Yoga & Service Safari: Midrange Zanzibar Extension | 4 Days
Northwestern Ugunja: Matemwe | Mnemba Atoll | Muyuni Beach
This extension features an idyllic beach retreat in the northwestern part of Zanzibar’s main island, known locally as Ugunja. Activities include plenty of time for beachside yoga and self-care at the lodge spa, snorkeling and diving, a village cultural tour, a service visit to a community-based women’s co-op; and a traditional dhow safari with tropical lunch on the beach.
Itinerary
Destination: Zanzibar (Ugunja Isand), Matemwe
Accommodations: Sunshine Marine Lodge
Activities: Transfer to Zanzibar; Yoga and Relaxation
Transit Times: Flight to Zanzibar, 2hrs; Drive to Sunshine Marine Lodge, 1hr
After breakfast, you will be driven to Arusha Airport to board your flight to the magical island of Zanzibar, which lies just off the coast of Tanzania, for a sublime conclusion to your East African holiday. Arrive at Sunshine Marine Lodge in beautiful Matemwe in the northwest of Ugunja in time to enjoy the designated yoga space. Situated on a beautiful cliff in a unique and remote location, it won’t be hard to visualize tranquil turquoise waters during your practice! The lodge offers free yoga classes three times a week, but guests are welcome to use the space and mats at their convenience–a perfect spot for group or individual practice. After yoga, it is time for dinner, featuring a modern approach to classic Zanzibar Swahili cuisine, including delightful vegetarian and vegan options, at the ocean-view restaurant. The kitchen uses an abundance of aromatic Zanzibar’s spices like cloves, ginger, cumin, cardamom, and cinnamon to enrich fruit and vegetables straight from the village! Sleep well to the sound of waves lapping the cliffs outside your door.
Destination: Matemwe
Accommodations: Sunshine Marine Lodge
Activities: Yoga; Village biking tour and optional service visit tp Dada Africa; Swimming; Snorkelling; Diving (optional); Spa treatment (optional); More yoga
Transit Times: Short walks or bike rides to and from the lodge
Today is left open for lots of yoga practice throughout the day. Sunshine Marine Lodge’s Mind & Body Harmony Center is a dedicated open-air yoga studio where you can practice yoga as a group or individually, in addition to practicing yoga at other beautiful locations around the beach lodge. In addition to yoga, you can structure your day with additional activities, departing on foot or bike right from the lodge. You can snorkel or organize a diving trip to the nearby Mnemba Atoll, a world-renown diving site. The lodge has its own world-class PADI diving center. You can also go by bike or on foot on a guided cultural tour through a local village just near the lodge. During the walk or bike ride, you will meet local families, visit the school, learn about local crafts and cooking and taste a chapati, the local bread. You can also visit the Dada Africa women’s co-op and learn about their island permaculture projects and purchase their handmade beauty products. In between activities, savor sumptuous vegan and vegetarian meals featuring local produce at the lodge restaurant. Enjoy some phenomenal star-gazing and rest well with the sound of waves gently crashing on the beach.
DAY 12 | DHOW SAFARI CRUISE
Destination: Mnemba Atoll; Muyuni Beach
Accommodations: Sunshine Marine Lodge
Activities: Snorkeling; Yoga; Muyuni Beach lunch; Sailing
Transit Times: Walk to and from the dhow; leisurely sailing throughout the day
Today features an exciting adventure on the sea! After breakfast, board a traditional dhow and depart from Kendwa to the stunning Mnemba Atoll, perhaps seeing some active dolphins on the way. You will stop at Mnemba Kitchwani Reef for your first snorkeling stop. This amazing reef with steep slopes offers some great underwater topography and a chance to see amazing corals and many colorful fish. Your guide will lead you on a snorkeling session, pointing out all of the camouflaged sea creatures and give you tricks for spotting what most people’s eyes miss. You will then sail 20 minutes from Kitchwani Reef to the Mnemba Coral Gardens. Here you will snorkel for 45 minutes to 1 hour. These coral gardens are home to many species of aquarium fish and stunning soft and hard corals. After your second snorkeling trip you are heading from Mnemba Atoll to the opposite side, an area called Muyuni Beach. While your captain and crew prepare a tropical beach feast, enjoy yoga practice on the soft, white sands surrounded by turquoise and green. After yoga, enjoy your beach picnic. You will have ample time after your lunch to relax on this beautiful secluded beach before your trip continues with a sail back to Kendwa. Arrive in the late afternoon and relax however you wish before enjoying one last dinner on the sand and restful slumber in your beach cabin.
Destination: Dar es Salaam; International Departure
Activities: Morning free time; International departure home
Transit Times: Drive to ZNZ, 1 hr; Flight to DAR, 30 mins
After breakfast and, perhaps, another swim or spa service, check out of the lodge by lunch and head to the airport to fly from Zanzibar to Dar es Salaam, where you will board your international flight home. Kwaheri!
Beach Holiday Includes:
- Flight to ZNZ; Pick up/drop off at airport
- All-Inclusive Accommodation at Sunshine Marine Lodge
- All-inclusive alcoholic beverages and sodas
- Government Taxation
- All cultural excursions mentioned in the itinerary
- Plentiful drinking water (mineral water)
- Flying Doctor services in Tanzania
- Service charges
- Adumu Impact Fund
Beach Holiday Excludes:
- International airfare & flights
- Passport & visa fees
- Personal health insurance
- Travel insurance (highly recommended and offered upon making your deposit)
- Laundry services, unless provided by the lodges
- Additional alcoholic beverages & sodas, except as stated as included above
- Laundry services, unless offered by the lodges
- Optional massages and spa services
- All items of personal nature
- Gratuities to local guides and resort staff
- Adumu Impact Fund
Please note: Adumu Safaris makes every effort to customize your safari itinerary in order to cover areas where wildlife habitats are known to be plentiful during the season and precise time of year that you are traveling. However, since wild animals move freely in their environment, we cannot absolutely guarantee sightings of every species. We also use our best effort to provide the lodging set out in this itinerary, but occasionally there are circumstances that occur which require lodging substitutions. We reserve the right to make comparable lodging substitutions or upgrades whenever necessary or in your best interest to do so. Fortunately, we have vetted all of our lodges and stand by their ability to provide an amazing accommodation experience.
Cost:
USD per person (based on 5 travelers, including travel agent or Yoga instructor) | |||||
High Season | Low Season | ||||
Single | Double | Triple | Single | Double | Triple |
$1,631 | $1,360 | $1,274 | $1,631 | $1,414 | $1,274 |
To reserve this trip we require $500 per person. The remainder is due 59 days before departure. All major credit cards and PayPal are accepted. We will send a secure payment link when you are ready to confirm this trip. NB: During the global pandemic, our deposit policy and payment schedule are extra flexible. We can discuss flexible terms prior to booking.
Please inquire for yoga instructor and travel agent pricing.
Please note that we offer these variations to demonstrate some of the ways that we can modify an itinerary to suit your preferences (destinations, activities, level of luxury, type of accommodations, length of stay, budget, etc.). If none of these options looks best for your group, we are more than happy to gather more information from you and customize the perfect trip. You can call us at +1 530 574 9519 or email us at to discuss this itinerary or others on our website.
Karibu Africa!
The Adumu Safaris Team