Diving Zanzibar

My partner and I are off to Tanzania shortly mainly "on safari". However we have tacked on a couple of days in Zanzibar and will be based across the water from Mnemba atoll. The dive operator would be  Dive Point.

Can anyone give me any advice on diving there or the operator? We weren't planning on taking cameras this time and thought we'd just take our own regs/computers and rent the rest.

Good diving? Worthwhile? Kick myself I'm not taking camera gear?

Thanks guys

Hi Tim,

Although I havent dived on Mnemba atoll, I have been to Zanzibar in March this year. We stayed in the stone town area, and made 4 dives with One Ocean.

I hate to say, but for me, Zanzibar was, by far, the worst place I have dived in tropical conditions. Most of the reefs were lacking fish, on some reefs we even saw large fishing nets placed, to catch the last few remaining fish there. Coral growth was poor, covered in sand mostly.

Wish I could say something different about diving there, and I hope Mnemba atoll is at least a bit better.

greetings Robin

Thanks, Robin

Ouch! The unvarnished truth is much appreciated. Always good to have expectations managed.

We won't get too excited then. 

Fingers crossed the leopards rock-up in the national parks......

Hi Tim,

ye, managing expectations is in place. Maybe add your thoughts on this place when you have been there. Like I said, hope the other side of Zanzibar is at least a little better.

have a nice trip, pretty sure the national parks are nice!

Thanks. I'll report back for sure.

Hi Tim,

Several friends of mine were in Zanzibar for diving in the last few years and all of them basically agree with Robin. Even in the Mnemba atoll. 

Sorry about that

Many thanks, Davide.  It's really helpful to know. Happily a bit of diving was only a side part of this trip. 

Hi,
my Africa trip is long time history ( 1992 ), was in Malindi but not much to see....
The diving is nothing in relation to a well organiced safari....
Plan the same weight for long & fast lenses, best with stabilisation,
and you will enjoy the trip ;-)))
Try early morning and dawn, like diving ;-)))

Nice trip and great pics for you,
Wolfgang
 

Thanks, Wolfgang. Big lenses on standby and Stabilisation ready to switch to on!

Just get those leopards up in the trees.....

You may want to consider diving Pimba Island. In early October 2017, at the end of our Tanzania Safari we stayed at the Manta Resort for four nights and dove 3 dives a day. Pimba is a short flight from Zanzibar. The resort is a 1 1/2 hour drive from the airport and very isolated. It is expensive but we had the dive sites all to ourselves. The staff was fantastic. There is probably other resorts on the island that are cheaper. 

http://www.themantaresort.com/

Thanks, Bob. Sadly Pemba isn’t an option at this stage. 

So..... many thanks for the advance warning, guys. We did one two-tank dive on sites at Mnembe Atoll. That was enough. 

The DM described the viz as “perfect”. Let’s just say it wasn’t soupy and leave it at that. A decent bit of current on both dives which would have made macro difficult; viz made WA impossible;, quite a bit of smallish aquatic life: some nudis, a Mantis shrimp, couple of schools of grunts....  We were really glad we hadn’t hauled all our gear out there nor u/w camera equipment. 

We were surprised though just how many people were out diving on the atoll. It was busy and the dive operator - who was pretty good - had 2-3 full boats of divers each morning plus lots of snorkellers. 

oke tnx for the feedback Tim, main question remains: were the leopards in the Trees? 

On a rock. Not quite a tree, but hey.....

AND a cheetah making a kill and feeding the poor antelope to 3 bloody-mouthed cubs. Yawn.  More lions than you shake a very long stick at. Prides of 6-12 at a time. Serengeti was brilliant!

2500 pics to upload and sort.

Sounds good!
Is there a surface animal section here in the forum???

LOL, there might be once I've gone through my 2309 images......