Sustainable Tourism in Zanzibar: 10 Easy Steps to Travel Responsibly

It warms my heart that you’re reading this article and considering practicing sustainable tourism in Zanzibar.

Zanzibar is a trending travel destination with ambitious plans for increased visitors in the coming years, which has started to raise concerns over the preservation of its culture and environment. Read on to learn how you can reduce the negative impact of tourism in this beautiful island.

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Sustainable Tourism in Zanzibar: How can tourists travel more responsibly?

Zanzibar relies heavily on tourism, as this sector makes up nearly one third of the island’s GDP. As such, tourism isn’t going anywhere and, if anything, investment will keep increasing.

Therefore, responsible and ethical tourism is a very important duty shared between businesses and visitors. It simultaneously aims to minimise the negative impacts of travel, and to make beneficial contributions to the local communities and the conservation of Zanzibar’s natural and cultural heritage.

Sustainable tourism practices are particularly important for preserving the local wildlife and nature, which make this island so special.
Here’s how you can do your part as a responsible, ethical, and sustainable traveller in Zanzibar:

1. Visit during shoulder season

A good way to help redistribute the impact of tourism is to visit outside of peak season.

In Zanzibar, peak season is during the summer months from mid-June through August, and between late December and February. This is due to the dry climate during these months, as well as coinciding with the summer and winter school breaks in Europe.

The times with the best weather (lower chance of rain) and fewer crowds are during the first half of June, and the months of September and October. Combine this with staying away from the main touristic areas and you will encounter very few tourists.

2. Go off the beaten path

The first way you can contribute to sustainable tourism in Zanzibar is by spreading out across the island. The majority of travellers who visit Zanzibar on a package holiday congregate in the areas of Kendwa, Nungwi, and Paje, so other parts of the island see less tourists.

This may already be appealing to you if you like to escape the crowds. If you’re worried that you’ll miss the island’s “must-sees”, I must reassure you that Zanzibar has plenty of beauty which you cannot experience fully if you only stay in one part of the island anyway.

Splitting your trip into different regions gives you access to different experiences and a more well-rounded view of the island. By staying in areas like Matemwe, Jambiani, Pingwe, or Kizimkazi, you’ll contribute to redistributing the benefits of tourism for those communities, while reducing the pressure on the already most-touristic regions.

3. Stay at a sustainable hotel

The hotels you choose to stay at are a very important choice when it comes to reducing your travel footprint.

Choosing a hotel that takes responsible steps towards sustainability, like reducing plastic use (by providing reusable bottles and water dispensers) and sourcing ingredients locally (bonus points if they grow their own) is a good way to minimise the negative impact of tourism.

Some hotels go a step further by contributing to the local communities and organising beach clean-ups.

Sustainable hotels in Zanzibar

It isn’t always easy to know which hotels are really sustainable. To help you, I have compiled a list of recommendations for sustainable hotels in Zanzibar, after my own hotel stays and researching with the help of local businesses.

For a complete version of Where to Stay in Zanzibar, check out my full guide here, which includes more hotel recommendations, and for all budgets.

Stone Town

Sharazad Wonders Boutique Hotel

Centrally located in the heart of Stone Town, this historical courtyard hotel provides complimentary refillable water bottles and houses a local shop selling works of local artisans.

Pingwe / Michamvi

Baladin Zanzibar Beach Hotel

The hotel encourages use of refillable water bottles, and also organises appropriate garbage recycling and beach clean-ups. In the room, a repurposed bag is provided to encourage guests to dispose of any rubbish they may find along the beach.

Jambiani

Sharazād Boutique Hotel

Located in a quiet sand stretch in Jambiani, this hotel is a sustainable and relaxing option between jungle and beach. The hotel provides complimentary refillable water bottles, as well as solar panels and garbage recycling. They also grow their own fruits, which are served at the hotel restaurant.

4. Support local

Supporting local is one of the easiest ways to contribute to sustainable tourism in Zanzibar. Shopping from locally-owned stores, markets, street stalls, and local restaurants is the best way to support the local communities.

Aside from the above recommendations for sustainable hotels in Zanzibar, a good alternative is always to choose locally-owned hotels over foreign-owned hotel chains.

This way, you support smaller businesses and ensure that your tourist money is contributing directly to the local economy.

5. Choose ethical and sustainable tour companies

If you decided to visit Zanzibar for its beautiful waters, wildlife, diving and snorkelling opportunities, you should make sure that any activities you partake in are not harmful to the local wildlife, the environment, or the local communities.

The first way you can be sure of this is by selecting a locally-owned tour company who employs locals and only promotes ethical activities (ie. no unethical animal tourism).

If you’re unsure if the practices of a particular tour company are sustainable, ask any questions you have before booking with them. If they avoid answering, you probably should look to spend your money with a different company.

I highly recommend Amo Zanzibar Tours as a locally-owned tour company that cares deeply about sustainable tourism in Zanzibar. Noreen, the company owner, is very approachable and always happy to make recommendations and answer any questions you may have.

6. Avoid unethical animal tourism activities

Zanzibar offers many opportunities to come closer with nature, though sadly some of them can be harmful to the animals themselves.

Here’s a few activities you should avoid during your visit to Zanzibar:

• Turtle “sanctuaries”: While real sanctuaries seek the conservation and preservation of the species, any activities where tourists are allowed to feed or touch the turtles are not ethical.
  
  This includes the very popular Prison Island, where tortoises are confined in enclosures, and tourists touch, feed, and even sit on them. Other examples are the Salam Cave in Kizimkazi and the Nungwi Turtle Aquarium, where tourists feed the turtles in the water, often wearing cosmetics that pollute the overcrowded environment the animals live in.

• Dolphin-chasing tours: Despite the debate of whether dolphin tours are ethical at all, if you go on one, make sure that you don’t support companies that actively chase the dolphins. This stresses the dolphins, and the boat propellers can hurt them if they get too close.
  
  Furthermore, if a tour company guarantees in any way that you will be able to touch, feed, or swim with dolphins, it is not ethical.
  
  
  
• Starfish: Some tours include a stop to see starfish during low tide. Unfortunately the tour guides know how Instagrammable starfish are, encouraging tourists to pick them up to take photos with.
  
  While there’s nothing wrong with admiring starfish, these fragile animals cannot breathe out of the water! Taking them out is just like someone pushing your head underwater for a few minutes… every day. Starfish can also die from the stress of being handled too much, so avoid touching or removing them from the water.

7. Wear reef-safe sunscreen

Zanzibar’s wonderful turquoise waters and tropical diving and snorkelling opportunities should be preserved. The best way to reduce the impact of travel to marine life is by packing a reef-safe sunscreen that won’t exacerbate coral bleaching.

If you’re unsure whether your sunscreen is reef-safe, check the label and avoid these ingredients: Oxybenzone, Octinoxate, Benzophenone-1, Benzophenone-8, OD-PABA, 4-Methylbenzylidene camphor, 3-Benzylidene camphor, and Octocrylene.

The UV index is very high in Zanzibar – pack SPF 50 or higher, and cover up during the hottest times of the day to protect your skin.

8. Leave single-use plastic items at home

Packing only reusable items, where possible, is a golden rule anywhere in the world nowadays. Though, in Zanzibar (and all of Tanzania) specifically, this is even more important because single-use plastic has been banned since 2019.

Reusable and resealable plastic bags (like the zip-lock bags used to keep toiletries) are okay, and it is unlikely that your luggage will be searched for plastic bags alone. However, it’s important for travellers to avoid contributing to littering, since Zanzibar already suffers from a serious waste management and disposable problem.

Pack fabric tote bags instead, or invest in quality waterproof fabric storage bags to keep items from getting wet during boat rides. A one-off expense, and they’ll likely come in handy for your day-to-day and future travels.

9. Avoid giving money to begging children

This is a sensitive topic, but an important one to address – especially if you are soft-hearted like me, and it pains you to say no to a begging child.

In Zanzibar, you will likely be approached by young kids who sing you songs, welcome you, and then beg for money. While it may seem charitable to give them a few dollars, you must understand that doing so may do more harm than good.

Kids are taught early on that foreigners have money, and their families know that many will give in to begging out of compassion. However, in doing so, you may indadvertedly contribute to a begging cycle that impacts the kids’ chances later in life. If kids can get money from tourists, their families may start using them to beg and stop sending them to school.

Also, don’t give out candy or unhealthy treats. This creates bad habits, and may contribute to health issues where the children may not have good access to healthcare. It also dehumanises and reduces interactions between foreigners and locals to mere transactions.

Good ways to help local children and their communities are by supporting local businesses, or donating directly to a trusted local organisation. You may do your own research or ask your hotel or tour guide for recommendations.

10. Respect the local traditions and customs

Much of the joy of travelling is learning about other cultures, so sustainable tourism in Zanzibar must also be ethical and help preserve the local customs and traditions of the people. After all, this is their home and it should be respected as such.

Although there is constitutional freedom of religion, the Zanzibari population is 90% Muslim. It is therefore respectful to dress conservatively in Stone Town and local villages. This means covering the shoulders, midriff, and knees, for both men and women.

The dress code is more relaxed in the beach areas, though it’s still good to be respectful to the locals. It is okay to wear swimsuits and bikinis at the beach or by the hotel pool (though going topless is a big no-no!), but it is polite to cover up when going to restaurants.

Do not take photos of individuals without asking for their permission first, as it can be perceived as offensive. Furthermore, Zanzibari men and women don’t do public displays of affection, so you should also avoid doing so while visiting Stone Town or local villages, unless you are somewhere private.

The above norms are even more important if you visit during Ramadan, when you should also take care not to eat, drink, or smoke in public while the locals are fasting. Remember that homosexuality is illegal in Zanzibar, and even small displays of affection are not tolerated, leading to arrest or imprisonment, and applicable to foreigners as well.

Learning some Swahili words is also a good way to connect with the locals, who really appreciate it when foreigners make the effort! Here’s a few words that are helpful to know:
– Jambo (Jam-boh): Hello
– Habari (Ha-bah-ree): Hello, how are you?
– Asante (Ah-san-teh): Thank you
– Asante sana (Ah-san-teh san-ah): Thank you very much
– Karibu (Kah-ree-boo): Welcome
– Hakuna matata (everyone can say this one 🙂 ): No problem / No worries

Last Thoughts

Thank you for reading this guide on how to be a responsible tourist in Zanzibar – it means a lot that you are researching this topic! If each of us strives to take small steps, we can all make a difference.

Don’t forget to share the information in this article with your travel buddies. I hope you have a great time on this beautiful island, learn new things, and create wonderful memories!

*This article was possible with the help and insights of Amo Zanzibar Tours, a local tour company run in Zanzibar. Regardless, as always, all opinions are entirely my own and without bias.

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