In Tanzania, most travellers make a beeline for the tourist mecca of Zanzibar. And indeed Zanzibar feels like a different country to mainland Tanzania, which it was, until 1964.

In 2011, on our Cape to Kenya safari, we drove south down the Swahili Coast from Mombasa to Tanga, and looked across the channel… our chance would come, but not yet. The hustle and bustle of Zanzibar’s Stone Town, the island paradise with its coconut palms and miles of white sands lapped by warm waters, would have to wait for another schedule, another rhythm.

At Tanga, we watched the occasional dhow passing by in the sparking waters, and imagined its island destination 35km off the coast. Little did we know that almost exactly a year later, we would explore Zanzibar’s many attractions.

We loved the largest tract of indigenous evergreen forest, Jozani, which shelters the endangered red colobus monkey. Our spice tour was fascinating, and the atmosphere of Stone Town’s network of narrow streets, magical. Travelling by daladala was an absolute pleasure and we were not hustled, except by the “beach boys” with their trinkets. We spent 8 nights at Kiwengwa, but would ideally have split the time to fit in a few days at Kendwa.