Olivia

Following a week on safari in Kenya in March, we are looking for a beach holiday. We are considering Lamu, Seychelles and Zanzibar. Since it has been 20 years since I was in Lamu and Seychelles, and now hear that the coral reefs in Seychelles were damaged by El Nino and you now must fly to Lamu because of Somalian bandits, would appreciate any thoughts as to which one we should consider. We enjoy birding and snorkeling. Thanks!

mm

Two years ago we went to Tanzania and spent a couple of days on Mafia Island. We did have to take a boat out to do snorkelling and we visited around one of the smaller islands which had a lot of wild life. Most notable was what I called the bat trees. The bats were just hanging by the hundreds from the trees. Of course this was day time and they did not bother us one bit. The resort was really nice and I especially liked the privacy we had at our cottage. The Mafia Island resort has a web page but I don't remember what it is. If you do a for Tanzania Tourism board you will be able to get a link.

caroline

After nearly 5-weeks of inland safari, we "crashed" at Kipungani Bay (in the Lamu archipelago). If you like birding and snorkeling and sunset dhow rides and walks along safe, secluded (and beautiful) beaches in a non-touristic setting, this resort is heaven on earth. I'd go back there in a heartbeat! The place has a website; let me know if you need more info.

Melissa

Hi Olivia, we went after our Kenya safari in the gining of March to Zanzibar. It was fantastic and a great place to be right after safari. We hope to return there very soon. On this forum you will find many positive comments about Zanzibar. Have a great time

nancy

We visited both Zanzibar and Seychelles and Zanzibar is more rewarding to visit. fantastic place to relax. We were in Seychelles two years ago and coral is distroyed. What a difference since our first visit in 1989. Never went to Lamu but hope to learn more about it.

Anna

You might want to avoid Zanzibar for now (until the political situation stabilises), and consider areas like Lamu, Seychelles or Ras Kutani (Tanzanian coast)

Peter

Olivia
Do not worry. My wife, our two boys and I just returned from Zanzibar last Friday. What a place! What a place for snorkeling and I never so such beautiful beaches. Go for it and have a blast.

lee

Have tentative plans in Zanzibar in July 2001. The hotel is Matemwe bungalos about 1 hour out of Stone Town. I have some concerns about the recent incidents and tourist warnings. I would like some first hand information regarding recent visits (Jan-Feb).

Vicky

Have just returned from a fortnight in Zanzibar. We were there on Sat 27th when they had the demonstrations which resulted in several deaths. We were warned to stay in the hotel on the 27th and on the Sunday we ventured into Stone Town as did many other visitors. We saw no signs of the previous day's problems, in fact everyone seemed very laid back. However, many of the tour operators were encouraging people to move to other destinations, mostly Mombasa and we heard that all the Italians were lifted from the island. We also heard that a lot of the hotels closed because occupancy was so low - we were at Breezes and by the time we left, the hotel was probably only a third full. The upside was that we had the island almost to ourselves. While we were there we did hear stories of mass graves being found on Pemba and two dhows which set sail from Pemba to Mombasa with dissidents on board were reputedly shot out of the water by the security forces. Who knows how much truth there is in any of this. Apart from the reports in the press, we would not have known there was anything wrong. However, perhaps now is not the time to visit Zanzibar just in case.