Jozani Forest — Local services in Unguja

Horrible experience: decided against going inside the forest due to the high entrance fee (31.000 TSH per person) and reading the many bad reviews. Told the guy we won't go inside and turned around at the entrance gate. Went back to the main road, drove a few hundred meters and saw monkeys crossing the road. Stopped the motorbike, took pictures and - surprise: who came running behind me? the forest manager, angrily shouting at me. Told me I have to show my forest permit and if I can't, I have to follow into his office. He aggressively stood in front of my bike blocking the way and refused to move. As I took pictures of animals on a public road, I knew I didn't do anything wrong and therefore didn't follow him. When I drove away, he tried to hit me, shouting bad stuff. What a horrible way to treat tourists, or human beings in general. I'd advise anyone against spending money with...

The place is amazing. You can walk through this protected forest area and admire all the various tree species forming a fascinating atmosphere. The main attraction are the colobo monkeys. You can easily see both blue and red monkeys around the forest. They are used to humans so it's easy to see them close to you and you have a chance to see them in their natural interactions. I suggest to take a guided tour so you can have some explanation about the ecosystem and the guide knows where is easier to spot the animals. A couple of hours tour is...

Curated for the tourist. I wonder what the locals do to get here and visit. On our forest walk, we spotted a family of Zanzibar red colobus monkeys, an elephant shrew and dik dik. We also got to walk among the mangroves, down a boardwalk and the guide really did give us an education into how resilient and ingenious the mangroves are in surviving in the salty, irregular water of the sea. The drive to and from Jozani is quite long, so do pack some snacks if you are travelling without a...