Zanzibar Walks Company — Local services in Kiponda

We had the good fortune in connecting with Ally Jape for his tour services prior to our two-day visit to Zanzibar, Tanzania on the Azamara Quest in January. From our first contact with Ally until we left Zanzibar our experiences were first class and exceeded our expectations in every way. Clearly, we rate the experience at the top of our private tour experiences and we’ve done a lot of travelling. We could not have asked for anything more perfect with our communications and time spent with Ally. A remarkable, efficient, accomplished, respectful and informative young man who is clearly committed to excellent customer service and experiences. His extensive knowledge of the history of Zanzibar gave us the perspective we were looking for. Ally’s passion, knowledge and love of the UNESCO listed Stone Town was evident and clear. The love of the shared history, architecture and glimpses of everyday life where he grew up was clearly evident in his manner, as was the joy in doing what he does and doing it well. His excellent responses to client needs enabled us to have a perfect two days where we learnt and experienced so much. Our wish, beside seeing the main tourist sites, was to experience Zanzibar as a local and that really what we were able to achieve with Ally, our fellow small group of friends and the locals. He helped us interact with and enjoy our time with the locals where our cultural, and sometime language barriers, were crossed respectfully with ease and enjoyment. Our brief time in Zanzibar was fantastic and we now have beautiful memories our very positive time with Ally forever. Ally you made our ‘hearts sing’, we can’t...

This is by far the best tour guide and guide company we have had anywhere - and we have taken many in various places. Ally’s company and team are simply the best. We toured Stone Town day 1 with Imran, and he greeted us early and warmly. We felt like we were old friends and knew him forever. We learned more about the history and culture than we would just looking on our own. Day two we did a Spice Tour at Shabuya spice farm before we went to Matemwe. Imran and our driver Mohammed taught us about the local culture and ways of living and we caught up with fun and laughs like old friends. Visiting the spice farm was incredible. We learned so much, tasted the best spices and fruits we have ever had and truly got to see an untouched place not frequented by tourists. It was truly off the beaten path which we loved. The spice farm had a coconut tree climber and you could support the local community by buying spices, perfumes and soaps. I wish I bought more perfume - it is some of the best I have ever smelled. We even got to taste all the fruit at the end. The next part was a true heartwarming surprise. Imran and Mohammed surprised us with a traditional swahili lunch that was handmade for us by a wonderful chef. She also teaches cooking classes! It was a joy to see the village and share a meal with our guides. We would take this tour and stone town with Ally and Imran again and again. Asante sana!!!!! Thank...

We reached out to Ally a few weeks before arriving in Zanzibar, requesting a tour that includes city walk AND night market food sampling. He responded with utmost professionalism and sincerity, and agreed to personalize our tour to suit our tastes. On the night of the tour, we got Ally’s associate Yusuph. He is such a wonderful, funny, knowledgable and understanding character. We connected really well and he took care of us (and kept our secrets) like our big brother. We absolutely love his passion and insights about the people, culture, customs, and history, and we were especially impressed by his genuine character and appetite! We learned so much about the exuberant diversity and multi-faceted influence which Zanzibar had been under. We even got to show-off our rusty piano skills at the Dhow Countries Music Academy.

Along the way we sampled delicious juicy mango, cassava chips, sweet meat with the best coffee ever, local delicacies at the Forodhani food stalls, and hands down the best ice cream ever! We felt safe and welcomed during the entire tour, and as avid travelers (46 countries and counting), I highly recommend this tour 200%!

Overall, this hand-crafted, rich cultural experience is one that you’d hate to miss out on when...