Meet Your Host
Weyni Tesfai
I first visited Zanzibar in 2008 and have been returning ever since. My background in cultural anthropology, history and Swahili studies shapes how I experience the islands: through their people, everyday rhythms and the complex histories that connect Zanzibar to the wider African continent and Indian Ocean world. This journey brings together years of research, returning and building relationships. Alongside local guides, historians and community members, I’ll help connect the places we visit to the bigger historical picture while creating space for local knowledge and perspectives.
I’m excited to launch the first Homebase Africa expedition to Zanzibar, a deeper way to experience this island in a way most visitors never will.
This 10-day journey is intentionally curated for a small, hand-picked group of like-minded people who want to go beyond the surface: to immerse themselves, learn deeply, ask critical questions, and understand the hidden and complex history of Zanzibar as well as the legacies that continue to shape the island’s heritage, identity and communities today.
This is not a first-come, first-served trip.
I’ll be inviting a carefully selected group of just 5–10 participants through an application process, because I believe the people you travel with shape the experience just as much as the destination itself.
Together, we’ll explore a side of Zanzibar that goes far beyond its beauty.
We’ll uncover how this small island became deeply connected to Indian Ocean trade, slavery, ivory, cloves, empire, migration and the wider colonization of Africa and how Zanzibar did not only shape local or African history, but world history.
Throughout the journey, we’ll explore three distinct parts of Zanzibar:
* 2 nights in historic Stone Town
* 2 nights on the island of Pemba
* 5 nights in the laid-back coastal village of Jambiani
We’ll stay in beautiful, thoughtfully selected accommodations that allow us to slow down, immerse ourselves and connect more deeply with each place.
The experience will combine expert guidance from historians, anthropologists and local knowledge holders with carefully curated moments that bring the island’s history and culture to life.
Expect immersive and meaningful experiences woven throughout the trip: learning directly from local communities, intimate conversations with experts, curated cooking experiences with the mamas of Zanzibar, slow mornings, sailing journeys, and moments that connect us to the island’s centuries-old relationship with the Indian Ocean.
This is not a rushed checklist of tourist attractions. It is intentional travel with purpose, connection and depth.
We ask that you come with an open mind, a willingness to listen, and the curiosity to question what you think you already know. Because Zanzibar is far more than beaches and beauty.
And this journey is about discovering the history, people, legacies and stories that make the island what it is today.
Zanzibar Trip Itinerary
Stone Town, Zanzibar · 2 nights
Day 1: Wednesday, 25 November
Welcome to Stone Town
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Arrival and time to settle into your accommodation
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Introductions and rooftop welcome dinner
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An introduction to Zanzibar’s place in world history
Stone Town is the historic heart of Zanzibar City and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rooted in Swahili coastal culture, its winding streets, merchant houses and waterfront reflect centuries of connections between East Africa, Arabia, India and Europe. Its port was a centre of commerce and one of East Africa’s major slave-trading hubs. The town’s architecture preserves traces of these exchanges, while its markets, homes and places of worship remain part of everyday life. Here, the beauty of the setting opens onto deeper questions about wealth, power and the people whose labour sustained it.
After settling into our accommodation, we gather for a rooftop welcome dinner overlooking Stone Town. Meet your fellow travellers as we introduce the question that will guide our journey: How did Zanzibar become such an important gateway between Africa and the wider world?
Overnight in Stone Town · Dinner included
Day 2: Thursday, 26 November
Stone Town: Slavery, Trade & the Making of Empire
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Guided walking tour with a local expert
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Merchant quarters, waterfront and sites of the Zanzibar Sultanate
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Anglican Cathedral and former slave-market site
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Tippu Tip, caravan networks and the Scramble for Africa
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Evening street food at Forodhani
In the nineteenth century, Zanzibar became a powerful centre of commerce linking the African interior to Indian Ocean markets. Trade in ivory and enslaved people enriched merchants and sustained the Sultanate, while forced labour underpinned the plantation economy. Caravan networks extended into Central Africa, where traders such as Tippu Tip exercised considerable influence. European explorers relied on existing routes, knowledge and trading connections, while campaigns against slavery became intertwined with imperial ambitions. Zanzibar’s history reveals how commercial power, abolitionism and colonial conquest intersected during the Scramble for Africa.
Guided by a local expert, we explore Stone Town’s merchant quarters, waterfront and historical sites, including the former slave-market site and the exterior of Tippu Tip’s house. Along the way, we ask who organised, financed and profited from these networks—and whose lives were transformed by them.
Before dinner, we enjoy a lecture by Weyni Tesfai, cultural anthropologist and expert in African and Swahili studies. The lecture and discussion explore a central question: How did the struggle against slavery become entangled with the making of empire?
Afterwards, we visit the Forodhani night food market to end the day.
Overnight in Stone Town
Pemba Island, Zanzibar · 2 nights
Day 3: Friday, 27 November
Pemba: Behind The Name “Clove Island”
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Early flight from Unguja to Pemba
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Working clove farm visit and farm lunch
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Exploring plantation history and present-day livelihoods
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Transfer north and time to relax
Pemba, Zanzibar’s lesser-visited northern island, is known as the “Green Island” for its fertile hills and lush vegetation. Forests, mangroves and coral reefs offer a quieter setting beyond the archipelago’s familiar tourist routes. Clove cultivation expanded under Sultan Said bin Sultan in the nineteenth century, supported by enslaved labour. After the cyclone of 1872 devastated Unguja’s plantations, production increasingly centred on Pemba. The island became the backbone of Zanzibar’s clove exports, helping sustain its historic prominence in the global spice trade. Today, clove farming remains an important livelihood, connecting Pemba’s rural communities to markets far beyond its shores.
We take an early flight to Pemba, continuing our journey from Stone Town’s former slave market to an industry that enslaved people helped build. At a working farm, we learn how cloves are grown, harvested and dried, exploring plantation ownership, global demand and what abolition changed. After a farm lunch, we travel north to our accommodation, with the rest of the afternoon free to settle into Pemba’s slower pace.
Overnight in Pemba · Lunch & Dinner included
Day 4: Saturday, 28 November
Pemba: Forest, Ocean & Reconnection
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Explore Ngezi Forest
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Time to relax along the coast
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Traditional dhow sailing
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Space for rest and reflection
Ngezi Forest is one of Zanzibar’s last remaining indigenous forests and a refuge for endemic wildlife. Its dense vegetation offers another perspective on the “Green Island,” beyond the cultivated landscapes we explored yesterday. Together with the surrounding coastline, it provides a setting to appreciate Pemba’s natural diversity and slow the pace of our journey.
Today we make time to absorb everything we’ve experienced so far. We explore the forest before spending time along the coast and sailing aboard a traditional dhow. Between forest paths, ocean breezes and shared meals, there is room to rest, reflect and enjoy some quiet time to yourself.
Before dinner, we gather for a lecture and discussion led by Weyni Tesfai, exploring Pemba’s historical significance beyond its clove plantations and enslaved labour. Through the lives of figures connected to the island, we ask: What role did Pemba play in shaping ideas of freedom, belonging and Zanzibar’s political future?
Overnight in Pemba · Lunch and Dinner included
Jambiani, Zanzibar · 5 nights
Day 5: Sunday, 29 November
Jambiani: Authentic Coastal Village Life
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Return flight to Unguja and transfer to Jambiani
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Settle into our Homebase Africa accommodation
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Free afternoon to enjoy the beach and village
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Evening documentary and discussion on revolution and tourism
Jambiani is a coastal village on Unguja’s southeast coast, where white sands and turquoise water meet the rhythms of everyday life. Fishing boats, seaweed farming and small local businesses connect the village to both the ocean and the wider economy. Dramatic tides transform the shoreline throughout the day, revealing a broad, shallow lagoon at low water. Along the beach and village paths, homes, cafés and guesthouses sit close together, while evenings often bring football on the sand. Here, we encounter coastal livelihoods firsthand and consider how tourism is reshaping the places where people live and work.
We fly back to Unguja and travel to Jambiani, our home for the next five nights. After settling in, the afternoon is yours to swim, rest, journal or explore the village at your own pace.
In the evening, we gather for a documentary screening and a discussion led by Weyni Tesfai. We explore how the 1964 Revolution reshaped Zanzibar’s society and identity, before considering the later growth of tourism and the changes it continues to bring.
Overnight in Jambiani
Day 6: Monday, 30 November
Seaweed, Livelihoods & Global Markets
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Cave swim
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Mwani Zanzibar visit: seaweed cultivation and local production
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Exploring women’s livelihoods and global trade
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Free afternoon and optional evening Swahili lesson
Commercial seaweed farming began in Zanzibar in 1989 and has become an important part of its coastal economy. Today, seaweed ranks as the islands’ second-largest export crop after cloves, with women making up around four-fifths of farmers. Connecting coastal households to international markets, the industry has opened new opportunities for income while exposing producers to changing ocean conditions and the challenges of securing a greater share of their crop’s value. Its history introduces a modern chapter in Zanzibar’s trading story, inviting us to consider how local resources, labour and distant demand shape everyday life.
We begin with a cave swim before visiting Mwani Zanzibar. Over approximately 90 minutes, we explore how seaweed is transformed into finished products, with the opportunity to visit the farm. Through the visit, we consider the opportunities and challenges facing producers today, returning to a central question: Who benefits when something produced locally enters a global market?
The afternoon is free to swim, rest or enjoy some time to yourself. In the evening, an optional Swahili lesson introduces useful phrases for the days ahead.
The order of activities will be adjusted to the tides.
Overnight in Jambiani
Day 7: Tuesday, 1 December
Swahili Cuisine, Kanga & the Stories We Carry
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Market visit and cooking experience with the Mamas of Zanzibar
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Shared lunch exploring the island’s culinary connections
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Kanga workshop: clothing, freedom and women’s voices
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Create a printed kanga to take home
Worn across the Swahili coast, kanga is a colourful cotton cloth whose patterns and sayings carry stories of identity, status and belonging. In Zanzibar, its history is closely connected to emancipation: formerly enslaved women used decorated cloth to distance themselves from clothing associated with servitude and assert their freedom and place in Swahili society. Kanga also developed into a powerful medium of communication. Its printed sayings can convey love, pride, criticism, humour or resistance—expressing what might be difficult to say aloud. An everyday garment becomes a way of shaping how others see you, and making your voice heard.
We begin with the Mamas of Zanzibar, visiting local markets to choose ingredients before preparing traditional dishes together. Through cooking and conversation, we explore how connections across the Indian Ocean shaped Zanzibari cuisine, then sit down to enjoy our shared meal.
In the afternoon, The Kanga Project introduces us to the relationship between clothing, social status and women’s self-expression. We explore the meanings behind kanga designs and sayings before creating our own printed cloth to take home, guided by one question: If your kanga could communicate one message about freedom, identity or belonging, what would it say?
Overnight in Jambiani · Lunch included
Day 8: Wednesday, 2 December
Makunduchi: What Survives When Empires Fall?
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Village walk through Old Makunduchi with a local guide
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Sacred places, oral histories and the meaning of Mwaka Kogwa
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Lunch and a swim at Mtende Beach
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Sunset dinner beneath a baobab in Kizimkazi
Makunduchi, in southern Unguja, is closely associated with Mwaka Kogwa, an annual celebration of renewal involving ritual combat, women’s songs and the burning of a ceremonial hut. Often linked to Shirazi heritage and traditions of Persian ancestry, the festival also draws on local agricultural and ancestral practices. Across Zanzibar, Shirazi identity became a way of expressing rootedness, land rights and social standing within a society shaped by slavery, Omani rule and British colonialism. Here, heritage opens onto a deeper question: how have people used stories of origin to define who belongs—and how have those meanings changed?
We explore Old Makunduchi with a local guide, learning about village life, sacred places and traditions through the community’s own accounts. Visits to caves, a baobab and the Mwaka Kogwa grounds introduce conversations about spirituality, ancestry and the relationship between local practices and Islam. Although the festival takes place in July, we’ll explore its meaning through the places and stories associated with it.
Afterwards, we head to Mtende Beach for lunch and a swim. We end the day with a sunset dinner beneath a baobab tree in Kizimkazi, reflecting on our guiding question: What survives when empires fall and political systems change?
Overnight in Jambiani · Dinner included
Day 9: Thursday, 3 December
The Indian Ocean as a Meeting Place
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Sandbank excursion and time to enjoy the beach
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Sunset dhow sailing
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Farewell dinner and reflections on responsible travel
For centuries, the Indian Ocean connected Zanzibar to mainland East Africa, Arabia, India and communities beyond. Seasonal monsoon winds helped sailors navigate routes along which goods, people, beliefs and knowledge travelled. Dhows formed part of these networks, carrying opportunities for exchange alongside the violence of the slave trade. Their history holds both voluntary journeys and forced displacement. The skills of boatbuilders and sailors remain part of Zanzibar’s living maritime heritage, connecting the coastline we experience today to generations whose livelihoods and movements depended on the sea.
We begin with a planned sandbank excursion, followed by time to swim, relax and enjoy the coast. Before our sunset dhow sail, a short introduction invites us to imagine the ocean as a highway connecting distant communities. We then take to the water, leaving space to experience the wind, the coastline and the sailing itself.
At our farewell dinner, we bring the journey into the present. How do ownership, outside investment and control over storytelling shape tourism today? Whose livelihoods does our spending support, and whose priorities shape the places we visit? We close with a question each participant can carry home: What will I do differently when I travel after this?
Ocean activities are subject to tides and weather conditions.
Overnight in Jambiani · Dinner included
Day 10: Friday, 4 December
Farewell
We share a final breakfast in Jambiani and say our goodbyes. Our tour officially concludes after breakfast, followed by your airport transfer and onward journey.
*The daily activities outlined in this itinerary may be rotated or adjusted to accommodate museum opening hours, ocean tides, flight schedules and road conditions. Meals will be served in hotels and restaurants, many with a historical or local character. Picnic lunches will occasionally be provided.
Trip Price & Accommodation
25 November–4 December 2026 · 10 days / 9 nights
Basic
One participant · room to yourself: $3,400
Comfort
One participant · room to yourself: $3,600
Add a spouse, partner, or friend for $3000 extra, including the full trip programme and sharing your double or king-size bed (no twin beds available); you can submit one joint application.
Your Accommodation
We’ll stay in beautiful, thoughtfully selected accommodations that allow us to slow down, immerse ourselves and connect more deeply with each place:
2 nights in Stone Town, 2 nights in Pemba and 5 nights in Jambiani.
Basic
Carefully selected rooms with air conditioning and private ensuite bathrooms in Stone Town and Jambiani. In Pemba, Basic rooms have ceiling fans rather than air conditioning.
Comfort
More spacious bedrooms with private ensuite bathrooms and air conditioning throughout the journey, including Pemba.
Both categories include the same experiences, lectures, transport and meals outlined in the programme.
What is included on this Trip
What’s included
☑️ 9 nights’ accommodation in your selected category:
2 nights in Stone Town, 2 nights in Pemba and 5 nights in Jambiani.
☑️ All breakfasts throughout your stay.
☑️ 4 lunches, including the clove farm lunch and the shared meal during the Mamas of Zanzibar cooking experience.
☑️ 5 dinners, including our rooftop welcome dinner, two dinners in Pemba, sunset dinner in Kizimkazi and farewell dinner.
☑️ Return domestic flights between Unguja and Pemba.
☑️ Arrival and departure airport transfers, plus transport for the scheduled group programme.
☑️ Guided visits, workshops, excursions and entrance fees included in the itinerary, covering heritage walks, the clove farm, Ngezi Forest, cave swimming, Seaweed farm, the cooking experience, kanga workshop, Makunduchi, the sandbank excursion and dhow sailing.
☑️ Optional Swahili lesson as scheduled in the itinerary.
☑️ All lectures and guided discussions during the journey, led by Weyni Tesfai.
Bonus
☑️ Online preparation seminar before arrival, lasting 90 minutes, introducing the historical and cultural themes we’ll explore together, with time for questions and discussion.
Not included
International flights to and from Zanzibar.
❌ Visa fees and travel/medical insurance.
❌ Mandatory Zanzibar health insurance
❌ Lunches and dinners other than those listed as included.
❌ Drinks unless specifically included with a meal or experience.
❌ Personal expenses, including shopping, laundry and tips.
❌ Additional activities and private transport outside the programme.
❌ Additional accommodation, private excursions or transport outside the scheduled programme.
This trip is for you if…
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You want to understand the place you’re visiting. You’re curious about Zanzibar’s history, culture and people, and how its past connects to life today.
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Learning is part of why you travel. Guided visits, thoughtful conversations and hands-on workshops excite you as much as the ocean.
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You’re willing to listen and reflect. We’ll explore slavery, colonialism, identity and tourism, including perspectives that may challenge familiar narratives.
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You value local knowledge. You want to learn from the people who call these islands home and approach their everyday lives and traditions with respect.
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You enjoy sharing a journey. You’re happy travelling with a small group, being considerate of others and staying flexible when plans shift.
This trip may not be for you if…
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You mainly want a beach holiday. There will be swimming, sailing and downtime, but history and cultural learning are central to the itinerary.
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You prefer a resort-focused experience. We’ll spend time in villages, markets, farms and shared spaces, with walking, boat trips and travel between islands.
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You’d rather skip the learning activities. Our visits, workshops and conversations are a core part of the shared experience.
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You’re looking for a party trip or prefer to follow your own schedule throughout the holiday.
How to Book
This is not a first-come, first-served trip. We’ll carefully select a group of 5–10 participants through an application process, because the people you travel with shape the experience just as much as the destination itself.
We welcome curious, open-minded travellers with a sincere interest in Zanzibar’s history, culture and people, and a willingness to learn, listen and contribute to thoughtful conversations.
1. Submit your application
Tell us a little about yourself, why you’d like to join and what you hope to take away from the journey.
2. Receive your invitation
We’ll personally review each application and contact you to confirm whether we can offer you a place.
3. Secure your reservation
Once your application has been accepted, a non-refundable deposit of US$1,500 per person is required to secure your booking. This deposit counts towards your total trip price. Payment instructions will accompany your invitation.