hand Essque's location in Nungwi. From what I know, the hotel does not have a good beach but there are amazing beaches in the area.
On the other hand – Konokono's Beach is amazing! But isolated from everything else.
Do note that in The Residence will also be "isolated from civilization".

  1. Last night accommodation: Our flight is in the early morning, so we do not want to pay a high price for last night in Residence, but rather sleep close to the airport, or maybe in Stone Town?
    Therefore, we are looking for a reasonably priced hotel to spend the night there. If there are also free transfers to the airport in the morning – that would be great.

  2. Island transportation:
    We'll need 3 shuttles:
    Airport - Hotel (Essque / Konokono)
    Essque / Konokono Hotel to The Residence
    And a shuttle from Residence to the hotel selected in Section 2.

Any driver recommendations? How much should these trips cost? (approx.)
From what I understand it's about an hour - two hours drive, each.

  1. What are the costs of renting a car for one day?
    Is it worth renting a car for the entire period and instead of paying private drivers?

  2. Diving: Where are your favorite dive sites near Essque / Konokono / The Residence?

Thanks so much to all the help!

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