Zanzibar
Getting there: there are no direct flights from the UK, most visitors travel to Kenya or Tanzania and fly to Zanzibar from either Mombasa, Nairobi or Arusha.
Visa: required.
Health: visitors must have a certificate to show they have been vaccinated against yellow fever.
Climate: tropical with an average temperature of 25C.
Best time to go: the driest months are from January to March and from July to October.
Currency: US dollars is the preferred currency.
Which operators: most specialists that sell Kenya or Tanzania also offer extensions to Zanzibar or feature the island as a single-centre destination. These include Abercrombie and Kent, Distant Dreams, Hayes and Jarvis, Kuoni and Somak.
Cost: Kuoni organises visits to the island from Kenya and Tanzania from £26 per person per night plus flights, or a 13-night package combining Zanzibar with a Kenyan safari and beach resort from £1,061, including flights. Abercrombie and Kent’s extensions to Zanzibar from Kenya start at £400, and from Tanzania from £700. Distant Dreams has a 10-night package combining three nights at a Zanzibar beach resort with a seven-night safari in Tanzania from £1,689. Hayes and Jarvis has seven-night packages to Zanzibar from £649.