South Africa vs Zanzibar

Thatched-roof pavilion with blue curtains surrounded by palm trees, flowering plants, and a small pool at The Palms Zanzibar.

South Africa and Zanzibar, side by side: live travel advisories, our resort catalog's real guest data, and each destination's honest weather picture. Everything you need to break the tie.

By the numbers

South Africa compared with Zanzibar
South Africa	Measure	Zanzibar
Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution	U.S. travel advisory	Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution
0	Resorts in our catalog	15 (better)
–	Average guest rating	★ 4.6
–	Nightly rates	$93–$723/night pp
0 of 0	Adults-only resorts	0 of 15
No hurricane season	Hurricane exposure	No hurricane season
November–March (southern-hemisphere summer thunderstorms)	Rainy season	Long rains mid-March to May (April is the wettest month), short rains in November
April–September for dry, mild weather; also prime safari season inland	Sweet spot	June to October and December to February

Advisory levels sync from travel.state.gov; catalog figures reflect the resorts we've researched, not every hotel in the country. A marked row is one we are willing to call; rows without a mark are a matter of taste, or we have no comparable figure for both sides.

On the map

No mapped resorts yet

South Africa

Zanzibar

Weather, month by month

Month-by-month average high temperature and rainfall for South Africa and Zanzibar
Measure	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
South Africa · high °F	82	83	82	79	77	74	73	74	75	77	79	81
Zanzibar · high °F	89	90	90	87	84	84	83	83	84	86	88	89
South Africa · rain (in)	5.3	4.8	4.8	2.9	2.2	1.1	1.5	1.9	2.9	4.3	4.8	4.0
Zanzibar · rain (in)	3.0	2.4	5.9	15.3	7.8	1.9	1.1	1.4	2.0	3.5	8.0	5.5

Approximate climate normals for KwaZulu-Natal coast (Durban) and Zanzibar (ZNZ): planning guidance, not a forecast. A deeper tint is a higher number, read within its own row.