The three main islands Zanzibar, Pemba and Mafia, which are surrounded
by several smaller islands, are located off the Tanzanian coast. They
cover an area of 2,332 km².
Each of these wonderful islands guarantees virgin beaches, turquoise
water and a marvellous stay.
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The island Pemba, known as 'Al Kuh Dra' that is the green island, is
situated 20 miles north-east of Zanzibar and is the most important growing
area for cloves. The image of this island is marked by hills and some
4 million clove trees, many of them older than 100 years. The village
life there has not changed in centuries, the men fishing, women cultivating
and children everywhere. The Portuguese introduced bullfights in the
17th century, which are still held in the ancient tradition, during
which the animals are neither to be hurt nor killed. Pemba is also starting
to get known for its incredible dive sites, with vertiginous drop-offs,
untouched coral and very abundant marine life.
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Chake Chake is located on a hill with a beautiful view on the bay where
the tides determine when a dhow can enter the harbour. East of this
place, on a peninsula, you can find the Ras Mkumbu that houses the oldest
ruins of the island (14th century). But Pemba is not only known for
its cloves, it is also famous for its rich fishing grounds. Between
the island and the mainland there is the 20 miles wide Pemba channel,
which is one of the most magnificent and profitable fishing grounds
for game fishing on the East African coast.
Mafia island, covered with palms and cashew trees, is situated 160 km
south of Zanzibar and is the smallest and southernmost satellite of
Tanzania. The island is located opposite the Rufiji River, in mainland,
whose delta covers an area of 65 km². For deep-sea fishermen and deep-sea
divers this area is an exciting hunting ground and water sport area.
Here you can catch marlins, sailfish, tunas and a lot of other game
fish. In the east of Mafia the turtles lay their eggs. They should
not be disturbed during this period and you should only visit these
places with guides. There are ruins on Mafia from the 9th to the 14th
century that can be visited. Mafia also has a marine park on all of
its south coast, which garanties beautiful diving.
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These three main islands are surrounded by many smaller islands, some
of them totally virgin, others with just one or two fishermen villages,
and others still with special attractions, like Prison island and its
giant tortoises on Zanzibar or Misali island, the jewel of Pemba.
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