Tumbatu Island Adventure

This is a truly unique experience! Tumbatu is one of Zanzibars best-kept secrets, as the inhabitants are very selective about whom they grant access. To enter the island you need special permission from the elders. The Watumbatu " inhabitants of Tumbatu - are living as a very close, self- supporting community. Many of them have never been on Unguja. You wont find cars or scooters there; Tumbatu has only one road to walk on, even though this is the place where in the 11th century the Shirazi built the first stone building in the entire Zanzibar Archipelago!

Arriving at the beach of Ras Mskitini, you will see how the Watumbatu prepare their fishing nets, fish traps and also how they build and maintain their boats " all by hand! In a short walk, you will arrive at the school of Ras Mskitini and learn about who built the school and the importance of the huge and old Baobab trees to the community. We will show you the unspoken secrets of Tumbatu, as they are worldfamous for witchcraft but also how the women create an income through "Ukili" (plaiting palm leaves).

The island has two places to discover in the south, Jongowe and Kichangani. We visit the Jongowe ruins where we witness one of Zanzibar's main early settlements. The late medieval city was described in a chronicle known as the "Tumbatu Manuscript". It inspired Dutch maritime anthropologist and ethnohistorian A. H. J. Prins to visit the island by dhow from Zanzibar. In June 1957, he identified the ancient Shirazi port city's ruins.

The Tumbatu Island Day Trip is a very special excursion and only possible based on the trust of the communitys elders. Therefore we have put together the following information and guidelines; please read it carefully and follow it, for the benefit of all.