Zanzibar

Is Zanzibar safe?

For a holiday in Stone Town and on the beaches of Unguja, Zanzibar's main island, mostly yes. This page covers Stone Town, the old quarter of Zanzibar City in the Mjini Magharibi region, and the resort coast that most visitors come for. Pemba, the second main island, shares the same advice.

The catch is that the risks are personal rather than headline-sized. The UK Foreign Office reports robberies in Stone Town, at hotels and on popular beaches across the island, and sexual assaults on foreigners at beach resorts. Tanzania's homicide rateHomicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary was 3.3 per 100,000 in 2024 (UNODC), low by regional standards. We score Zanzibar 60, above Nairobi (51) and a little below Marrakech (63).

Crime in Stone Town and at the resorts

Zanzibar police reported 409 crimes against persons, a category that includes murder and rape, in the first half of 2025, down from 611 a year earlier. That is a small number for an island group of 1.89 million people (2022 census), but crime against visitors clusters where visitors are.

What the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary describes:

• Bag-snatching from motorbikes and cars. Walk facing the traffic, keep well away from the kerb and carry bags loosely by the handle, not strapped across your chest.
• Hotel break-ins. Intruders try to get into rooms. Lock doors and windows at night, use the deadbolt or chain, and ask staff for ID before you let anyone in.
• Beach robberies. Incidents happen on popular beaches throughout the island. Leave valuables in the hotel safe and avoid empty stretches of sand, especially at dusk.
• Touts at the port. Aggressive ticket sellers work the harbour. Buy ferry tickets at the official office, and book safaris and boat trips through your hotel or a licensed operator rather than someone on the beach.

If you are robbed, hand things over. Carry a copy of your passport and leave the original in the safe.

Walking at night

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary advises against walking alone at night and notes that crime rises after dark. Women travelling alone or in small groups report verbal harassment. Gallup's 2025 survey found 68% of Tanzanians feel safe walking alone at night where they live, close to Morocco.

In practice: walk the lanes of Stone Town in a group after dinner, take a hotel-booked taxi back to your room, and do not accept lifts or invitations from strangers. At beach resorts, stay on the hotel's own stretch after dark.

Roads, boats and the sea

Zanzibar's Road Safety Board counted 156 road deaths in 2025 and 199 in 2024, about 8 per 100,000 people. Official Tanzanian counts sit well below WHO estimatesWHO road-death estimateThe World Health Organization's estimate of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people in a country, adjusted for deaths that police statistics miss.More in the glossary, so treat that as a floor. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says dala dalas (minibuses), boda bodas (motorbike taxis) and bajajis (tuk-tuks) are poorly maintained, badly driven and rarely insured. A hotel taxi or a driver arranged by a known operator is safer, and if you rent a car you need a local Zanzibar driving permit as well as your licence. Avoid driving between towns at night.

The water is the bigger risk. According to the FCDO, ferry disasters have killed hundreds of people between Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar and between the islands in recent years. Do not get on an overloaded boat, and check where the life jackets are. The same logic applies to dhow trips, snorkelling boats and sunset cruises: pick an operator your hotel uses, and turn back if there are no life jackets on board.

The two rainy seasons, from late March to May and from October to mid-December, bring floods and landslides, according to the FCDO.

Health

CDC lists malaria as a risk in all of Tanzania below 1,800 metres, which includes the islands, and the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary also lists dengue and cholera. Ask a travel clinic about malaria tablets, use repellent and sleep under a net. Drink bottled water. The FCDO says medical facilities are limited, especially outside Dar es Salaam, so a serious injury can mean a flight to the mainland or further: buy insurance that covers evacuation. The emergency number is 112.

Laws that catch visitors out

Zanzibar is conservative, with a high share of Muslims. The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says the authorities can fine visitors 700 US dollars or more for clothing they judge inappropriate in public, mainly away from the resorts and particularly in Stone Town. Same-sex activity is illegal. Tanzania bans plastic bags, and they are taken from you if you arrive by air.

Politics needs more care since the October 2025 election. Security forces killed protesters on the mainland, earlier Zanzibar elections turned violent, and the FCDO warns of more demonstrations and of anti-foreigner rhetoric. Photographing protests is illegal and police may ask to check your phone. See our Tanzania page for the safari and mainland picture.

How we scored it

Violent crime (70) is Zanzibar's strongest factor: the homicide rateHomicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary is low, but armed robbery at hotels and beaches and sexual assaults at resorts keep it out of the top band. Health (50) and traffic (52) are the weakest, because of malaria, limited hospitals and badly kept minibuses and motorbike taxis. Night safety (65) follows our method outside Europe: the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary's advice against walking alone at night sets the band and Gallup's 68% for Tanzania sets the place in it.