7 Days in Zanzibar Itinerary: Stone Town, Nungwi and Paje

Seven days in Zanzibar fits the classic triangle: Stone Town, the north coast and the east coast, joined by short road transfers with the island’s best day trips folded in. Spend two nights in Stone Town for the old city and spice farm. Spend two in Nungwi for swimming and the Mnemba reef. Spend two in Paje for the lagoon and Jozani Forest. This 7 days in Zanzibar itinerary runs one way with no backtracking.

Key Takeaways

• Stone Town first (culture and tours), beach second (reward). Two nights in each of three bases.
• Days 1 to 2: old city, spice farm, Prison Island. Days 3 to 4: Nungwi plus Mnemba. Days 5 to 6: Paje plus Jozani.
• Buy the $44 Zanzibar insurance before flying. Ordinary travel policies are refused at entry.
• Book Mnemba boats and airport transfers the evening before. Everything else flexes.
• Mid-range couples spend roughly $1,900 to $2,600 for two excluding international flights.

How should you split 7 days across three bases?

Days	Where	The point of the stop
1 to 2	Stone Town	Old city, spice farm, Prison Island tortoises
3 to 4	Nungwi	Tide-free swimming, Mnemba reef, sunset dhow
5 to 6	Paje	Tidal lagoon, Jozani monkeys, The Rock lunch
7	Depart	Last swim on the tide, 60 minutes to the airport

The order runs culture, then calm water, then lagoon: each base hosts its nearest day trip, so nothing backtracks. Reversing it works if flights price better, but never start on the beach and end in town. Read the beach rundown in our best beaches guide before fixing nights, since tide tables and the kite seasons shape the east coast days. Broad context sits in Africa and the itinerary collection.

Days 1 to 2: Stone Town plus spice plus tortoises?

Day 1 stays on foot. Land at Zanzibar Airport, 5 km and 15 minutes from town by set-fare taxi (about $15). Clear immigration with your $44 insurance certificate and $50 visa ready, then drop bags in the old city. Stone Town is a UNESCO-listed trading town of carved doors, coral-stone lanes and seafront terraces, as our Stone Town travel guide shows street by street. It is compact enough to walk end to end. Spend the afternoon on the seafront: Old Fort, the House of Wonders exterior, Darajani Market inland, then Forodhani Gardens at dusk for grilled seafood and Zanzibar pizza among the evening crowds.

Day 2 pairs the two half-day classics. Morning boat to Prison Island (Changuu), 20 minutes off the waterfront. Changuu is the island’s formal name; Prison Island is what everyone calls it, after the quarantine station that replaced the planned jail. Expect giant Aldabra tortoises, some past a century old, plus the old quarantine buildings and a swim off the island beach. Entry runs about $10 to $15 per person: hotel guides listed $10 in early 2026 while several operators now list $15, so carry the higher figure. Return boats cost $20 to $25 (hotel price survey). Afternoon spice farm at Kizimbani or Kidichi, 20 to 30 minutes inland. Guides cut cloves, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg fresh off the plant, usually ending in fruit and a simple lunch. Tours cost about $20 to $35 per person with transport. Back in town for a rooftop dinner over the dhow harbour.

One of the century-old giant tortoises on Prison Island, a 20-minute boat ride out.

Days 3 to 4: why move north to Nungwi?

Day 3 transfers to the north coast, 57 km and about 75 minutes by private car (transfer survey). The payoff lands immediately: Nungwi’s beach never empties with the tide, so the afternoon swim needs no planning. Check in, eat grilled fish on the sand, and book the sunset dhow cruise for the evening. The Mnarani turtle sanctuary at the north end (about $10, funding conservation) fills any spare hour.

Day 4 is Mnemba Atoll, the island’s best reef. Boats leave around 8am for the marine reserve 2.5 km off the north-east coast. Expect coral gardens, green turtles and dolphins on lucky crossings, with visibility at its best in the dry months. Trips cost roughly $50 to $70 per person with gear and return by early afternoon (hotel price survey). Only lodge guests may land on Mnemba Island itself; everyone else snorkels the surrounding reef, which is the point anyway. Afternoon back on Nungwi sand, with the liveliest restaurant row on the island for the last northern dinner, and compare the coasts in our guide to the best beaches in Zanzibar if you plan to split nights differently.

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Days 5 to 6: what does the east coast add?

Day 5 moves south-east with Jozani folded into the drive, so the transfer day still delivers a sight. Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park is the island’s only national park. It protects 50 sq km of groundwater forest and mangrove boardwalk, and it is the one reliable home of the endemic red colobus monkey. Entry runs about $10 to $12 including the mandatory ranger walk. Gates open 7:30am to 5pm, and arrival by 8:30am beats both heat and bus groups (park guide). Then on to Paje, 49 km and about 45 minutes from town, in time for the afternoon high-tide swim. Prices in this plan were checked against hotel and operator pages in September 2026. Confirm entry fees at the gate, since they move.

The red colobus lives wild only on Zanzibar, with its stronghold inside Jozani.

Day 6 works the tide table instead of fighting it. Swim the high-water window, walk the exposed flats and seaweed stakes at low water, watch the kite schools do their loud colourful thing. Lunch runs to The Rock restaurant at Michamvi Pingwe, the thatched dining room perched on a coral outcrop. Walk out at low tide, boat back at high; mains run $25 to $45 and booking ahead is essential (classic route guide). Evening back in Paje for the cheapest dinner of the trip.

Bwejuu at high tide, just north of Paje: this is the east coast at its best.

What should you eat along the route?

Each base cooks differently. Stone Town grills seafood over charcoal at Forodhani and stuffs Zanzibar pizza at the night stalls. Nungwi does Swahili-European beach grills with the day’s catch. Paje does smoothie bowls, wood-fired pizza and cheap grilled fish for the kite crowd. The spice farm lunch on day 2, usually coconut rice and fruit straight off the trees, often ranks as the week’s best meal. Hotel breakfasts run generous; budget one sit-down dinner per base and graze the rest. Dish-level detail sits in our food guides.

Swap the day-6 lie-in for the Kizimkazi dolphin run only if you are an early riser by nature. Boats leave the south coast at 6 to 7am for the feeding window, which means a 5am start from Paje. Travellers who force it arrive wrecked and nap through the lagoon’s best swim hours. Travellers who skip it get the week’s finest high-tide morning instead. Dolphins or swimming: pick one and enjoy it properly.

Book three things before anything else: the $44 ZIC insurance (no certificate, no entry), the Mnemba boat for day 4, and The Rock table for day 6. Everything else, hotels aside, arranges itself through guesthouses with a day’s notice. Travellers who lock excursions first then fit beds around them rebuild nothing; travellers who lock beds first then discover sold-out boats rebuild the week.

What does the week cost?

Item	Budget pp	Mid-range pp
Stay, 6 nights	180	480
Food and drink	140	300
Transfers and taxis	60	120
Tours and entries	110	220
Insurance and visa	94	94
Total	584	1,214

Hostels, Forodhani stalls and shared shuttles hold the budget line. Mid-range buys old-town character hotels, beachfront rooms and private transfers. The fixed sightseeing floor (spice farm, Prison Island, Mnemba, Jozani, dhow cruise, insurance, visa) runs about $200 per person before food. Flights and the kite-lesson budget sit outside these numbers, so price lessons separately if Paje’s wind tempts you.

For example, a mid-range couple lands near $1,900 to $2,600 for two excluding international flights, and our Zanzibar trip cost guide breaks the same week down hotel by hotel. That covers six characterful nights, one dinner splurge per base, and every boat that matters. Shoulder months trim beach hotels hardest while the reef trips run year-round. The Zanzibar hub holds the companions, with the budget guides behind them for money detail.

Day-by-day itinerary

• Days 1–2 — Stone Town
• Days 3–4 — Nungwi
• Days 5–6 — Paje
• Day 7 — Home (or Stone Town)

1. 01

   Day 1: Stone Town: arrive and walk the seafront

   Land, settle into the old city, and spend the evening at Forodhani Gardens.

   • Forodhani Gardens
   • Old Fort
   • seafront promenade

   Overnight: Stone Town

2. 02

   Day 2: Spice farm and Prison Island

   Morning with the giant tortoises on Changuu, afternoon tasting cloves and vanilla.

   • Prison Island (Changuu)
   • Kizimbani spice farm
   • Darajani Market

   Overnight: Stone Town

3. 03

   Day 3: To Nungwi on the north coast

   75-minute transfer north, first tide-free swim, sunset dhow cruise.

   • Stone Town to Nungwi road
   • Nungwi beach
   • sunset dhow

   Overnight: Nungwi

4. 04

   Day 4: Mnemba Atoll snorkelling

   Morning boats to the island's best reef, turtles and coral gardens.

   • Mnemba Atoll
   • Muyuni Beach
   • Mnarani turtle sanctuary

   Overnight: Nungwi

5. 05

   Day 5: To Paje via Jozani Forest

   Red colobus monkeys en route, then the east coast lagoon at high tide.

   • Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park
   • Paje beach
   • seaweed farms

   Overnight: Paje

6. 06

   Day 6: Paje lagoon and The Rock

   Kitesurf watching, tidal walks, lunch at Michamvi Pingwe.

   • Paje lagoon
   • The Rock restaurant
   • Bwejuu beach

   Overnight: Paje

7. 07

   Day 7: Last swim and departure

   Morning swim on the tide, transfer to the airport 90 minutes before.

   • Paje beach
   • Zanzibar Airport (ZNZ)

   Overnight: Home (or Stone Town)

Frequently asked questions

Is 7 days enough for Zanzibar?

Yes for the classic triangle: Stone Town culture, the north coast beaches and the east coast lagoon, with the spice farm, Prison Island, Jozani and Mnemba fitted in. It skips the far south and Pemba Island, which each need extra nights.

Should you start in Stone Town or on the beach?

Start in Stone Town. Culture and tours sit better at the front of the trip when energy is high, and the beach lands better as a reward. Ending on the sand also keeps you closer to the airport for the flight home.

How do you move between Stone Town, Nungwi and Paje?

By private transfer or taxi: Stone Town to Nungwi is 57 km and about 75 minutes, Stone Town to Paje is 49 km and about 45 minutes, and Nungwi to Paje direct takes about 90 minutes. Book the evening before through your hotel and agree the price in advance.

Do you need the mandatory travel insurance for Zanzibar?

Yes. Since October 2024 every foreign visitor must hold inbound travel insurance from the Zanzibar Insurance Corporation, costing $44 and bought before arrival through the official portal at inbound.visitzanzibar.go.tz. Ordinary foreign policies are not accepted at entry.

Can you do Mnemba Atoll without staying on Mnemba Island?

Yes, and nearly everyone does. The island lodge is private, but day boats from Nungwi, Matemwe and the east coast visit the surrounding reef daily. Trips cost roughly $50 to $70 per person with gear, leave around 8am and return by early afternoon.

Useful links (5)

1. Zanzibar 5, 7 and 10 day plans 2026, Pongwe Beach Hotel— pongwe.com
2. 7 Days in Zanzibar: the classic route, TravelerMania— travelermania.com
3. Zanzibar 1-week itinerary 2026, WildToSea— wildtosea.com
4. Mandatory inbound travel insurance FAQs, Tanzania Embassy— it.tzembassy.go.tz
5. Jozani Forest tickets, hours and what to see, Tour-Guide.com— tour-guide.com

Photo credits

Thank you to Diego Delso, David Stanley from Nanaimo, Canada and Kent MacElwee for sharing these beautiful photographs and helping bring this guide to life.

Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 · CC BY 2.0