Pemba Island
Why go?
The ‘other’ island of the Zanzibar group is much less
developed than Unguja, the main island but no less beautiful, with
the same mix of white-sand beaches, clove and palm forests, and
exuberant, colourful people. It’s almost as large as Unguja
(50 by 20 km) and almost as populous (about 250,000 people). But
there’s only one surfaced road and one hotel
of any note; and much of the island remains unexplored. Hire a
yacht or dhow and you can have large swathes of it
to yourself.
Clove trees cover the majority of its undulating land, and their
fruit is harvested and exported via Stone Town all around the
world. The deeply indented coastline has long-fingered
peninsulas, thick mangrove fringes and some fine beaches. At low
tide these beaches become the island’s thoroughfares, with
strings of brightly-dressed folk walking to market.