Guide to Diving in Zanzibar

Guide to Diving in Zanzibar archipelago attracts divers from all over the globe. In fact, most of the experienced divers admit that Zanzibar has some of the best diving sites. Numbering over 30, these sites offer the underwater enthusiast a chance to see some beautiful coral and marine life.

Zanzibar’s coral reefs are rich with marine life with some having over 600 different species. So, bring along your underwater camera and be ready to see some awe-inspiring sights.

From small nudibranchs to moray eels, you may even spot the whale shark, the world’s largest fish. And the fact that the waters of the Indian ocean are not only clear to around 30m plus being warm for most of the year makes diving here the experience of a lifetime.

The best time of year to go diving in Zanzibar is July to August. During this time the temperatures are high. However, February to March is also an awesome time, and let’s not exclude the months of January, September as well as December. For the diving enthusiasts, you will find them diving in Zanzibar’s awesome sites year-round.

Guide to Diving in Zanzibar

For the best conditions for diving, the water needs to be warm at around 270C. During this time, visibility in the deep blue can be anywhere between 20m to 70m.

Leven Bank is one of the best dive spots in the whole of Zanzibar. It offers a beautiful underwater world with plenty of sea creatures.

Hunga reef is another awesome dive location. Since it is not too deep, it is an excellent diving site for novice divers. Its beautiful oceanic landscapes offer stunning coral and marine life such as the parrotfish, Napoleon Wrasse, surgeonfish, and lobsters.

Yet another great diving site is Boribu reef. Here you will see huge barrel sponges, as well as the Georgian sea fern. It is for experienced divers allowing them to go down to depths of 30 meters. There are bluefin tunas, moray eels as well as lobsters among other sea creatures.

Other areas that you can dive into include Kendwa, Coral Garden, Renco Bommi, Kichafi, Shanes Reef, Chakatuni, Misoli, And Mbwangawa. If you are located near Stone Town there are some spectacular diving sites here as well such as Bahari Wreck, Page, and Nanyang.

Just because you haven’t had a chance to dive before doesn’t mean you will not be able to enjoy all the underwater sights that Zanzibar has to offer. You can still take a diving course in one of the many schools on the islands. You can choose between novice packages (Discover scuba, Open Water 1) to professional packages (Advanced, Rescue Diver, Dive Master, Instructor).