Review: Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Resort, Seychelles

Posted on March 11, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Hotels + Le Meridien + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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For our stay to kick off our stay in the Seychelles, we started off our visit at Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove in Bel Ombre near the Beau Vallon Beachon Mahé, Seychelles. We experienced a pleasant stay with great service in a fantastic location right on the Beau Vallon beach.

This post is one chapter on our trip to the Republic of Tanzania and the Islands of the Seychelles. This trip was redeemed through Air Canada’s Aeroplan and enhanced through World of Hyatt and Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status. For more information on how this trip was booked, please see our trip introduction here. For other parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Resort, Bel Ombre, Seychelles

Our visit to the Seychelles would have us split our time across the island of Mahé and the island of Praslin. While there were any number of resorts across the two islands, the area of Beau Vallon with it’s iconic sandy beaches attracted our attention. This led us to the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Resort near Beau Vallon as a matter of convenience.

Booking The Fisherman’s Cove Resort:

We ended up at the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Resort thanks to a great at the time Starwood Cash and Points Rate. We had a very good 3 night stay here at 6,000 Starwood Preferred Guest Starpoints (now 18,000 Marriott Bonvoy points) and $110 USD per night. The regular rate at the time was approximately 280 ($330 USD). The Seychelles isn’t considered a value destination and had I paid a cash rate, I might have been a little less thrilled about the place.

While it was not the greatest value redemption in terms of return on investment, I was happy that we redeemed points as the hotel hard product was a little tired. I don’t know what it is about the Le Meridien properties but I think they are the second most tired brand in the Starwood portfolio behind the Sheraton hotels. There haven’t been many that I have visited that have been in great condition.

Getting to the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove:

We arrived to the Seychelles on Kenya Airways Nairobi – Mahé. Our driver transferred us in a small Hyundai SUV twenty minutes from the airport over to the Beau Vallon area.

The Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove is well located in Bel Ombre on Mahé Island and steps from the edge of specular Beau Vallon Beach.

I was really struck by the prettiness of the Seychelles and like the airport, the countryside left a really good first impression. We passed through the capital city of Victoria which had rich colonial buildings and seemed (from the car) to have a really easy going vibe.

On our way to Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove

We passed along the Beau Vallon beach and arrived to the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove, Beau Vallon. The first impressions when we arrived at the hotel weren’t the greatest. The first sight of the hotel on arrival turning into the main complex was an older style open lobby accented with a large dark black plastic tarp covering holes in the thatched roof of the hotel’s La Capella Restaurant.

Arriving to the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove

A Plastic Tarp Greeted our Arrival to the Property

I was a little worried about the initial appearance of the property when we arrived but we had an overall very nice stay for what we paid. The impressions improved on arriving to a large open aired lobby with a pleasant view of the ocean.

An Open Air Lobby made for a welcome arrival

We got out to the lobby and presented the passports. I knew from checking at SPG.com that the occupancy appeared totally full for the first night of our three night stay. I had also applied Suite Night Awards and they had failed to clear.

I asked at the front counter about SPG Platinum Upgrades and indicated that we would be willing to move mid stay if an upgrade opportunity presented itself. We were asked to take a seat while they processed everything.

I didn’t really feel like sitting down after all that flying so I wandered around the lobby which overlooks the bay. At about the 7 minute mark, the General Manager came over and introduced himself. He indicated that we had been assigned a Deluxe Seaview Room which was a one category upgrade. He also said, without any prompting on my part, that a suite had opened up and would we like to see both before committing to a room? I quickly agreed and thanked him for the options. It was a small touch but one that I greatly appreciated being on a personal vacation stay.

With that, and two sets of keys, our porter took us first to the Suite. The suite was on the ground level right across from the ocean. Although it had a proper seating area consistent with a suite, it wasn’t separate from the bedroom in any way. The room was also set back from the ocean a little bit and somewhat shady. I would describe it as the poor man suite in the inventory pool.

Leaving the suite, we checked out the Seaview Deluxe and actually opted for the original room as assigned. It had a great outdoor space and was tiered on a higher level than the beach, meaning that it had a great view of the water.

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The Room: A Sea View Deluxe

The décor of the Sea View Deluxe room was a bit tired. I would call it past mid span in the room life cycle. The room had white tiled floor that was looking a little shabby.

One of the strangest features of the room was a shower in the middle of the room. It was taking the open concept to a whole other level.

The living area of the room contained a couch near the windows. It wasn’t used that much, but it was the main couch for the room. It was very thin and super uncomfortable. The Seychelles isn’t somewhere where I would come to spend time sitting on the couch but in the event that you enjoy watching television, I would prepare yourself to watch from bed or in short duration periods.

There is also a small desk at the opposite end, in addition to a small minibar. There was also a small tea and coffee station, which we never had the opportunity to use.

The bathroom was located at the land side of the room. It had two vanities and was perfectly acceptable. Like other Le Meridien properties, the toiletries were Malin & Goetz branded.

We also received a welcome letter from the manager. The main benefit of the letter was to alert us to discounts around the property and spa.

A Welcome Letter Courtesy of the Manager

The room’s outdoor deck was really pleasant. With it’s elevated view over the ocean and pool, it really had a pleasant view from the deck.

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Sunset at Fisherman’s Cove:

Since we arrived at 4 PM, we took in an absolutely beautiful sunset on the lanai of our suite. It was simply gorgeous and made me really happy that we stayed on property instead of heading off and exploring right away. Despite the cloudy weather, we had some terrific views.

Food and Beverage:

Le Cardinal Restaurant

The next morning, we had a morning breakfast at the hotel restaurant “Le Cardinal”. The buffet breakfast was included as part of the Starwood Preferred Guest Platinum Breakfast benefit. The set up for breakfast was pretty typical. Being that it was very hot outside, they had portable fans set up around the breakfast area.

A Great Continental Selection of Grains and Jams

Around the Property:

We set up at the pool for the first day. The pool is nicely decorated in a small format area. Despite bering a small format, it was pretty empty for our stay and it was easy to find chairs.

A Compact Deck Space with Pleasant Ocean Views

Views Towards the Paris Seychelles Restaurant

The property offered on site snorkelling from shore. As with other Le Meridien properties, they offered a posted snorkelling trail, complete with underwater mailbox. Unfortunately, the snorkelling off the house reef is nothing to write home about. I did see some angel fish tangs and parrot fish but they were few and far between.

During our visit, the hotel participated in Make a Green Choice and we received our 1,000 points over our three night stay without any issue.

The Bottom Line: Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove

The Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove is an older property that happens to be in a great location on Beau Vallon Beach in the Seychelles. Although probably not the best property on the island, it still offered good value along with receptive service. It’s not likely somewhere that I would return to in a hurry, but I wouldn’t stay away if it was the only choice left. The pro-active service on the part of the manager was a nice welcome touch and despite giant tarps over the entry ways, it was still a mostly nice visit.

If you’ve travelled to The Seychelles, did you go out of your way to make Marriott part of your visit ?

Tags: Hotel Review, Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Platinum

Review: Kenya Airways E190, Nairobi – Mahé

Posted on March 10, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Airline + Business Class + Embraer 190 + Kenya Airways + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report + Turkish Airlines

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Kenya Airways is the flag carrier of Kenya based out of its aviation hub at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya. We were continuing onwards on a connecting flight through this hub from Tanzania to the Seychelles. Our second flight today would be on their Embraer 190 aircraft product; the most common equipment in their regional fleet.

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Review: Kenya Airways E190, Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport – Mahe Seychelles International Airport

The last time we were through Nairobi, Kenya was on South African Airways Business Class Johannesburg – Nairobi and Swiss Airlines Business Class Nairobi – Zurich. At that time, they had just had an electrical fire through the airport and the new terminal was still under construction. Today’s visit had us landing on Kenya Airways Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

Connecting through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport:

There are new modern visionary airports in the world like Singapore’s Changi, Hong Kong International Airport or even Beijing Capital international airport. Others tend to take a more institutional approach. The new Terminal 1A of the Jomo Kenyatta Airport is one of those more institutional varieties. It had great wide new spaces, but was painted in a gold and yellow coloring that looked more at home in a swimming pool of the seventies than a brand new airport designed to be the pride of a country. There also seemed to be quite a few places where the project didn’t look completely finished: fixtures and covers were missing and liquid appeared to be leaking around certain structural steel supports.

After arrival, we entered out into the new Jomo Kennyata International Terminal Nairobi at Gate 15 and found the international transfers desk. Kenya allows international to international transfer without clearing immigration, customs and the necessity of getting a Kenyan Visa. The surroundings seemed a bit more organized than Jules Nyerere in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.

We bid goodbye to the other Canadians and headed for the security screening for international connections. After being screen through, we headed onwards on our Kenya Airways Nairobi – Mahé Seychelles flight.

Wide Spacious Corridors in Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

Exotic Flights on the International Departures Board

Entering onto the departure concourse, MrsWT73 stopped at the new duty free area for an Absolute Lemon while I looked at and debated buying some overpriced $16 USD Tusker Beer fridge magnet bottle openers. We only had a 50 minute connection so we ended up finding our gate right away. We still hadnt eaten breakfast but by the time we had gotten to the gate area, the gate agent indicated they were going to be boarding in the next 5 minutes. We skipped the sit down food service and forwent the take away options since the tummy was feeling a little delicate for both of us.

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On Board Kenya Airways:

We had our identification and boarding cards scanned at the entry to the departure lounge. We sat down for 5 minutes and then boarding was called. Although boarding zones were printed on our boarding passes, it was another free for all for the gate today. Access to the plane was via a bus gate. We were on the first bus to the SkyTeam grey livery Embraer 190 which was parked nearby.

Kenya Airways
KQ250 – Economy Class
NBO – SEZ (Nairobi International Airport – Mahe)
June 5, 2018
11:10 AM – 3:25 PM
Booked: Embraer 190
Flown: Embraer 190

Boarding Kenya Airways Embraer 190 through jet bridge air stairs

We boarded through a ramp stairway to door L1. The Kenya Airways Embraer 190 is set up in a 1 – 2 configuration in business class, and a 2 – 2 configuration in economy class. We found our way to seats 19A and 19C. I gave MrsWT73 the window for this leg since she was feeling a little delicate. I couldn’t get us seated any closer to the front for this flight, despite trying at on line check in and during the reservation process.

Kenya Airways Economy Class Emergency Exit Row Seating Embraer 190

Kenya Airways Embraer 190 Economy Class Seating

Kenya Airways Economy Class Seating and Cabin

We got underway on Runway 6. This took us out over Nairobi in a straight easterly direction. There wasn’t much to see on the outbound other than road traffic headed into the city. The cloud cover today was also quite thick.

Once we were at cruising altitude, the Seychelles Immigration Cards were passed out, along with a Seychelles Health Authority card.

Seychelles Boarding Cards and Health Assessment Forms

A disposable towel serviette service was offered, which was a nice touch for economy class.

The Meal: A Lunch

We got a free meal (in economy no less) that was presented as “Beef, chicken or vegetarian”. I had the chicken, which was chicken in a ginger sauce with a saffron styled rice, a bread roll, and a heavy cake of some sort. I asked for a bottle of wine from the drink cart and was presented with two individual bottles of Stonedale Reitvallei Chardonnay from South Africa, which kept me held over for the duration of the flight. MrsWT73 commented on the flight “I forgot how tight it was back here [in economy]”

Chicken in Ginger Sauce with Saffron Rice

In Flight Entertainment: Advanced Video on Demand

There was Advanced Video on Demand entertainment on this flight. The system featured 5 new release movies, 5 classic movies and 2 television shows. Each of the shows were pre-empted by a series of advertisements for Kenya (tourism), Kenya Airways and the Flying Blue frequent flier program. Unfortunately, the moving map feature wasn’t available, nor was it installed for in flight tracking. I had some difficulty with the system in that it continually crashed. Headphones of the non cancelling variety were also provided.

We had a few bumps out throughout the 2 hr and 40 minute journey towards the Seychelles. There really wasn’t much to look at out the window other than the thought that we were flying through one of the more remote and infrequent air corridors in the world.

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On Final Approach to the Seychelles:

Towards the end of our flight, we started our descent into the islands of the Seychelles. As we did, we got a look at some of the surrounding islands of the Seychelles. It appeared to be very pretty. I was particularly interested at the size of the mountains that were on the island. At one point, I looked across aisle at the passenger side windows and noticed that we were below the mountains in altitude on the final approach.

Approaching the Islands of the Seychelles

Beautiful Island Views on Final Approach to SEZ

We arrived to the Mahé Seychelles International airport. Pulling up on the apron, we parked next to an Ethiopian Boeing 737 and a Qatar Airways wide body. I had always thought that we’d be one day arriving to the Seychelles on Ethiopian since it is the only Star Alliance carrier that flies to the Seychelles. For many years, Star Alliance was the largest points currency that we owned so it was bizarre in my mind to be arriving on some other carrier.

The Mahé International Airport tucked against the Mountains

We offloaded at a non gate position at Seychelles International Airport. There are no gates at all at “SEZ” and we walked into the immigration hall. The hall itself was really clean and left a great first impression.

At immigration, we had a very officious customs entry. We were asked and had to produce a paper copy of our hotel reservation AND our departing air ticket. We were staying in two separate places and I didn’t bother to print off the other one. I think the whole thing was a bit for show since I offered to dig out my laptop for the second hotel and the immigration official told me not to bother. Surprisingly though, he only gave us 7 days of entry and stay permit; enter and remain which seemed a bit bureaucratic if you ask me. What if I fell in love with the country and decided to stay another week? I always take note of this as departing Peru in 2011, our outbound flight was cancelled but there were issues in us re-entering the country.

We collected our bags; thankfully both had arrived. My bag had all it’s external pockets opened and rifled through it. It was a brand-new Briggs and Riley and hadn’t been used before this trip and had all the outside zippers closed when I had left Tanzania. I hadn’t shrink wrapped it but it was locked. We had a bag X – Ray before customs and went outside to meet our driver.

The Arrivals Hall of the Seychelles International Airport

We transferred over to Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Mahé Seychelles for our stay on Mahé.

My Thoughts on Kenya Airways:

The Kenya Airways experience was perfectly “adequate”. Although by no means one of the world’s best travel experiences, we were fed, served and delivered to our destination on time. The catering was reasonable and although the entertainment system could be improved upon, for such a short flight it wasn’t a critical mis step. Although not quite to the level of South African Airways, Kenya Airways was much better than our southern African British Airways Comair flights. The best part was flying the odd dog leg route through Kenya on the way to the middle of the Indian Ocean.

If you’ve visited the Islands of the Seychelles, how did you fly to these isolated and beautiful islands ?

Tags: KQ 250, NBO, SEZ, SkyTeam

Review: Kenya Airways E190, Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi

Posted on March 9, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Airline + Business Class + Embraer 190 + Kenya Airways + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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Kenya Airways is the flag carrier of Kenya based out of its aviation hub at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya. Based on Nairobi’s location, it has the potential to be a strong competitor for African connecting traffic and likely gets strong competition from it’s competitor Ethiopian Airlines in Ethiopia to it’s north. Kenya Airways is a member of Skyteam, serving mostly European destinations with the odd North American and Asian destination. Our flight today would be on their Embraer 190 aircraft product; the most common equipment in their regional fleet.

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Review: Kenya Airways E190, Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport – Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

While I was researching this trip on how to get from Tanzania to the Seychelles, I came across a discounted fare on Kenya Airways. It was very cheap thanks to it’s dog leg connection Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi – Mahé. The economy base fare was only $35 USD per person with free baggage allowance. With the taxes and fees, our tickets came to less than $175 USD per person.

For this journey, we didn’t bother with business class (at about $600 USD per person) for this one way trip as there was a lack of interesting lounges available at the airports (if any at all), and minimal connection time between flights. We didn’t need any extra baggage allowance, and we don’t have, or don’t generally earn any points in the Flying Blue frequent flier program that would have contributed towards any mileage balance.

While there would have been some African Priority Pass lounge options, I didn’t have a Priority Pass membership at the time. Given our early morning departure, this wasn’t a major issue and our economy class ticket worked perfectly fine for our needs.

We had arrived into town the day earlier on Precision Air Zanzibar – Dar Es Salaam. We stayed the night at The Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam – The Kilimanjaro. We woke up at 5:30 AM to get ready for our trip to the airport. Unfortunately, the included hotel breakfast started service at 6:30 AM so we missed out on that opportunity. I would have loved to stay for breakfast but getting to the airport won out over a slow breakfast and the possibility we might miss our flights.

Getting to Dar Es Salaam Airport:

We took an Uber X from the Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam – The Killimanjaro to the airport. There were lots of cars available at 5:30 AM when I first checked. Unfortunately, there were no Uber XL’s available, so we stacked our bags on the front passenger seat of a small car and throughout the trunk.

It was a quick 30 minutes up to the Dar Es Salaam Jules Nyerere International Airport and we arrived at about two hours before our flight. The ride ended up costing $5.17 USD and I gave the driver a $5 USD cash tip on top of the fare; which he appeared to be very happy with.

Checking into Kenya Airways:

I was happy to report that online check with Kenya Airways worked, even as an international one way ticket. The hardest part was finding Wi-Fi that could handle the check in as the bandwidth at our Zanzibar hotel, The Park Hyatt Zanzibar wasn’t even strong enough to process this.

After we had a baggage X-Ray to get into the Jules Nyerere International Airport, we checked in at the three Kenya Airways desks in the International Departures Hall.

Arriving to the Departures Area at Jules Nyerere International Airport

Our checked bags were weighed on the large scales for weight. The check in agents paid no interest to our hand luggage in weight or any efforts to tag it. The check in agent asked me, with curious inquisition, if we had $150 USD per day to cover our stay in the Seychelles. He seemed outright flabbergasted when we said that we did. Since we were on a one way ticket, he asked to see proof of onward travel, which I had as a paper copy. He was even interested about our the hotel reservation which I had to show him through my Starwood Preferred Guest App on my iPhone. I didn’t get the impression that he was being nosy, instead just ensuring that he did his job in an otherwise bureaucratic African world.

The Largest Italian Luggage Scales I’ve Seen

We headed for international customs where we had to provide right hand fingerprints and complete a departure document. It was pretty slow and this took us 10 minutes to get through with only 1 desk working for “non foreigners”.

We then headed up to the final security check for a hand luggage search. We ended up in the departure hall at about 7:40 AM with boarding set for 8:15 AM.

There wasn’t much at all to do here.The Dar Es Salaam airport was easily one of the most African airports that I’ve been through. It’s pretty tired and about 30 years out of date. It even has giant portable industrial air conditioners set up throughout the hall to keep things cool.

The Swissport ground staff eventually opened the departure lounge area at about 8:00 AM. We had a boarding pass check and identification verification to get into the departures holding area.

An Electric Mix of International Departure Destinations from East Africa

The only other flight that was departing Dar Es Salaam this morning was an Air Tanzania flight to Monoria, Comoros. The next listed departures were in the late afternoon.

The Tanzanite Lounge appeared to be downstairs, but we didn’t notice anyone use it at all during our visit. It is reported to be a Priority Pass lounge.

While we were there, an older man in a suit arrived in picked us off as Canadians. It turned out he was a Canadian Member of Parliament Rob Oliphant travelling with Jenny Kwan (another Canadian Member of Parliament and the official opposition critic for Immigration) and representatives from the Canadian Embassy in Dar Es Salaam Tanzania. They were here as a delegation on the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration; looking at quality assurance for the Canadian Immigration processes and policies. We had a nice and short discussion about Africa and travels throughout the region. They were headed from Dar Es Salaam up through Nairobi to Uganda for the week.

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Kenya Airways
KQ481 – Economy Class
DAR – NBO (Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi International Airport)
June 5, 2018
9:00 AM -10:20 AM
Booked: Embraer 190
Flown: Embraer 190

On Board Kenya Airways:

Kenya Airways offers regional service on Embraer 190 aircraft. It is their most common aircraft type with fifteen of them currently in their fleet. Typically, these are used for intra Africa international destinations.

When boarding was called, it was all at once and a free for all for the door. We wandered down the jet bridge and onto our seats 14 A and 14C. There was no row 13 and economy numbering started with row 11. This meant we found ourselves in the third row of economy.

During our travel to economy class, we passed by Kenya Airways Business Class, which is set up in a 1 – 2 configuration.

Economy Class on Kenya Airways is set up in a 2 – 2 configuration. It has reasonably spacious seating for an Embraer jet, but I wouldn’t confuse it with luxury by any means.

Kenya Airways Economy Class Emergency Row Embraer 190 Seating

Kenya Airways Economy Class Embraer 190 Seating

The seat featured an in flight video screen that was never turned on for entertainment. It contained a welcome message only. We got underway quickly with the plane fully boarded at about twenty minutes before flight.

A Static and Non Functioning Entertainment System

As we got underway, we departed the old airport. On our taxi, we passed by the construction of the new international Julius Nyerere Airport. Construction was initially announced in the year 2013. The new airport has sustained several construction delays and seems like it may open in late 2018.

Departing Dar Es Salaam’s Julius Nyerere International Airport

Spotting an Air Tanzania DH8-4 Boarding Passengers at Dar Es Salaam

We got underway fairly quickly. We had a nice take off over a very green Dar Es Salaam.

On Climb to Altitude over Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

An Kenyan Airways Winglet over Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania

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The Meal: A Breakfast Snack

With such a short flight, I wondered what kind of meal we would be provided. The answer turned out to be a very small one. We were served a coffee, some yoghurt, and a bun in cello wrap.

A Snack with Bread Roll, Yoghurt and a Coffee

Spotting Mount Killimanjaro:

Since there was no entertainment, the entertainment of the flight turned into staring out the windows. I was really happy to see that our flight path took us past Mount Kilimanjaro. We were really lucky as the clouds broke just right so that we could have a clear look. At times, it’s supposed to be obscured from the top. I was a little surprised to see the top covered in snow in the summer months of June. The pilot made an announcement of our pass by the mountain which sent a few people around the plane clambering for a sneak peek. I hope to get up top one day.

Spotting Mount Kilimanjaro from the Aircraft

The Tallest Free Standing Mountain Above Sea Level in the World

The Flat Dormant Volcano Top of Mount Kilimanjaro

Arriving to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport:

We descended toward the airport. We passed over the Nairobi game park reserve on the final approach but I was sadly unable to see any wild animals. The only interesting thing was the airplane boneyard on the north side of the runway at JKIA.

Overflying Choking Traffic Roads in Nairobi, Kenya

We landed at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya and pulled up to the gate. As expected, we were surrounded by Kenya Airways planes in their main hub in Kenya.

Our Kenya Airways Embraer 190 on the ramp at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

My Thoughts on Kenya Airways:

Kenya Airways was a perfectly reasonable way to get around Africa. While I was expecting complications and drama flying with them, everything worked as promised including the online check in system allowing a convenient check in even for our one way international ticket. The food service was as expected and the only negative experience to report was a lack of a proper in flight entertainment system on this particular leg of travels.

If you fly regionally within Africa, do you fly Kenya Airways or is there another choice that you prefer ?

Tags: DAR, KQ 481, NBO, SkyTeam

Review: Precision Air ATR72, Zanzibar – Dar Es Salaam

Posted on March 8, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Airline + ATR72 + Precision Air + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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Precision Air is one of the regional carriers that offers service throughout the Republic of Tanzania and some select international destinations such as Nairobi and Entebbe. It is partially owned by Air Kenya, although has experienced some financial difficulties over the years. How would their service stand up for our short hop over to Zanzibar?

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Review: Precision Air ATR72, Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport – Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport

It came to be departure day from Zanzibar. We took a hotel car / van from The Park Hyatt Zanzibar to the airport. Mid way to the airport, I realized that my phone was missing. I had about 60 seconds of sheer panic before I realized that it was on the floor of the taxi. Thankfully we didn’t have to go back.

We had some interesting sights on the way out . . .

Passing by the Art Deco Cine Afrique Cinema

The Airport Control Tower in the Background

We arrived at the airport and I paid the driver 33,000 TZS ($14 USD).

Getting into the airport, there was a document check, followed by a cargo and hand luggage security check to get into the airport. The process of getting inside the airport itself was moving very slow and we had about 15 minutes here despite having only 7-9 people in front of us.

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Inside the Zanzibar International Airport:

Once we passed the security check, we entered into a very austere and African airport. It only had the bare necessities and just the minimum of what was needed to function as an airport.

The Precision Air check in desk was not marked so we went to the only manned counter and self-identified ourselves. Our checked bags were weighed on large scales but they didn’t have any interest in our hand luggage.

Checking In at the Unmarked Precision Air Check In Desks

Our boarding cards were printed off and we proceeded around the corner to what we initially thought was the holding area. Instead, it was a loop around to where the international passengers cleared immigration and the hand luggage security check occurred.

We passed through both and waited on the secure side. We were amongst a large German tour group that seemed to be waiting for the daily Ethiopian Air flight to Addis Ababa via Kilimanjaro.

The Departures Lounge at Zanzibar International Airport

There wasn’t much here in the departures lounge to keep you entertained while you wait for your flight. There were a bunch of flat screen televisions that were showing local news and a Zanzibar Transit Duty Free Shop.

I managed to find a few Zanzibar “Remove Before Flight” styled hang tags (without the text) for 6,000 TZS ($3 USD). They’re now rolling around attached to my carry on.

We didn’t make an attempt for the Ethiopian Cloud Nine lounge with its ornate doorway. It was also a Priority Pass location at the time of writing.

The Entry to the Ethiopian Lounge at Zanzibar International

Our scheduled boarding tine of 1:50 PM that was printed on our boarding cards came and went. Before we knew it, our flight departure time of 2 PM also came and went. There were no flight announcements, nor was there a flight display screen in the hold area (or anywhere else in the airport for that matter) to keep people updated. At about 2:15 PM, a Qatar Airways flight arrived so the few ground crew in attendence appeared to be more pre-occupied with them.

The airport did have fast and free wifi. It was actually faster than at the Park Hyatt. I tried to get on Flight Aware and the usual websites to track where our plane was but didn’t really get anywhere; other than understanding that the flight was coming in from Arusha and continuing onto Dar Es Salaam. It seems like Africa doesn’t really flow into these tracking systems as much as North America or Europe.

Boarding Precision Air:

At about 2:35 PM, the plane landed. We headed out on to the apron for the walk to our plane. We passed by the Ethiopian and Qatar planes that had recently arrived.

It was no jets for us… instead another ATR-72 for our short hop over to Dar Es Salaam.

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Precision Air
PW423 – Economy Class (single class of service)
ZNZ – DAR (Zanzibar International Airport – Dar Es Salaam)
June 4, 2018
2:00 PM – 2:30 PM
Booked: ATR 72
Flown: ATR 72

Rear Door Boarding for the Precision Air ATR72

We ended up getting on board at about 3 PM, or about one hour behind schedule.

On Board Precision Air:

The seating configuration on the Precision Air ATR 72 is in a 2 – 2 configuration. The seats are covered with deep emerald green leather.

There was a freaky family of four that was travelling along that had about 6 carry on’s between them in the form of backpacks and camping bags. They were a bit upset at the Precision Air gate crew for “losing all their luggage’ on the way over, so they somehow got permission to carry six bags all on board with them.

The take off from Zanzibar had us on a due south course which took us over some beaches and what appeared to be new sub divisions under construction. Like on our flight out, the plane was full of dirty scratchy windows making for some challenging viewing.

There were some beautiful sand bar islands as we passed out of the bay of Zanzibar.

Before we knew it, we were over top of rural countrysides as we skirted the coastline towards Dar Es Salaam.

There were also some beautiful shoreline island views of crystal clear water.

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Approaching Dar Es Salaam:

On approach to Dar Es Salaam, we flew over the city harbour. I was a bit surprised to see a golf course just outside of the downtown area. It was a bit surprising but I didn’t realize that the city actually had a population of over 5 million people.

The communal housing appeared to be close to the airport as we started touching down.

We landed and we disembarked without any issue. The plane was continuing onto Arusha again, so most of the passengers appeared to stay on board.

Baggage Claim; Precision Air style:

We went into the domestic baggage hall where about 10 bags were put out on the conveyor belt. Mine was put out, but unfortunately MrsWT73’s checked suitcase bag was not. Having had it with missed baggage throughout Africa, we promptly got a hold of someone in the baggage claim hall. It turned out that the freaky family was right. MrsWT73 ended up practically crawling through the baggage portal on the conveyor belt to spot her back buried underneath the connections bags. Thankfully we were able to get it thanks to a little pro-active work and avert any delays.

Spotting Our Checked Baggage in the Baggage Claim Area

We met our driver outside and transferred back to The Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam – The Killimanjaro for the night prior to our Kenya Airways Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi flight the next day.

My Thoughts on Precision Air:

The twenty minute flight of only forty five miles took us over five hours door to door by the time the flight and baggage delays were all said and done. I had heard of a reputation of delays with Precision Air and unfortunately, we did get struck with the delay brush.

The service was friendly as a whole and mostly efficient. However, I figure if we had some problems (like a lost bag or a connection to an onward flight) we would have been thoroughly stuck with little interest or speed on their part to get the issues resolved. Make sure you plan for lots of extra time if you plan to fly with Precision Air.

If you’ve flown Precision Air, did you experience any baggage issues or flight delays ?

Tags: DAR, PW 423, ZNZ

Crusing into a Sunset on a Dhow in Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 7, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Region Visit + Tanzania + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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A dhow is a traditional African boat that is often found on the Nile and in select other parts of Africa. It’s always a treat when you’re able to experience a dhow cruise. Today’s activity involved a sunset cruise on a local dhow boat, which was a pleasant way to spend an evening around Zanzibar.

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Activity: Cruising into Sunset on a Dhow, Zanzibar, Tanzania

The highlight of today was that I had booked a sunset dhow cruise for tonight through the hotel. I had initially wanted to go through Vanora Zanzibar thanks to it’s fantastic Trip Advisor reviews. After several prompt and helpful back and forths by email, it turned out that their boat was going to be in dry dock during our visit and we wouldn’t be able to use them after all. We ended up booking cold and going through The Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel. It was $60 USD for two for a “shared” boat with an option for a private version at a much higher cost. The payment was cash only and not able to be charged to the room. It seems to be the way things work around here. I was going to ask for a receipt but didn’t bother. After we were confirmed, the hotel staffer arranged to escort us to the boat at 5 PM.

As the meet up time rolled around, we met up with our guide and walked over the short distance to the dow dock. Dock was more of a misnomer (laughing). It turned out to be a wet launch with a small ladder up to the boat.

The “group” dhow experience only had one other French couple on it. They didn’t speak any English or Swahili at all so I did a fair bit of translating for the evening cruise. We headed out immediately past the House of Wonders and into the harbour.

The dhow had snacks and even an unlabelled house white wine. The boat host indicated that the owner was Italian. There were chili cassava potato chips on board in the local packaging that were really good with a nice mild spice

The dhow took us out past the harbour towards the mangrove trees on the north east side of town. The dhow used the sail almost 90% of the time, but they did have a motor on it to get us through some of the difficult spots.

We passed by the commercial harbour, including the fast ferries used to travel to Dar Es Salaam.

Our Tanzanian dhow host had a good chat with us asking us about life in North America. She had been fortunate enough to travel to Sardinia, Italy and was shortly headed to London, United Kingdom. She indicated that her parents had helped her buy a place in town.

On the way back, we had a mild sunset, along with many other water views. We had a light grey sunset for the tail end of rainy season.

We also happened to see The Park Hyatt Zanzibar from the water as we floated back into town.

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The Livingstone Beach Restaurant:

We bid the hosts and our fellow traveling French couple good bye and ended up having a post dhow drink in the nearby Livingstone Beach Restaurant. I’d typically describe it as a dive bar. The interior was terrible and completely deserted but the outside was pretty neat. According to the Lonely Planet guidebooks, it used to be the British Consulate. It now offers a sandy chair outside under Indian Almond Trees that provided a great deal of shade.

I enjoyed a large Kilimanjaro beer to settle the rest of the day. All in all, it was a charming place under the streets while the heat of the summer cooled off ever so slightly.

By the time we were done here, it was about 8:30 PM. It took us a bit of time to get the bill. We ended up getting lazy and instead of venturing out to attempt to find dinner in a mostly closed Sunday town, we just ended up having dinner at the Park Hyatt. A local ginger ale (by Coca Cola company) of Stoney Tangawaisi with ice absolutely hit the spot.

My Thoughts on our Sunset Dhow Cruise :

The dhow cruise is always a treat when you’re in Africa. Although we had some shady and grey weather, it was nice to get out on the water for an activity. Although we missed out on Vanora Zanzibar, the current arrangement with the hotel with the Italian owner was perfectly reasonable and enjoyable.

If you’ve spent any time in Africa, do you think that a dhow cruise is a must do while you are in town ?

Review: Emerson Spice Tea House Restaurant, Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 6, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Mexico City and Easter Island via LATAM Business and Alaska First Class + Restaurant Review + Tanzania + Trip Report

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Fine Dining isn’t normally expected in out of the place locations like on the island of Zanzibar, Tanzania. However, Emmerson Spice is making a solid effort at a really unique dining experience set in the heart of Stonetown, Zanzibar. We would set out to enjoy a five course tasting menu set among the rooftops of Stonetown at sunset.

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Review: Emerson Spice Rooftop Tea House Restaurant, Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania.

For this evening, we had a dinner booking at Emerson Spice Tea House in the Emerson Spice hotel. In our visit during low season, we were able to walk up in the afternoon and get a reservation for the next evening’s service with a 40,000 TZS ($17.50 USD) cash deposit.

The restaurant is on the top floor of the Emerson Spice Hotel in the heart of Stonetown. The Emerson Spice Hotel was previously on the Conde Nast Traveller Hotel “Hot List” in 2012 but despite this rating, it seemed mostly empty on our trip.

Emerson Spice offers a 5-course tasting menu at $40 USD per person that changes daily according to the availability of ingredients. There is only one service which starts at 7 PM and has only 22 seats available for dining on each evening.

The Emerson Spice Restaurant has inspiring 360 degree views of the surrounding Stonetown buildings. Being Africa, these aren’t views similar to what you’d get from the top of the Eiffel Tower. Nevertheless, it’s still an interesting and exotic way to spend the night in an experience that you wouldn’t get at home.

We arrived for 6 PM to take in a sundowner cocktail. Getting up to the rooftop restaurant, we climbed up the 5 flights of stairs to the top. There is no available elevator in the building. If climbing 5 flights of stairs is an issue for you, this is something to consider.

On our way up to the top, we had an opportunity to peek into some of the unoccupied rooms at the hotel. The rooms were uniquely decorated, although most appeared to be without air conditioning. I found the decor a little odd and retro for my tastes. It wouldn’t be something that I would personally pay a premium for.

Climbing the Stairs to the Emerson Spice Tea House

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A Sundowner Cocktail to Start:

When we made it to the top, we settled into our experience at Emerson Spice Restaurant. Guests are encouraged to come at sunset at 6 PM for a sunset sundowner cocktail.

I had a Gin based “Sunset Glow” cocktail whereas MrsWT73 had a sparkling Cap Classique wine from South Africa. Despite being Ramadan, there was no problem ordering cocktails or alcohol.

What made the sundowner cocktail so unique was the fact that at the prayer times of 6:15 PM and 7:25 PM during our visit, the Adhan is called out by a muezzin from the mosques that surround the restaurant. There are over 52 mosques in Stonetown so this was quite an echoing experience up on the roof.

It was a highly unusual travel encounter to be seated on a roof top over downtown hearing the call to prayer echo all around you watching the sun go down drinking a cocktail.

We happened to be seated towards the back of the restaurant near the small roof top kitchen where all the magic happens. MrsWT73 had the best view of the “back of house” where all the preparation was occurring behind me… not to mention the local dress servers were wearing. Covert photography at it’s worst (laughing).

Covert Photography of our Wonderful Server’s Regional Attire

It was a peaceful but intriguing spot to enjoy the sun disappearing to grey and black over our time there.

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The Meal: A Five Course Tasting Menu

At 7 PM, the dinner service got underway. We ordered a bottle of white South African wine to go with the dinner. Although there were 5 whites listed on the wine list, they only had stock of 1 of them. This seemed to be pretty consistent with the supply challenges of wine during our time in Tanzania. Needless to say, there was no food pairing option with different wines for each course. It wasn’t really needed.

The Emerson Spice Tea House Tasting Menu

The first course was a Dona Cake Fish Patee, Coconut Relish, Limao la Shamba Ceviche. The ceviche was served in a clam shell. The sauce was nicely acidic, like many ceviches I’ve had.

First Course: Dona Cake Fish Patee, Coconut Relish, Limao la Shamba Ceviche

The second course was a Pweza (Octopus) Passion Salad, Chili, Lemon Beetroot, Garlic Bamia. MrsWT73 has an aversion to octopus and shrimp. The restaurant was kind enough to accommodate with a tuna peppercorn substitution for her dish. The octopus was very fresh – not tough meat like some of those local second rate sushi restaurants get away with serving. The passionfruit blend with the octopus was very unique and paired surprisingly well with beetroots that tasted like they were straight off the farm.

Second Course: Pweza (Octopus) Passion Salad, Chili, Lemon Beetroot, Garlic Bamia

The third course was Lemongrass Calamari, Cinnamom Mung’unye, Pickle Carrot. The lemongrass was the thin grass variety, not the giant stalks that we were accustomed to see at home. The calamari was also cut into a thin shaving, unlike the usual rings that we had at home. It was served with a sauce, which had a mild spice to it; exceptionally tasty.

Third Course: Lemongrass Calamari, Cinnamom Mung’unye, Pickle Carrot

The main and fourth course was King Fish with Tamarind Source, Cardamon Rice, Mbirimni Pickle. The fish was exceptionally cooked; just under so that it stayed juicy and elegant. The rice was lightly scented.

Although the food servings weren’t presented on the plate with a lot of elegance, the flavours that came through with each serving were of very high quality.

Fourth Course: King Fish with Tamarind Source, Cardamon Rice, Mbirimni Pickle

The last serving was a dessert item called Guava Givré, Mtoto wa Jang’ombe, Star Anise Pineapple. It was a delicate guava sorbet with a star anise sweet sauced over fresh pineapple. It was really unique and a refreshing end to a meal in a region that usually just serves plain fruit to finish a meal.

Fifth Course: Guava Givré, Mtoto wa Jang’ombe, Star Anise Pineapple

During the latter half of our meal, the city came alive with the sounds of families out and about as they broke the fast for Ramadan. The alleys were filled with sounds of people out and about, meandering through street stalls as they went out for dinner.

As the bill was presented, we were given a small box with our 40,000 TZS shillings returned in it. The bill came to $124 USD, including two covers, a bottle of wine and a sundowner cocktail each. It is a lot of money in this part of the world but the experience of it all made for one of the more memorable dining experiences and settings we’ve had in our travel lifetimes. Although the presentation of the food wasn’t something that you’d see in New York, the taste of the food was of very high quality with exceptional local ingredients.

As we left the restaurant, we headed to the night market in the Fodoraki gardens. The hotel and restaurant offered a free security guard to walk with you on your way home (on request) but we didn’t have any issues walking on our own back to The Park Hyatt Zanzibar. It is worth noting that I did leave the big Nikon camera and watches at home in the hotel safe.

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A Walk Home through Fodoraki Gardens:

We wandered up to the night market, which was starting to come alive. There was a fairly well rehearsed pitch for food (prawns with shells and without shells) available at almost every stall. Most of the food appeared pre-cooked and there were regular offers to re-heat everything. Having just had a massive amount of food, we just took in the show and didn’t eat anything.

We had a slow walk back to The Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel after the bbq food gazing and settled in for the night.

My Thoughts on our Experience at Emerson Spice Restaurant:

Emmerson Spice was an interesting dining experience. It was especially surreal to eat in a small format restaurant, on top of Stone Town, drinking a cocktail, overhearing the call to prayer and hearing the city come to life. While the presentation of the food wasn’t the world’s most exotic, it was a perfectly engaging and entertaining way to spend a memorable evening in Africa.

If you’ve visited Emerson Spice in Stonetown, Zanzibar, how did it rank on your list of travelling dining experiences ?

Tags: Emmerson Spice, Restaurant Review

Among the Horrors of the Slave Trade Market in Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 5, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + City Visit + Region Visit + Tanzania + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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The city of Stonetown, Zanzibar is a walled city of significant East African significance as a result of it’s involvement in the 19th Century Slave Trade throughout the region. It’s architecture offers a mix of Swahili, Arab, Indian and Persian elements. For this reason, it was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the year 2000. Our day would allow us to spend some time walking through the city to understand it’s historic elements.

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Activity: Among the Horrors of the Slave Trade Market of Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

For the afternoon, we decided to talk a walking tour around Stonetown. We ended up booking a 3 hour walking tour through The Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel for about $60 USD. We ended up getting a lot of value out of the walking tour and I’d recommend it for anyone coming through Stonetown. The first part of our tour was through the doors of Stonetown, Zanzibar. This part of our day highlights the second part of our walking tour.

Walking Over to the Slave Market in Stonetown, Zanzibar:

We walked over to the East African Slave Trade Exhibit (museum). It was a short walk from Jaws Corner.

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Visiting the East Africa Slave Trade Market:

The East Africa Slave Trade Market is the most significant tourist attraction in Stonetown, Zanzibar. It was $5 USD to enter for the museum. with a brief explanation of the slave trading industry that used to thrive here on the island.

The slave trade was initiated by the British and ended by the British. Overall the exhibition was quite well done. We had a few minutes reading about the history of the slave trade in Africa through richly detailed panels outlining their stories. There were some interesting and insightful pieces of history within the walls.

Viewing the Slave Trade Chambers:

The main event here was to see the two remaining slave chambers that are left underneath the mission. The tiny compartments (now fitted with old medicinal shelves) were only about 5 ft high.

It’s hard to imagine humanity resorting to storing the human race in such a manner.

On our exit from the slave chambers, we passed by some sculpture that was representative of the market. It was of slaves chained to the ground.

Within the same complex, we walked over through the Anglican Church. It was very pretty and serene, although it a bit of rougher shape than the usual English Anglican churches that I’ve been through during my travels. Even the stained glass had rock chips taken out of it if you look carefully.

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Visiting the Local’s Darjani Market:

After the Slave Trade Exhibit, the sun started to set signalling the end of the day. We headed over to the nearby Darjani market. It is the local market near the local transit connections.

I remain convinced that I would have been murdered here if it wasn’t for our guide (laughing). Surprisingly, thanks to having a guide, we were totally left alone by the merchants and customers wandering through there in company with our touristic protector. It was an authentic experience of a local African market where everything is on the barter system; at least for those from Occidental heritage.

We wandered over through to the fish stalls where there were all fresh fish being sold. One thing that was interesting was that there were no places to eat directly in the market for take aways. Even our guide asked us to hide our bottled water due to Ramadan.

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Watching the Beit el Ajalb House of Wonders:

With MrsWT73 happy to be out of the smells of the market, we it was a short walk over to the waterfront with the Beit el Ajalb (House of Wonders).

The Beit el Ajalb (House of Wonders) is an impressive house on the shoreline that had the first of almost every modern technology in Eastern Africa. It was the first house to have running water, TV and an elevator, among other things.

Sunset at the Forodhani Gardens:

We walked through the Forodhani Gardens on the water front. There were a few Portuguese cannons left on the island after the Portuguese were driven out of Zanzibar’s Stonetown.

The Old Fort of Zanzibar:

We headed back towards the hotel through the Old Fort. The Old Fort was built by the Omani’s to drive out the Portuguese. It was nicely attired for an event sponsoring the breaking of the fast.

With that being our last stop, we headed back to The Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel for a bit of a rest before dinner.

My Thoughts on a Walking Tour through Stonetown:

The walking tour was well worth it. It was invaluable to have a guide in Stonetown; for the historic explanations and for the peace and quiet of being left alone by touts while you are walking throughout the area. I’d highly recommend it for your first time visit to Stonetown, Zanzibar.

If you’ve visited Stonetown, Zanzibar, did you find the sights insightful ?

Tags: Stonetown, UNESCO, Walking Tour

Appreciating the Decorative Doors of Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 4, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + City Visit + Region Visit + Tanzania + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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Activity: Appreciating the Decorative Doors of Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

For the afternoon, we decided to talk a walking tour around and about. Stonetown, Zanzibar is a bit of a tough place to self guide as a tourist. There are lots of interesting features that aren’t easily marked. We ended up booking a 3 hour walking tour through The Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel for about $60 USD. We ended up getting a lot of value out of the walking tour and I’d recommend it for anyone coming through Stonetown.

Walking the Alleys of Stonetown, Zanzibar:

We started our tour right next door at the Zanzibar Serena Hotel. We had an overview of the hotel which was previously an omani master’s house.

We passed through the back alleys, including a Tangazo joibi tree for cosmetics and face creams.

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The Dhow Palace Hotel:

We wandered through to The Dhow Palace Hotel. The Dhow Palace Hotel was known as one of the first hotels in Zanzibar. It had a very nice pool and atrium. It also had one of our very first orate doors we had the pleasure of looking at that Zanzibar is well known for.

The Intricate Doors of Stonetown, Zanzibar

The Doorways of St George’s Cathedral, Stonetown:

We then headed over through various alley ways and intricate door ways to St George’s Cathedral, the only catholic church in Stonetown. It wasn’t open for viewing on our visit today. It was reported to be open for catholic mass on Sunday’s but never was on the Sunday during our visit. As a result, there are no inside photographs of this particular aged beauty.

The Intricate Doorways of the St Georges Catherdral

Understanding the Local’s at Jaws’ Corner:

We then headed over to Jaws’ Corner and had a detailed explanation of it’s local significance. Jaw’s Corner is a five-way corner that was the cross roads of this particular neighbourhood.

It was used as a meeting place and had a blackboard (pictured) for communicating the town news. Local residence would announce births, marriages and other important news. For some reason, it even offered free international phone calls (also pictured). It also appeared to be a general hang out place.

Make Free International Calls here – Jaws’ Corner, Zanzibar

Just adjacent to Jaws’ Corner, we past the most intricate doors of our Stonetown visit. These ones had birds and cats in them.

Eagles and Leopard Cats Mark this Doorway

We had an explanation of overall tolerance of Zanzibar society with mosque and Anglican cathedral built right next to each other.

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Heading to the Local Market:

We headed onwards to a local supermarket stop with an explanation of the products for sale. Bridal parties were described as typically coming to get the houseware gifts after the marriage. The X are a coconut cutter that you sit on and core your coconuts.

Heading Down the Alley to the Local Market

My Thoughts on a Walking Tour through Stonetown:

Stonetown is an intricate place to visit that’s surrounded by local merchants, alleyways and a variety of sights and sounds. Since it is a local’s city, there is a definite advantage to getting a local guide that is able to explain the meaning of things since most of the city is unmarked . Our guide from the The Park Hyatt Zanzibar was able to explain the attractions and allow us to make the most of our time in this interesting town.

If you’ve visited Stonetown, Zanzibar, did you do a self guided tour or did you hire yourself a guide ?

Tags: Dhow Palace Hotel, St George's Catherdral, Stonetown, UNESCO, Walking Tour

Review: The Park Hyatt Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 3, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Hotels + Park Hyatt + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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With only a few luxury hotels in Stonetown, Zanzibar, the Park Hyatt Zanzibar tops the list in terms of luxury hotel accommodation. In a town with few international hotel chain choices, the Park Hyatt shines in terms of location, room quality and overall hotel amenities. How would the Park Hyatt Zanzibar measure up to other hotels in Zanzibar and in the Park Hyatt chain?

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Review: The Park Hyatt Zanzibar, Tanzania

The Park Hyatt Zanzibar is the place to stay while in Stonetown, Zanzibar so we were eager to see how this place fared in terms of a luxury resort property in East Africa.

Booking the Park Hyatt Zanzibar:

Like our experience at the Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam, the cash rates at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar were quite expensive and over $400 USD per night. We ended up using a little trick were we paid for a top up of World of Hyatt Points and redeeming Cash and Points rate.

This brought our Cash and Points rate to points + $75 USD. It was much cheaper to use the points versus paying a high US dollar rate for our stay here.

Getting to the Park Hyatt Zanzibar:

We had a relaxing stay at The Residence Zanzibar by Cenizaro before travelling up to the Park Hyatt Zanzibar. It was about an hour and forty minutes overland travel before we arrived to the Park Hyatt in Stonetown, Zanzibar.

The hotel is well located in an off central location in Stonetown, Zanzibar. The hotel is within walking distance from almost every attraction in town.

We were welcomed in at the door of the hotel and our bags were loaded up the short flight of stairs to the main lobby.

A Great Sight: Arriving to the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

We checked in. The reservation was under MrsWT73’s name since she is trying to make World of Hyatt Discoverist this year in addition to Marriott / Starwood Platinum. The reservation was honored with breakfast included, despite being on Cash and Points. This was again an unadvertised benefit. As with our experience at Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam, we enjoyed a complimentary buffet breakfast for all 3 days with no questions asked.

The lobby itself is a tall space with Omani Arab styled architecture.

Off the lobby and adjacent to the outdoor veranda, the hotel had a small “library” and resting places. The lobby rooms were tastefully decorated in a manner that fit the hotel.

With the hotel being a top end Park Hyatt, we had strong expectations on room quality. We were led to room #3322 which was a base level Park Room.

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The Room: One King – City Garden View Room

The Park Room was as nicely appointed in lighter colours. Despite these whites and beiges that don’t normally wear well., the room was in terrific condition. In fact, it was one of the nicer appointed hotel rooms we’ve ever had in Africa. The room was spacious, although nowhere near as large as our villa at The Residence Zanzibar or our past Park Hyatt rooms at the Park Hyatt Maldives.

Crisp White Linens on the Edge of Africa

The room offered a single easy chair for relaxing with an item of furniture that didn’t take up the whole room space. The room also featured an occasional table.

The bathroom was also spacious and well appointed. It offered a peek a boo into the living room.

A Soaker Tub with a View into the Living Room

A Marble Countertop in the Nicely Appointed Bathroom

The toiletries were branded as Naya Zanzibar which were a locally produced and branded product. I appreciated having some local branded toiletries, but unfortunately, I didn’t find the products to be all that effective at actual cleaning. The soaps didn’t suds that well, and my hair didn’t feel all that clean after using them. I ended up switching back to Unilever branded shampoos that I brought with me. This is not a criticism but rather a funny observation that corporate shampoo products are sometimes more effective than local grass roots products.

Locally Branded Naya Zanzibar Toiletries

Our room was on the east side of the hotel. The Park Rooms seem to face the side or the street side of the hotel (two rooms according to this map). If you’re booking a Park Room, see if you can get an east facing room like ours. The worst would be the five rooms that face the street on the bottom of the photograph.

The Floor Plan of the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

Since most reward bookings only offer the base level rooms, we were surprised to see a partial upgrade to a peek a boo water view. Yes – this will work!! A base level room with a view…

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Around the Property:

The Wrap Around Hotel Deck

After we had settled into the room, we ended up taking a self orientation walk around the hotel. The hotel features a gorgeous wrap around deck on the water side that is among one of the best features of the property.

There were a variety of seating areas with food and beverage service. In the daytime, it was exceptionally hot with a lack of shade. Temperatures during our visit were in the low thirties Celcius or nineties Fahrenheit. However, at night time it was a pleasant place to laze away.

The Outdoor Pool:

The hotel also featured a small but perfectly adequate infinity pool with ocean views. Unfortunately, the area is not really large enough for a “beach resort” styled holiday. It’s a perfect distraction for spending a few hours sunning between sightseeing.

A Small but welcome pool space under desert temperatures

The Hotel Beach:

The veranda also features strong views of the water and hotel beach. The hotel beach isn’t anything all to special; I saw a local urinating into the water at one point during our stay from the hotel veranda. It was a prettier beach than that of the Residence Zanzibar but not worth a trip to Zanzibar all on its’ own if you were planning on treating the hotel like a resort.

The Beaches Outside of the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

The Hotel Courtyard:

There was also a nice courtyard that separates the hotel from the neighbouring Hotel Tembo next door. The courtyard was almost exclusively empty the entire time we were there. It still made for some interesting photographs nevertheless.

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Food and Beverage:

The Living Room

During our stay, we visited the Park Hyatt Zanzibar hotel lounge called “The Living Room” for some slow service but memorable cocktails on the lovely verandah.

There were some interesting local drinks, including a Tangawizi; a ginger infused gin, bols cacao, sweet and sour Tangawizi (a local ginger ale styled drink).

There was also an excellent flavour chart for cocktails – a bit technical but I totally loved and used it.

We were able to watch the sunset go down at about 6:20 PM along with spectacular views across the harbour. Several African Dhows’ sailed past on their sunset cruises to and from the harbour making for some interesting cocktail viewing.

A Sunset at the Living Room with Dhow Views

Local Harbour Views next to the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

Dhow Harbour Sunset Views from the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

Our Cocktail hour was interrupted by the call to prayer from the mosque immediately across the street from the hotel. The setting was something akin to any stay in urban Africa with a very unique travel experience being in such a different environment.

The Dining Room:

The morning breakfasts were offered in the all day dining restaurant “The Dining Room”. Our breakfasts were complimentary, despite being on a World of Hyatt / Hyatt Gold Passport award redemption.

It had a beautiful setting outdoors in the shade.

The Dining Room Restaurant at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar

There were lots of interesting items on offer. The food items appeared fresh and very edible for Africa. I would have even tasted the green salad if I was feeling adventurous; something I would usually totally avoid being cautious due to food safety!

Zanzibar Regional Cuisine: Manakish Zaatar, Cheese and Lamb

I enjoyed their version of Zanzibarian Poached Eggs on Toast; avocado, poached eggs and coconut lime sauce paired with a hibiscus juice. It’s fair to say that I can’t make that at home easily since my supply of coconuts and hibiscus are severely lacking. =)

Zanzibar Poached Eggs with Avocado, Coconut Lime Sauce and Hibiscus Juice

The food at the dining room was tasty and enjoyable. As a result of the low occupancy of the hotel, it wasn’t too busy in terms of volume which made for a relaxing affair.

The Bottom Line: The Park Hyatt Zanzibar

All in all, we had a most excellent stay at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar. It was by far the highlight of Tanzania in terms of hotels and easily one of the better properties I had stayed at in the Southern Saharan Belt of Africa. The rooms were well appointed and the location of the hotel just steps from Stonetown was a great feature. While an argument can be made that they’ve taken a historic hotel and ruined it by modernizing it to a luxury resort, it’s still a wonderful place to be.

If you’ve travelled to Stonetown, Zanzibar, did the Park Hyatt Zanzibar make your list as the place to stay ?

Tags: Hotel Review, Hyatt Gold Passport, World of Hyatt

Crossing the Island of Zanzibar, Tanzania

Posted on March 2, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Region Visit + Tanzania + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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Travelling overland through Africa is always a special experience. It’s usually a slow process, with lots of adventure and things to look at. Our travels across the Island of Zanzibar were no different from this stereo type as we meandered down relaxing roads shuttling between accommodation for our island stay.

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Activity: Overland Travel Crossing the Island of Zanzibar, Tanzania

We had a two resort stay during our travels in Zanzibar. Our first hotel was at The Residence Zanzibar which was located on the island’s south west corner. We would transit up towards the island’s central hub Stonetown, Zanzibar for our next stay at The Park Hyatt Zanzibar.

Tracking the Journey:

Our hotel arranged driver was there to pick us up promptly from The Residence Zanzibar at around noon. We had a one hour and 45 minute drive up to the Park Hyatt in Stonetown, Zanzibar.

Our host at The Residence Zanzibar, left us a kind letter cautioning us on island life during Ramadan; absolutely no drinking or eating while off the resort.

On The Drive: Crossing Zanzibar

The drive was again a fascinating insight into the life on Zanzibar. We passed from exceptionally rural areas, and past several masjid’s through the highway which was the vertebrae of many towns.

We got to see many small families as we passed by, growing ever more urban as we passed north.

The drive gave us that tiny glimpse into every day rural life on the island of Zanzibar. We spotted locals travelling, getting to and from the market, and just making their way around their daily lives throughout Zanzibar.

Eventually, the drive turned more industrial and urban. We drew closer and closer to city live the closer we got to Stonetown, Zanzibar.

Along with the increased commercialization, the amount of markets around the streets increased as we approached Zanzibar. This included passing by several markets and older architecture apartment block complexes with spaceship styled observation posts.

This has to be among the more unique apartment blocks I’ve had the opportunity to pass by during any travels. It included a tower that looked like it was straight out of a UFO Science Fiction Movie.

It wasn’t before long before we were up at the walls of Stonetown and a great stay with the Park Hyatt Zanzibar…

The Bottom Line:

Travelling across portions of Africa on an overland journey is something that will always been remembered. It allows you to get a glimpse into the every day life that people experience in any journey. Our travels across Zanzibar fit into these experiences.

If you’ve travelled across Zanzibar, how did you got about making your resort connections?

Review: The Residence Zanzibar by Cenizaro, Tanzania

Posted on March 1, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Hotels + Independent + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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The Island of Zanzibar is usually thought of as a destination to spend a few days after an exotic safari in the Serengeti. There are fewer people that consider Zanzibar as a destination beach location. We’d try out The Residence Zanzibar as a destination beach resort for several days. How would this remote beach resort meet up to world class standards ?

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Review: The Residence Zanzibar by Cenizaro, Tanzania

We arrived into the island of Zanzibar on Precision Air Dar Es Salaam – Zanzibar. We exited the airport baggage hall and moved through the throng of taxi mafia. We had at least two unsolicited approaches before we got to the row of drivers holding the hotel signs where we met our driver for the Residence. Our bags were loaded into the car which I had arranged through the hotel.

Booking the Residence Zanzibar:

I ended up locating this place as MrsWT73 was insistent on going to an all-inclusive resort. While the resort is not wholly an all-inclusive property, they did offer an advance purchase deal via their website where a 35% discount was offered in addition to half board. The booking was handled by the website without any issues and was “confirmed” within 24 hours by email.

Indeed the property looked much more appealing that the older DoubleTree, Hilton and independent hotel properties scattered around the island. Overall, the massive luxury property is an interesting statement on where companies believe that tourism is headed in Eastern Africa. Nevertheless, we had a very interesting, remote and isolated stay.

Getting to The Residence Zanzibar:

The Residence Zanzibar is located towards the south west portion of the island on Zanzibar. Once we were on board the hotel car, we were given fresh towels and water as we headed down for the drive to The Residence.

The driver announced a drive time of about 1 hour and 20 minutes. It was a bit longer than I had bargained for but it was actually an enjoyable experience. It certainly wouldn’t be something that I would enjoy arriving straight from an international flight.

The traffic and people around Stonetown and the airport were much heavier. We passed through Zanzibar’s urban area, passing through neighbourhoods and mosques as we made our way south.

…and journeys through half constructed buildings

At the end of rainy season, we had some flooding on the drive down. We rode through progressively more rural countryside, passing villages and local towns. As time went on, the traffic and countryside grew thinner and more scenic.

We passed through groves of mango trees and monkey forests as we made it to the Residence. We passed through the Jozani Forest which is known for it’s red colobus monkeys. Our driver slowed for us but we didn’t happen to see any monkeys crossing the rope bridges across the road. There were banana and strawberry vendors just off site of the park. It was pretty quiet for when we passed through.

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Checking Into the Residence Zanzibar:

Our check in was handled in the lobby. We were offered a terrific lemongrass and ginger fruit juice that was super tasty and regional tasting. Our bags were loaded up into a golf cart and we were taken over to Prestige Ocean Front Villa – 116.

The Room: A Prestige Ocean Front Pool Villa

All the rooms at this property are villas in separate detached buildings. Our arrival host showed us the features of The Prestige Ocean Front Pool Villa. The Prestige Ocean Front Pool Villa itself was absolutely massive. It featured a separate bedroom, bathroom, living area, outdoor shower.

Our Assigned Bikes at the Ocean Front Villa

Looking Down the Villa through the Bedroom

The bathroom itself was absolutely massive. It contained a soaker tub with ocean views.

Our room also featured a cold water outdoor shower, along with an indoor shower that I never used.

Only Natural Cold Water in the Outdoor Shower

The room was well equipped with bottle water throughout our stay. There was also Nespresso coffee available in room.

Nespresso Coffees and Bottled Still Water

There were mosquito coils for both inside and outside of the property. We didn’t find the need to use them during our stay.

Outside the villa, there was a private plunge pool and deck area with lounger and a table and chairs. Unfortunately, due to the configuration of the room, it was a little bit of a dark space.

We caught the tail end of the sunset as we settled into our villa. The sun set fast notably fast here with some stellar views from our lanai. Thanks to a west facing villa, the view was specular right from the deck. It was super serene and pleasant.

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Sunrise at The Residence Zanzibar:

I was up the next morning and had an espresso on the deck at about 8 AM while MrsWT73 slept as she adjusted to the time zone changes. It was beautiful out and we had great views from the lanai. It was breezy, which was okay because it kept away the mosquitos and I didn’t need to apply off / DEET insect repellent. I had visited the Traveling Medical Clinic before our trip and the registered nurse had recommended malaria pills for Tanzania. I ended up taking Mylan – Atovaquone Proguanuil for the duration of our time in Tanzania. It worked out great for me with no side effects.

One thing that is interesting and unique about this property, is that the tide goes way out. It’s both fascinating and an irritant. Unfortunately, and I think this is the only drawback about this property, is that it doesn’t have beautiful sand bars and beaches that you see in the brochures of Zanzibar. The low tide goes way out… perhaps a mile or so. It leaves behind awake of seaweed and ocean debris in it’s wake. When the tide is in, the water is a bit murky, which is not ideal for swimming. On the plus side, the area seems to attract a lot of locals that appear to harvest the seaweed and low tide fishies buried in the sand.

This morning, the tides were way out; a remarkable scene for a morning coffee. It was a peaceful wake up in an area that had no one around.

A Morning Coffee View with Tides that were way out

Villa Sunsets:

During our stay, we often enjoyed sunsets from the deck of our villa. It was quite comfortable having sunset from the comfort of our deck. It was a bit of a cloudy evening being the shoulder of rainy season. Like the beach, the photos were less than spectacular.

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Food and Beverage:

The Dining Room

During our stay, we would wander down to the Dining Room for a daily included breakfast. Breakfasts were available in the Dining Room. We walked along the beach from the villa to where breakfast was being served. We were able to take breakfast outside, which was always an excellent way to wake up.

Our Path to Morning Breakfast along the beach

Breakfast itself was of very good to excellent quality considering we were in the middle of East Africa on an island and 90 minutes from the nearest town. There was an omelette station, a salad station and an excellent bakery section with fluffy croissants. What made the breakfast even better was the setting of eating outside on the beach.

With half board being included, we had a variety of dinners on the property. The first night we had a beach dinner as a themed middle eastern buffet. MrsWT73 was super pleased with this as it offered her all the hummus she could ever want. The buffet was included in our half board package. I’m not usually a buffet fan since I don’t enjoy self gorging myself. Admittedly, a buffet is easier to swallow when you are not paying a high price out front or out right for it. The buffet also had a themed African trio of singers that entertained us, adding a faux but at the same time authentic African feel to the atmosphere.

One of the highlights of the trip to Zanizbar were the excellent regional foods. We were able to try delicious Zanzibar chapati. The bread was rolled from dough and fried in front of your eyes fresh. We were also able to try Zanzibar Pilau rice, Zanzibar Coconut Rice and Zanzibar Prawn Curry. The prawns were super fresh with juicy prawns that were so well cooked, I can still taste them in memory – six months later.

I also got to try some strange local Okra stew, which was tasty without being too exciting. I also had the Urogoyo (Beef and Potato) soup – surprisingly a good combination and tasty. It was somehow thick but not chunky. This was finished off with dessert – malwa pudding – thick and sweet textured. All were interesting Zanzibar Spice food items that I wouldn’t have otherwise gotten the opportunity to taste.

Thankfully, there was also international food for MrsWT73 who doesn’t have my adventurous exotic tastes.

Around the Property:

The Outdoor Pool

After breakfast, instead of staying at the villa plunge pool which wasn’t facing the morning sun, we headed down to the main pool area. Occupancy at the hotel wasn’t very high so we had most of the place to ourselves. The Residence has a beautifully large infinity pool which was one of the better features of the property.

Comfortable Loungers in a Comfortable View.

Hanging out here was a relaxing way to start the trip. The resort pool was among the best pools I’ve had the opportunity to experience in Africa.

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The Ila Spa and Health Club:

We eventually made our way up to the spa. The Residence Zanzibar property was massive and it was easily a 7 – 10 minute walk to get to the Ila Spa. The spa was nice, remote and tranquil. It had an outdoor jacuzzi pool which was not heated. There were one hour massages being offered for special rate of $65 USD or two for $130.

We wandered back to the room for self-catered sundowner cocktails. It was a grey sunset by the villa pool tonight.

The day closed with sundowners with awesome La Motte from South Africa. We collected these from the Istanbul Duty Free store and hand carried it over to the island.

Tanzanians are charming people. True to perhaps British form, they spend a little time exchanging pleasantries before getting down to business. Many have holdover British names like William or Nancy. We had an easy last day at the pool enjoying a little relax time.

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The Residence Beach and Pier:

I ran out onto the pier to take a few last photos of the incredible low tide that this property has. It seems to leave and deposit a lot of sea weed against the shores; which didn’t make for a great brochure quality photograph.

The beach didn’t look all too good from land, but makes for some interesting photographs when out on the jetty.

The Bottom Line: The Residence Zanzibar

We had a truly and interesting and amazing stay at the Residence Zanzibar. It would be unlike any other beach holiday that we have had in the past, thanks to the uniqueness of the environment, the isolated nature of this property, and the interesting Swahili cultured food that we experienced. The hard product was exceptional. Unfortunately, the beach was not the best one out there. You won’t get terrific beach photographs, great snorkelling or a clean Maldivian swimming experience here. However, in terms of relaxing, chilling out and getting off the grid, it’s hard to beat the remote nature of this particular resort in East Africa.

If you visited beach resorts in Zanzibar, did you experience a great beach while on the island ?

Tags: Cenizaro, Hotel Review

Review: Precision Air ATR72, Dar Es Salaam – Zanzibar

Posted on February 28, 2022 By World Traveller 73 in Airline + ATR72 + Precision Air + Tanzania and Seychelles via Air Canada and Turkish Airlines Business Class + Trip Report

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Review: Precision Air ATR72, Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport – Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport

Zanzibar is located on an island off the coast of Tanzania. You can fly there or you can take a ferry boat. When decided between the two, the boats did not get a great review. The major complaints were overcrowding, hap hazard safety, and aggressive touts at each end. We ended up opting for the plane from the mainland to the island both ways.

There were lots of carriers offering services but we ended up with Precision Air which codeshares with Skyteam Members KLM and Kenya Airways. Although there were reports that they were having financial difficulties, I felt a bit better knowing that the legacy carriers wouldn’t likely let their customers get stuck on codeshare connections when landing in Dar Es Salaam.

Booking Precision Air:

We booked these tickets through the Precision Air website about 45 days prior to travel. Our ticket payment by American Express credit card required a PIN code to be sent to our mobile phones in Canada in order to confirm the credit card transaction. There were no seat assignments for the reservation and the flight cost $40 USD per segment.

Twenty four hours before, I was able to do an on line check in. It was very primitive (no Apple Passbook boarding cards here) and I was able to take a screen grab of the barcode.

Getting to the Julis Nyerere Dar Es Salaam Airport:

We left the Hyatt Regency Dar Es Salaam – Th e Kilimanjaro. Although we had a hotel car booked on the way in, I decided to Uber it back to the airport. When we arrived the night before, I asked at the front how much a taxi back to the airport was and was quoted $60 USD by the front desk person. I don’t know if this was a made up price on the spot or what? Our car transfer in was $40 USD and the taxi street price in was 35,000 TZS ($15 USD). I did a little on line research and decided to go with Uber since there were several cars, always showing as available.

I ordered up an Uber XL and our driver collected us. We were up to the Jules Nygere Airport in about 30 minutes and only $7 USD. The wages in South East Africa are quite poor and Uber as a platform isn’t immune to this. Consistent with on line reports, the question on our arrival to the airport of whether we wanted to “pay with cash or pay with card”. I indicated that I would leave it on the card but offer a tip and gave him a $10 USD bill. The driver was most pleased at this. This worked out to about a total $15 USD ride back from the city to airport.

We got some glimpses of city life in Dar Es Salaam on our way from downtown to the airport.

It is a pretty bleak drive up on a long straight road from the downtown core to the airport. We actually blended in quite well with the Toyota from Uber XL and we had a smooth ride. As can be expected, there was a lot of humanity to see on the way with people starting to come home from work and their days’ work.

Construction aiming to releive traffic congestion problems

Arriving to Julius Nyerere International Airport:

We arrived to the Julius Nyerere International Airport. Although there is a new airport along the way, it wasn’t finished and seemed a bit of a ways off from what we saw.

The Outdoor Departures Hall of the Dar Es Salaam International Airport

On arrival at the airport Terminal 2, I left MrsWT73 with the bags and went and finally changed some money. It was one of the first few countries that I had seen that had higher rates of exchange for higher denominations of US bills. Although my bills were clean and unmarked, there didn’t seem to me much examination of them and they were traded without question.

An Old School Currency Exchange Board with Different Values for Higher Bills

We went through the security check point and an X ray and went to the Precision Air check in desks. Our bags were weighed on giant dial scales as we were checked in. Thankfully they didn’t weigh our hand luggage as they were a bit fuller than expected.

We proceeded through to security into the most “African” airport that I’d been in for a while. It was quite dated and run down. The facilities were quite old. Most people were waiting in a general waiting hall. Despite this, there was a coffee shop and a non duty free liquor / souvenir store on the secure side of the airport of all things.

The Julius Nyerere Domestic Departures Hall

Our boarding time was marked at 3:30 PM, but in all things African, nothing appeared to be running on time. There was an angry mob of about 20 people swarming a lonely Fastjet (lower cost carrier) representative who had to convey the news that their Kilimanjaro flight had been completely cancelled. Thankfully, at about 3:50 PM, or T-10, our flight was called to board.

We had a crush at the gate and eventually walked down towards the tarmac to get on the plane. The ATR72 board at the rear of the plane in every instance and our case today was no exception.

Boarding Our Precision Air ATR72 to Zanzibar

Precision Air
PW713 – Economy Class (single class of service)
DAR – ZNZ (Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport– Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport)
May 28, 2018
4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Booked: ATR 72
Flown: ATR 72

On Board Precision Air:

I had selected Seats 2C/D at on line check in, and goofed when I realized that on the ATR 72’s that there is no door at the front of the aircraft. As indicated, there is only boarding via rear stairs on this aircraft type. Attempting to be the first on / first off by sitting near the front didn’t work with this low number seat assignment.

The ATR72 seats are generally quite compact. This single class of service airline offers seating in the usual 2 – 2 configuration.

We ended up having several empty rows around us so we split up with myself in 2D and MrsWT73 in 3D for the short flight over. We both ended up with window views in this manner.

The captain came on to announce a flight time of 20 minutes and a cruising altitude of 5,000 feet. We had an immediate departure while using only half of the airport runway.

Descending into Zanzibar:

Unfortunately, the windows were a little scratched up and dirty on the plane so the views and photos on the ride over today were not all that great. I chalk that up to travel around Africa.

Before we knew it, we came in to descent at Zanzibar. Our approach over Stonetown had a big u turn at about 1,000 feet. There were some strange communist style apartment blocks that could be seen from the air next to local houses.

Communist Type Apartment Blocks on Short Final to ZNZ

Large Houses with No Apparent Road Access to Them

Once we were led out of the plane, we were ushered into a small mini bus to be taken over to the terminal. There was a FlyDubai and a Qatar aircraft that were parked on the apron. Entertainingly enough, the arriving passengers were being processed in the same arrivals hall (international passengers intermixed with domestic arrival ones) as the international groups were filling out their arrival cards in the hall itself.

The Abeid Amani Karume International Airport

As we arrived over to the baggage hall, it was old school style with no conveyor belts. The bags were brought in on carts and just dropped off in the hall. It was a free for all to get them. The flights were all mixed up too so you really had to check your tags.

Baggage Claim – Check Your Tag before helping yourself to someone’s bag

We would meet our driver and transfer over to The Residence Zanzibar by Cenizaro for a several night island stay..

My Thoughts on Precision Air:

Precision Air was the right way for us to transfer to Zanzibar. It was reasonably comfortable and thankfully we didn’t have any cancellations. It was also arguable safer than the local ferries that have had reports of safety issues on water borne incidents. Everything with Precision Air worked as it was supposed to and things operated mostly on time.

If you’ve regularly traveled between Dar Es Salaam and Zanzibar, do you take the plane or do you go for the local ferry ?

Tags: DAR, PW 713, ZNZ

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Review: Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove Resort, Bel Ombre, Seychelles

Booking The Fisherman’s Cove Resort:

Getting to the Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove:

The Room: A Sea View Deluxe

Sunset at Fisherman’s Cove:

Food and Beverage:

Le Cardinal Restaurant

Around the Property:

The Bottom Line: Le Meridien Fisherman’s Cove

If you’ve travelled to The Seychelles, did you go out of your way to make Marriott part of your visit ?

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Review: Kenya Airways E190, Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport – Mahe Seychelles International Airport

Connecting through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport:

On Board Kenya Airways:

Kenya AirwaysKQ250 – Economy ClassNBO – SEZ (Nairobi International Airport – Mahe)June 5, 201811:10 AM – 3:25 PMBooked: Embraer 190Flown: Embraer 190

The Meal: A Lunch

In Flight Entertainment: Advanced Video on Demand

On Final Approach to the Seychelles:

My Thoughts on Kenya Airways:

If you’ve visited the Islands of the Seychelles, how did you fly to these isolated and beautiful islands ?

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Review: Kenya Airways E190, Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport – Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

Getting to Dar Es Salaam Airport:

Checking into Kenya Airways:

Kenya AirwaysKQ481 – Economy ClassDAR – NBO (Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi International Airport)June 5, 20189:00 AM -10:20 AMBooked: Embraer 190Flown: Embraer 190

On Board Kenya Airways:

The Meal: A Breakfast Snack

Spotting Mount Killimanjaro:

Arriving to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport:

My Thoughts on Kenya Airways:

If you fly regionally within Africa, do you fly Kenya Airways or is there another choice that you prefer ?

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Review: Precision Air ATR72, Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport – Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport

Inside the Zanzibar International Airport:

Boarding Precision Air:

Precision AirPW423 – Economy Class (single class of service)ZNZ – DAR (Zanzibar International Airport – Dar Es Salaam)June 4, 20182:00 PM – 2:30 PMBooked: ATR 72Flown: ATR 72

On Board Precision Air:

Approaching Dar Es Salaam:

Baggage Claim; Precision Air style:

My Thoughts on Precision Air:

If you’ve flown Precision Air, did you experience any baggage issues or flight delays ?

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Activity: Cruising into Sunset on a Dhow, Zanzibar, Tanzania

The Livingstone Beach Restaurant:

My Thoughts on our Sunset Dhow Cruise :

If you’ve spent any time in Africa, do you think that a dhow cruise is a must do while you are in town ?

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Review: Emerson Spice Rooftop Tea House Restaurant, Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania.

A Sundowner Cocktail to Start:

The Meal: A Five Course Tasting Menu

A Walk Home through Fodoraki Gardens:

My Thoughts on our Experience at Emerson Spice Restaurant:

If you’ve visited Emerson Spice in Stonetown, Zanzibar, how did it rank on your list of travelling dining experiences ?

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Activity: Among the Horrors of the Slave Trade Market of Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Walking Over to the Slave Market in Stonetown, Zanzibar:

Visiting the East Africa Slave Trade Market:

Viewing the Slave Trade Chambers:

Visiting the Local’s Darjani Market:

Watching the Beit el Ajalb House of Wonders:

Sunset at the Forodhani Gardens:

The Old Fort of Zanzibar:

My Thoughts on a Walking Tour through Stonetown:

If you’ve visited Stonetown, Zanzibar, did you find the sights insightful ?

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Activity: Appreciating the Decorative Doors of Stonetown, Zanzibar, Tanzania

Walking the Alleys of Stonetown, Zanzibar:

The Dhow Palace Hotel:

The Doorways of St George’s Cathedral, Stonetown:

Understanding the Local’s at Jaws’ Corner:

Heading to the Local Market:

My Thoughts on a Walking Tour through Stonetown:

If you’ve visited Stonetown, Zanzibar, did you do a self guided tour or did you hire yourself a guide ?

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Review: The Park Hyatt Zanzibar, Tanzania

Booking the Park Hyatt Zanzibar:

Getting to the Park Hyatt Zanzibar:

The Room: One King – City Garden View Room

Around the Property:

The Wrap Around Hotel Deck

Kenya Airways
KQ250 – Economy Class
NBO – SEZ (Nairobi International Airport – Mahe)
June 5, 2018
11:10 AM – 3:25 PM
Booked: Embraer 190
Flown: Embraer 190

Kenya Airways
KQ481 – Economy Class
DAR – NBO (Dar Es Salaam – Nairobi International Airport)
June 5, 2018
9:00 AM -10:20 AM
Booked: Embraer 190
Flown: Embraer 190

Precision Air
PW423 – Economy Class (single class of service)
ZNZ – DAR (Zanzibar International Airport – Dar Es Salaam)
June 4, 2018
2:00 PM – 2:30 PM
Booked: ATR 72
Flown: ATR 72

Precision Air
PW713 – Economy Class (single class of service)
DAR – ZNZ (Dar Es Salaam Julius Nyerere International Airport– Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport)
May 28, 2018
4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Booked: ATR 72
Flown: ATR 72