Scuba Diving in Zanzibar and Pemba, Tanzania

[stuntchica]

Hi there! My boyfriend and I are traveling to Tanzania in June and are trying to figure out what the best dives spots are for us. We are recently certified open water padi divers. We are comfortable in the water, but still very new, so we want to see cool stuff, but not be reckless. We are going to be staying in Zanzibar for a few days and are trying to decide what the best dives spots are in Mnemba,Zanzibar and Misali Island off Pemba. Has any dived here and have any intel for us? We are also researching good dive shops, "Scubafish" seemed to have very good reviews. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[ocdiver1]

I dove Zanzibar last year, and can recommend Spanish Dancer Divers in Nungwi. You may find any dive op on Pemba is closed in June for the "rainy season", as I was in Zanzibar in May of last year and had wanted to go to Pemba, but found that was the case.

 

[Dive_Gypsy]

Come and check out the East Coast of Zanzibar for pristine corals and an incredible diversity of marine life. Rising Sun Dive Center is East Africa's only PADI TecRec center with an award-winning staff of instructors from North America and Europe: Rising Sun
We saw whitetips and hawksbills yesterday! Please see our reviews on tripadvisor.com!

 

[Christian]

Hi there! My boyfriend and I are traveling to Tanzania in June and are trying to figure out what the best dives spots are for us. We are recently certified open water padi divers. We are comfortable in the water, but still very new, so we want to see cool stuff, but not be reckless. We are going to be staying in Zanzibar for a few days and are trying to decide what the best dives spots are in Mnemba,Zanzibar and Misali Island off Pemba. Has any dived here and have any intel for us? We are also researching good dive shops, "Scubafish" seemed to have very good reviews. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Pemba has mostly fairly advanced diving with fierce currents, at least the better spots. So not really suitable for beginners.

I've never been in June, but it's considered 'off season' with more rain and different wind and current patterns. I've been in November and that's the start of the 'blue' season. We had mostly clear skies, calm wind and blue water then, but had a morning or afternoon of bad weather and green water (it was in 2006) and I was told by the staff it was the tail of the off-season weather--hear-say.

 

[Wingy]

How about april or may? Im starting to think Zanzibar may be easier as a single female traveller than Mozambique.

 

[Christian]

How about april or may? Im starting to think Zanzibar may be easier as a single female traveller than Mozambique.

April is the end of "good weather"
I think November-April is rated as the best season for diving in the region. With that said, I bet you can have good diving conditions outside of that time frame, but it's just less probable.
I have been to both Tanzania and Mozambique and the latter is less organized. But I don't think that one or the other would be easier just because you're a female travelling on your own, it has more to do what you're looking for. Zanzibar is much more adapted to tourism than any place in Mozambique.

good luck

 

[Dive_Gypsy]

I am currently in Zanzibar on the East Coast. We have been diving almost every day this month. Rolling swells but nothing too strenuous. The concern is getting the boat in and out through the pass which is the captain's call. There are a lot of resorts and B & B's that are single traveler friendly and very secure. Happy to answer any questions.

 

[ocdiver1]

How about april or may? Im starting to think Zanzibar may be easier as a single female traveller than Mozambique.

Zanzibar is definitely easier to get to/organize, but Mozambique has the superior diving.

I was in Zanzibar in May of last year and, although that was considered the rainy season, we had good conditions and very little rain.

 

[stuntchica]

Have any of you dived off Mafia Island? I am looking around and the padi dive shops that pop up only show boats going off Zanzibar or Pemba, unclear on the best way to get to Mafia Island. What temperature is the water out there right now? You guys wearing a 2mm wetsuit?

 

[Dive_Gypsy]

I believe there is one shore based operator on Mafia. If diving Mafia, you would probably want to dive during whale shark season. I can put you in touch with an instructor there by the name of Tom Slough. You can also look at:
Mafia Island diving - Tanzania | ABOUT: Introduction
Cheers!