Stone Town in a day: what to see, when to walk and how to dress

Stone Town is a UNESCO site of coral stone houses, carved doors and alleys too narrow for cars, on a peninsula that faces the sunset. It is our home town and most of our trips start or end here. Give it a night.

Morning: walk it with someone

Start before the heat, around eight, with a guide who grew up here. The Old Fort and the House of Wonders on the seafront, the Anglican cathedral on the site of the slave market and its memorial, the doors with their brass studs and Quranic inscriptions, the Darajani market with its fish hall and spice stalls. Two to three hours on foot, with coffee somewhere shaded in the middle.

Afternoon: leave town

The middle of the day is hot. Take the boat to Prison Island for the tortoises and a swim, or drive out to a spice farm at Bububu, or simply go back to the hotel pool. Both trips are half a day and we include them in most island itineraries.

Evening: Forodhani

At sunset the seafront gardens fill with grill stalls selling seafood, Zanzibar pizza and sugar cane juice, and the whole town comes out to eat. Go with a local, eat what is cooked in front of you, and finish with a drink on a rooftop.

How to dress

Zanzibar is Muslim and Stone Town is not a resort. Shoulders and knees covered for everyone, and swimwear only on the beach. During Ramadan, eat and drink discreetly in public during daylight. Nobody will mind you being there; they will mind you being underdressed.