Tanzania · STONE TOWN TOURS

The 15 Best Stone Town Tours

62 tours  ·  from $20 a head

Stone Town is walkable, confusing and much better with somebody who knows which door leads where. These 15 cover the guided walks, the market and street-food routes and the combined days that carry on to a spice farm, with prices and how long each really takes.

Zanzibar: Stone Town, Spice Tour, Prison Island with Lunch - Stone Town: coral-stone lanes and a difficult past
Lunch Experiences, Prison Island Tours, Spice Farm Tours, Stone Town Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours, Tours in Zanzibar

Zanzibar: Stone Town, Spice Tour, Prison Island with Lunch

1.Stone Town, Spice Tour, Prison Island with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 1,219 reviews · 6 - 9 hours · from $68Our pick

You’ll walk Stone Town with a local guide, taste spices and tropical fruit at Jambo Spice Farm, enjoy a Swahili lunch, then boat to Prison Island to see giant Aldabra tortoises. Guides such as Hasan, Ibrahim, and Ussman are praised for clear storytelling. The day is busy, sunny, and best for active visitors.

“The spice tour was the best. You enjoy to see and hear about many details related to Zanzibar spices and nature. The Prison island and Stone town tours are ok, but not something fantastic. Lunch was simple but pretty god. All staff were welcoming and taking good care we enjoy the day. Our guide, Abdullah, shared many interesting details always checking if we are having good time or need anything. I would recommend this tour as a nice day in Zanzibar to learn many interesting facts about local culture.”

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Zanzibar: Prison Island, Stone Town, & Spice Farm Tour - The morning pickup and road to the coast
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Zanzibar: Prison Island, Stone Town, & Spice Farm Tour

2.Prison Island, Stone Town, & Spice Farm Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 579 reviews · 8 hours · from $70

Spend about eight hours exploring Zanzibar with hotel pickup, an English-speaking guide, boat transport, Stone Town walks, Prison Island’s giant tortoises, and a spice farm visit with lunch. Guides such as Abdul and Isaac are praised for clear explanations, while the main caution is a late lunch and long hours in the sun.

“Der Guide Samiri was a very nice guy. All in all it was worth it.”

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Zanzibar: Stone Town, Spice Tour, Prison Island with Lunch - Stone Town: coral-stone lanes and a difficult past
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Zanzibar: Stone Town, Spice tour & Prison Island with Lunch

3.Stone Town, Spice tour & Prison Island with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 453 reviews · 5 - 8 hours · from $55

Spend a full day moving from Zanzibar’s fragrant spice farms to historic Stone Town and Prison Island. You’ll taste Swahili food, meet giant tortoises, ride a boat, and learn from guides such as Fahad, Ali, Mazi, Haji, and Hasan. The $55 price includes transport, lunch, soft drinks, and most listed entrance costs, but check your exact option before booking.

“The trip included a visit to the Spice Farm, a tour around Stone Town, and Prison Island. It was absolutely beautiful and extremely enjoyable. Our tour guide, Fahad, made the experience fun, engaging, and full of interesting information. I highly recommend this tour everything was easy, well organized, and enjoyable.”

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Stone town Private walking tour - The old slave market and Anglican Cathedral
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Stone Town Private Walking Tour

4.Stone Town Private Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 371 reviews · from $26Top rated

Spend about two hours walking Stone Town with a private guide such as Mohammed, Imran, or Ally. See the Old Fort, former slave market, markets, cathedrals, museums, Hamamni Baths, and Freddie Mercury’s former home while getting practical advice on food, tuk-tuks, shopping, and navigating the maze. Pickup is available from Stone Town hotels by request.

“Mohammed O. was a fantastic guide! Easily the best tour guide we had on Zanzibar! He was extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and professional. The walking tour was a perfect mix of history, culture, and sightseeing. Mohammed made sure to go to all of the important Read more”

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Zanzibar: 3 Hours Private Stone Town walking Tour with Guide - Starting in Stone Town and finding your bearings
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Zanzibar: 3 Hours Private Stone Town walking Tour with Guide

5.3 Hours Private Stone Town walking Tour with Guide

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 301 reviews · 3 hours · from $24

Walk Stone Town with a private guide such as Khameez, Mau, or Kassim, visiting the former slave market, Darajani Market, Sultan Palace, Old Fort, Forodhani Garden, and Freddie Mercury’s birthplace. Expect history, markets, narrow lanes, ornate doors, and time for photos and shopping. Entry fees are extra.

“I really enjoyed this tour with Maulid. He was very knowledgeable about stone town and it’s history. I would definitely recommend.”

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Full-Day Private Stone Town Spice Farm and Prison Island Tour - Stone Town, from old streets to present-day life
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Full-Day Private Stone Town +Spice Farm and Prison Island Tour

6.Full-Day Private Stone Town +Spice Farm and Prison Island Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 216 reviews · from $100

Spend about eight hours with a private guide exploring Stone Town, Prison Island, and Jambo Spice Farm. Expect hotel pickup, air-conditioned transport, a boat ride with snorkeling gear, giant tortoises, tropical fruit, and spices such as cloves, vanilla, cinnamon, and cardamom. Guides including Amina, Amira, Ibrahim, and Ali have earned strong praise, though service can vary.

“Amina [sp] was our guide and she was excellent. Very knowledgeable, very personable, and great company for the day. It was a full on day and definitely worthwhile.”

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Zanzibar: Stone Town Historical Cultural Walking Guided Tour - Starting the day with pickup and a flexible route
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Zanzibar: Stone Town Historical Cultural Walking Guided Tour

7.Stone Town Historical Cultural Walking Guided Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 179 reviews · 2 - 5 hours · from $21

Walk Stone Town’s narrow lanes with guides such as Ali, Diamond, Abdalla, or Haidara, learning about Zanzibar’s Arab, African, Indian, and European past. The tour covers the Old Fort, former slave market, Freddie Mercury Museum, and Darajani Market, with hotel pickup available and flexible morning or afternoon departures.

“The visit was very nice and the guide gave me lots of details and was able to answer all my questions. Highly recommend !”

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Zanzibar Stone Town Walking Tour - House of Wonders and the name behind it
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Zanzibar Stone Town Walking Tour

8.Zanzibar Stone Town Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 145 reviews · from $25

Walk Stone Town with Kassim, a private local guide who explains Zanzibar’s history, slave trade, culture, and daily life. In two to three hours, you’ll visit the House of Wonders, Old Fort, and Freddie Mercury Museum, with time for back streets and markets. The tour runs at several departure times and ends where it begins.

“Kassim was extremely nice and good at explaining Zanzibar’s history and situating it within world history!”

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Stone Town Historical Walking Tour - The Old Fort and the end of Portuguese rule
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Stone Town Historical Walking Tour

9.Stone Town Historical Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 143 reviews · from $20Best value

Walk Stone Town with a private certified guide such as Alfa, Khalfan, Sultan, or Rabik. Expect about three hours of stories, carved doors, markets, churches, the Old Fort, House of Wonders, Freddie Mercury’s former home, and the former slave market. The tour is flexible and suits first-time visitors and families.

“Our guide was very knowledgeable and was able to teach us so much about the Old Stone Town! We would highly recommend him!!”

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Spice Tour + Stone Town Tour + Prison Island - Stone Town begins at the Old Fort
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Spice Tour + Stone Town Tour + Prison Island

10.Spice Tour + Stone Town Tour + Prison Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 130 reviews · from $140

Spend 7 to 8 hours seeing Zanzibar’s major sights with a private guide. Walk Stone Town, learn about the slave trade, visit Jambo Spice Farm for fruit and a spiced lunch, then boat to Prison Island to see giant Aldabra tortoises. Guides such as Mady, Abkar, and Masoud are praised for patient, engaging explanations.

“Mady was an amazing tour guide! We had such a great time at all the activities. We got to taste the spices and fruits, had an amazing time exploring stone Town, learned so many facts about the slice trade and got to feed the tortoises in prison Read more”

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Zanzibar: Spice Tour & Stone Town Walking Tour - At the spice plantation, use all five senses
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Zanzibar: Spice Tour & Stone Town Walking Tour

11.Spice Tour & Stone Town Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 115 reviews · 5 hours · from $95

Spend five hours exploring Zanzibar’s spice-growing traditions and Stone Town with a private guide. Touch and taste cinnamon, cloves, ginger, vanilla, and tropical fruit, watch a coconut climber sing *Hakuna Matata*, then visit the former slave market, Darajani Market, Freddy Mercury’s house, the House of Wonders, and the Old Fort.

“The Spice tour was interesting. We could have done without the fruit eating session as it gave us both queasy tummies. I didn’t like the fact they don’t display prices when selling their spices. I didn’t buy any for that very reason. The Stone Town tour was also good but my friend is hard of walking so we had to go slowly. She also wanted to buy African masks so we were limited for time. My only complaint is that I would have liked the guide to give us options of what we could see. We missed the Slave Trade area which is a shame. But the guide was very…”

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Stone Town: Stone Town and Prison Island Private Day Trip - Museums, forts, and the difficult story of slavery
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Stone Town: Stone Town and Prison Island Private Day Trip

12.Stone Town and Prison Island Private Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 104 reviews · 6 hours · from $90

Spend six hours with a guide such as Hamdu, Haji, or Hassan exploring Stone Town’s markets, monuments, slave museum, and Freddie Mercury’s former home before taking a boat to Prison Island. Expect a small group of up to 12, hotel pickup in Stone Town, time with giant tortoises, and a chance to swim.

“Could not have been better. Our guide (Haji?) was excellent, informative and gave us time to look at the different surroundings. Would recommend booking this excursion, had the best day!”

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Zanzibar: Stone Town Guided Tour with Prison Island - Prison Island’s old buildings and giant tortoises
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Zanzibar: Stone Town Guided Tour with Prison Island

13.Stone Town Guided Tour with Prison Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 103 reviews · 6 hours · from $90

Spend six hours with a guide such as Abu, Musa, or Abubakr, combining a Stone Town walking tour with a 30-minute speedboat ride to Prison Island. Expect coral-stone lanes, the former slave market, Old Fort, local markets, giant tortoises, peacocks, and time for snorkeling. Hotel pickup, entry fees, boats, and equipment are included.

“The tour went very well, the guide was very friendly and engaging.”

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Zanzibar: Stone Town & Spice Farm Tour with Lunch - Starting with Stone Town’s difficult history
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Zanzibar: Stone Town & Spice Farm Tour with Lunch

14.Stone Town & Spice Farm Tour with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 97 reviews · 5 hours · from $73

Spend five hours exploring Stone Town and a working organic spice farm. See the Old Slave Market, City Market, fish auction, Palace Museum, Old Fort, and Freddie Mercury’s House, then smell and taste spices, try fresh coconut, help with local cooking, and eat lunch on the farm. Guides may include Ahmed, Juma, or Beka.

“We had an excellent spice farm and stone town tour. Especially spice farm tour was much better than we expected thanks to our guide. He let us smell different seeds and explained how different spices are grown. Food was also surprisingly good. During Stone town tour we learned a lot of Zanzibar history and saw most important parts of town.”

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Stone Town's Hidden History: Private Guided Walking Tour - Meeting at the Old Fort and Forodhani Gardens
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Stone Town’s Hidden History: Private Guided Walking Tour

15.Stone Town’s Hidden History: Private Guided Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 94 reviews · 2 - 4 hours · from $30

Walk Stone Town with a private guide such as Abdalla, Amina, Cosmo, or Issa, learning how African, Arab, Indian, Persian, and European influences shaped Zanzibar. See the Old Fort, former slave market, markets, baths, churches, Zanzibar doors, and Freddie Mercury sites. Morning visits beat the heat, while a 4:30 pm start adds sunset and the night market.

“A truly amazing experience of stone town, our guide (Abdalla) was amazing and so knowledge. Loved every second and well worth doing.”

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New in Stone Town Tours

★ 4.0Sunset Dhow Cruise ExperienceFrom $3922 reviews
★ 4.3Prison Island, Nakupenda, Stone Town Trip with BBQFrom $4125 reviews
★ 5.0Stone Town Historical and Cultural Walk with Ally JapeFrom $6023 reviews
★ 4.5Full-day Prison Island, Nakupenda and Stone Town Tour with Lunch BuffetFrom $13626 reviews
★ 4.5Full-Day Private Stone Town Spice Farm and Prison Island TourFrom $10024 reviews
★ 5.0Zanzibar Stone Town Historical Tour and Spice Farm TourFrom $5030 reviews
★ 5.0Stone town historical tour + Spice farm tourFrom $5529 reviews
★ 4.5Stone Town Evening Walk Tour With Visit Food MarketsFrom $4028 reviews
★ 5.0Stone Town Tour + Prison Island Tour in Zanzibar with Pick UpFrom $13030 reviews
★ 5.0Unique private Stone Town tour & Prison Island tour in ZanzibarFrom $6028 reviews
★ 3.7Stone Town City Tour and Spice Farm with LunchFrom $3233 reviews
★ 5.0Stone Town Private Walking TourFrom $3035 reviews
★ 5.0Private Walking Tour Of Stone TownFrom $2938 reviews
★ 5.0Explore The Stone Town in ZanzibarFrom $4036 reviews
★ 5.0Full Day Holiday Package (Prison Island-Stone Town-Spice farm)From $14033 reviews

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Spice Farm Tours30Prison Island Tours40Jozani Forest Tours18Walking Tours33Historical Tours17Market & Street Food Tours6
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