The beach
that hides nothing

if you've seen a photograph of a "zanzibar beach" in a brochure, it was almost certainly taken at nungwi or kendwa. these two small fishing villages on the northern tip of unguja face the open indian ocean and — crucially — sit on a stretch of coast where the tide barely moves. the swimming is good all day, every day, whatever the tide.

that matters, because most of zanzibar's east coast beaches (paje, jambiani, matemwe) have dramatic tides — at low tide the ocean pulls back hundreds of metres and swimming becomes impossible. nungwi and kendwa don't have that problem. the sea is always there, always warm, always clear.

the trade-off is that nungwi is the island's most developed beach. eighty-plus resorts and hotels line the coast. the feel is lively and international — beach bars, dhow trips, dolphin tours, scuba diving, kitesurfing. if you want classic tropical resort life with everything on tap, this is the place. if you're after solitude or local culture, quieter kendwa to the south, or the east coast beaches, suit better.