Zanzibar is the Indian Ocean beach that pairs with a mainland safari: white sand, a turquoise lagoon inside the reef, dhows under sail and the alleys of Stone Town an hour from almost any resort. Fifteen all-inclusive resorts are open on the island, and the choice comes down to one thing other islands never make you think about: the tide. The north tip around Nungwi and Kendwa keeps deep water at the beach all day, while the long east coast drains to a sand flat at low tide and fills again a few hours later.
- Open resorts
- 15 (13 five-star, 2 four-star)
- none adults-only
- Meal plan
- 8 sell all-inclusive as standard
- 7 sell it as an optional add-on
- Highest Palmprint
- The Mora Zanzibar and Tulia Zanzibar, both 9.1
- From price
- $92 to $560/night per person (median $195), two adults sharing
- Airport
- Abeid Amani Karume (ZNZ)
- listed transfers run 40 to 97 minutes
Quick facts
Counts and the price span use every resort on this guide. The table is the top of that list by Palmprint overall. A missing price or feature reads Not listed.
- Qualifying resorts
- 15
- In this table
- Top 10 of 15
- Adults only
- 0
- All ages
- 15
- From price
- $93 to $561/night pp
| Rank | Resort | Area | Audience | Score | From | Key feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Mora Zanzibar | Matemwe, Tanzania | All ages | 9.1 | From $157/night pp | 4 pools |
| 2 | Tulia Zanzibar Unique Beach Resort | Pongwe, Tanzania | All ages | 9.1 | From $430/night pp | Not listed |
| 3 | Meliá Zanzibar | Kiwengwa, Tanzania | All ages | 8.9 | From $217/night pp | 5 bars |
| 4 | Baraza Resort & Spa | Dongwe, Tanzania | All ages | 8.9 | From $561/night pp | 2 pools, 2 bars |
| 5 | Hotel Riu Palace Zanzibar | Nungwi, Tanzania | All ages | 8.8 | From $137/night pp | Swim-up suite, Swim-up bar, 3 pools |
| 6 | The Residence Zanzibar | Kizimkazi, Tanzania | All ages | 8.8 | From $179/night pp | 1 pool, 2 bars |
| 7 | TUI BLUE Bahari Zanzibar | Pwani Mchangani, Tanzania | All ages | 8.7 | From $101/night pp | 3 pools, 3 bars |
| 8 | Gold Zanzibar Beach House & Spa | Kendwa, Tanzania | All ages | 8.7 | From $228/night pp | 1 pool |
| 9 | Bluebay Beach Resort & Spa | Kiwengwa, Tanzania | All ages | 8.7 | From $195/night pp | 2 pools, 2 bars |
| 10 | Dream of Zanzibar Resort & Spa | Uroa, Tanzania | All ages | 8.6 | From $141/night pp | 1 pool, 1 bar |
Where Zanzibar splits
The resort areas are not interchangeable. What each one is actually for.
The east coast
The long white-sand side facing the Indian Ocean: a shallow lagoon inside the reef, seaweed farmers working it at low water, and the biggest choice of resorts. Pick it for the postcard beach, Mnemba snorkelling off Matemwe and kitesurfing. The tide goes out a long way, so the swimming window moves with the moon.
Start with The Palms Zanzibar, five-star.
North Zanzibar: Nungwi & Kendwa
The island's top corner, and the one place where the tide barely interrupts the swimming: deep water at the beach all day, sunset bars and boats out to the reef. Pick it for reliable swimming and the liveliest scene on Zanzibar. It is the busiest and most developed end of the island, and the furthest drive from the airport.
Start with Gold Zanzibar Beach House & Spa, five-star.
The south & west
The quieter end: dolphin boats out of Kizimkazi, kite beaches at Paje and Jambiani, and the west-coast bays within reach of Stone Town. Pick it for lower prices and far fewer hotels. The same big tides apply on the east-facing beaches.
Start with The Residence Zanzibar, five-star.
Where the Zanzibar resorts are
15 resorts mapped stars are five-star properties
When to visit Zanzibar
Climate normals for Zanzibar (ZNZ), and our verdict on each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average daily high | 89°F32°C | 90°F32°C | 90°F32°C | 87°F31°C | 84°F29°C | 84°F29°C | 83°F28°C | 83°F28°C | 84°F29°C | 86°F30°C | 88°F31°C | 89°F32°C |
| Rainfall | 3″ | 2.4″ | 5.9″ | 15.3″ | 7.8″ | 1.9″ | 1.1″ | 1.4″ | 2″ | 3.5″ | 8″ | 5.5″ |
| Verdict | Good | Prime | Shoulder | Off-peak | Off-peak | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Off-peak | Prime |
June to October is the long dry season, with sunshine, cooler evenings and the clearest water for Mnemba. December to February is the second dry window and the hottest. The long rains run from mid-March through May, and April is the wettest month by far. The short rains in November are lighter. Zanzibar sits too close to the equator for cyclones and has no sargassum season.
Sweet spot. June to October and December to February; rainy season runs Long rains mid-March to May (April is the wettest month), short rains in November.
Storm risk. Too close to the equator for cyclones.
Figures are long-term climate normals for Zanzibar (ZNZ), good for planning. They are not a forecast.
North coast or east coast: the tide decides
Nungwi and Kendwa face north-west, so the water stays deep enough to swim from the beach at any hour. That is why the north holds the busiest resorts, the sunset bars and the dhow cruises, and why the Hotel Riu Palace Zanzibar, Royal Zanzibar Beach Resort and Gold Zanzibar Beach House & Spa all sit there. The trade-off is the drive: listed transfers to Kendwa run up to 97 minutes.
The east coast, from Matemwe and Kiwengwa down to Pongwe, Uroa, Marumbi and Dongwe, is the long lagoon of the postcards. At low tide the sea retreats hundreds of metres and you walk out across sand and seagrass; at high tide it is a calm turquoise pool. Plan on the pool for the hours in between. If swimming in the sea at any time of day matters, book the north; if the view and the quiet matter more, book the east.
All-inclusive as standard, or as an add-on
Eight of the fifteen open resorts sell all-inclusive as the standard product: The Palms, The Mora, Tulia, Baraza, Meliá Zanzibar, Hotel Riu Palace Zanzibar, Dream of Zanzibar and Reef & Beach. The other seven (The Residence, Bluebay, Gold Zanzibar, TUI BLUE Bahari, Royal Zanzibar, Sea Cliff and Zanzibar Bay) sell rooms on lower board plans and offer all-inclusive as a paid upgrade, so check which plan a quote is for before comparing prices.
Prices are listed per person per night for two adults sharing. Reef & Beach in Jambiani starts lowest at $92; Baraza in Dongwe is the most expensive at $560. The Palms prints its From rate, $458, but its Palmprint is withheld until it has enough guest reviews to score fairly.
Families and couples
Fourteen of the fifteen welcome children with organised activities, and nine run a kids club. None is adults-only, so couples choose on setting instead: Tulia, Meliá Zanzibar, Baraza and The Residence carry the highest romance scores, and seven resorts offer rooms or villas with a private pool. Two resorts have swim-up suites (Hotel Riu Palace Zanzibar and Reef & Beach) and three have a swim-up bar.
Beyond the resort
Stone Town's UNESCO alleys and the Forodhani night market, a spice farm tour, Jozani Forest for red colobus monkeys, the sandbank at Nakupenda, Prison Island's giant tortoises and snorkelling at Mnemba Atoll are the classic days out. Dolphin trips leave from Kizimkazi in the south. Most travellers add a mainland safari in the Serengeti or Ngorongoro before the beach week.
The best all-inclusive resorts in Zanzibar
The Zanzibar properties we would actually book. For the full numbered ranking, see the best all-inclusive resorts in Zanzibar.
Where to stay in Zanzibar
The resort areas we cover, and which properties sit in each.
The east coast
9North Zanzibar: Nungwi & Kendwa
3The south & west
3Resort chains in Zanzibar
The brands operating here. The ones we rank in full link through to the chain, what its plan really covers, and every resort of theirs we track.
Where these companies came from
Almost nobody in this category publishes it. Read oldest first and the list is a short history of how Zanzibar came to look the way it does.
Zanzibar, head to head
Price, flights, sand, food and safety, compared honestly.
Zanzibar vs JamaicaMexicoDominican RepublicMaldivesGreeceSpainTurks & CaicosArubaBarbadosSt. LuciaItalyPortugalTurkeyAntiguaCuraçaoBrazilCosta RicaPhilippinesFrench PolynesiaMoroccoEgyptSouth AfricaMauritiusKenyaMozambiqueThailandIndonesiaMalaysiaPunta CanaCancúnRiviera MayaLos CabosPuerto VallartaMontego BayNegrilOcho RiosGuanacasteCreteBahiaBora BoraMalé AtollsRodney BayBarbados South CoastBarbados West CoastViti LevuVanua LevuCanary IslandsBalearic IslandsCosta del SolSharm el-SheikhHurghada & the Red Sea CoastBelekRhodesLara & AntalyaMaldives Outer AtollsCorfuHalkidikiKosSoufrière & South St. LuciaGrenadaFijiCroatiaU.S. Virgin IslandsSri LankaSeychellesBahamasChileArgentinaUnited States
Frequently asked questions
How many all-inclusive resorts are there in Zanzibar?
Fifteen are open as of October 2026: thirteen five-star and two four-star. Eight sell all-inclusive as standard and seven offer it as an optional upgrade, so confirm the plan on any quote.
Which is the best all-inclusive resort in Zanzibar?
The Mora Zanzibar in Matemwe and Tulia Zanzibar Unique Beach Resort in Pongwe share the highest Palmprint at 9.1. The Mora is the family pick with a kids club and four pools; Tulia is the smaller, couples-leaning choice with private-pool villas.
Is Nungwi or the east coast better?
Nungwi and Kendwa in the north keep swimmable water at the beach all day, with sunset views and more bars. The east coast has the long lagoon and quieter resorts, but the sea retreats a long way at low tide, so swimming depends on the tide table.
How much does a Zanzibar all-inclusive cost?
Listed From rates run $92 to $560 per person per night for two adults sharing, with a median of $195. Reef & Beach is the lowest and Baraza Resort & Spa the highest.
Are there adults-only all-inclusive resorts in Zanzibar?
None of the fifteen open resorts is adults-only. Couples usually choose Tulia, Baraza or The Residence for their villas, private pools and quieter beaches.