The Spice Islands -Unguja & Pemba

The lush and hilly Pemba lies east of Tanga on the Tanzanian mainland. Pemba is 80km (50 miles) north of Zanzibar Island / Unguja and smaller in size but with more natural forests and plantations. Pemba is a bigger producer of cloves and has a wealth of eco-systems, it has thus far, hardly been exposed to tourism and so has an authentic and unspoiled feel to it.

The mangrove coastline opens up in places to reveal gorgeous stretches of shoreline, there are also small islands dotted about with stunning beaches and birdlife.

The people of Pemba are friendly and eager to talk to visitors, who will find a rich history and sense of tradition. Pemba Island is also the centre in East Africa where people come to learn the ancient arts of traditional healing and witchcraft

Uguja island( popularly known as Zanzibar) is separated from the mainland of East Africa (Tanzania) by a channel which is at its narrowest part 36 km (22 1/2 miles) across.The  Island  has become a popular tourist destination in recent years. It has quite a troubled and tumultuous history. It was settled by the Arabs as early as the 9th century.They were joined by the Persians some 400 years later though both were ousted by the Portuguese in 1500. The Omani Arabs reclaimed the country by 1700 and they were instrumental in the expansion of the slave trade to work on the clove plantations.

What to do

There is a lot to see and to do on Zanzibar island--enjoy the amazing white sand beaches especially at the north, east and south coast. The sand has the consistency of castor sugar!

Zanzibar is one of the few places in the world where saffron is produced, Visit one of the spice farms where you can see how anise, pepper, cloves etc. grow; you can sample some of the exotic fruit grown on the island. And do check out the "lipstick tree".

Jozani Forest has excellent nature trails, featuring some very exotic (and large) trees and plants. Even more interesting, though, are the Red Colobus Monkeys that live here. These Monkeys can only survive on Zanzibar, nowhere else in the world, since they need a diet of 70 different plants, berries etc. The Red Colobus Monkeys are a protected species.

There are a number of historically important buildings in Stone Town, like The House of Wonders, slave market The Arab Fort etc. It is easy to arrange a simple walking tour with a local guide who can teach you some history.

The market in Stone Town is one of the largest, most vibrant open-air markets anywhere. You can find several varieties of bananas, "elephant garlic" unique to the island, the largest avocados you'll probably ever see, and more. Prices are extremely reasonable.

Seaweed Center--3% of the world's commercial harvest of Seaweed is taking place in Zanzibar island.