The Mafia Islands lie quietly in the Indian Ocean, just forty minutes flight from Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam. Virtually unknown, the names of Bwejuu, Mbarakum, Juani, Jibondo and Mafia mean little to most people. Yet these islands make up the most beautiful archipelago in the Indian Ocean, tiny jewels resting in an azure sea. Covered in rich rainforest, thick grasslands and giant baobab trees, the islands are dotted with tiny villages. Visitors today find essentially rural farming and fishing communities whose day to day lives continue in much the same pattern as has been traditional for millennia.
You’re likely to find the turquoise waters the islands’ biggest attraction. The archipelago provides excellent opportunities for diving and snorkelling, and for discovering deserted beaches. The deeper channels around the islands are also renowned for world class deep sea fishing, and home to the greatly endangered dugong (sea cow). The small islands around the archipelago are a popular breeding ground for giant and green turtles.
The Mafia Islands are a 30 minute flight from Dar es Salaam or Zanzibar.