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Zanzibar

Zanzibar, Tanzania · October 2023

Stayed: Amani Boutique Hotel in Paje, then the Park Hyatt Zanzibar in Stone Town, all on Hyatt points
Flying in: Air France business class from Paris
Paid with: 97,000 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points plus €601.12, for two
Where: 6.16° S · 39.19° E

Part one · Getting there on Air France

Booked through Virgin Atlantic Flying Club: 97,000 points plus €601.12 in taxes and surcharges for two seats, 48,500 points and €300.56 each. I didn’t take many pictures on this one, and none of the food.

Paris Charles de Gaulle to Zanzibar · Air France business

The seat

The flight map with Zanzibar as the destination

On the way

The flight map over the Nile, four hours and 49 minutes to go

Getting to Paris was a separate booking, Air France premium economy. That flight was canceled and I was rebooked on Delta premium economy. The €600 compensation came through, so that was nice. I’d booked two nights in Paris just because I was ready to go somewhere else, so it worked out for making this flight. Premium economy on a short overnight flight to Europe was pretty rough after years of getting used to lie-flat business class. It’s about like a domestic first class seat, and it’s just uncomfortable trying to sleep sitting up.

Where I stayed · Amani Boutique Hotel

A Small Luxury Hotels of the World hotel, four nights booked with Hyatt points back before SLH went to Hilton. It turned out the booking included dinner as well as breakfast, so that was nice. It was a very secluded beach, cool to stay at but pretty quiet.

The hotel

The room at night, with a mosquito net over the bed

Loungers under a thatched umbrella on the beach

Meals

Breakfast and dinner were both included

A table on the deck looking out to the beach

Dinner: beef with mashed potatoes and vegetables

Part two · Along the beach into town

You could walk into town along the beach, but there wasn’t a lot there.

The beach at low tide

Into town

Part three · The red colobus

A trip to Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park, near Paje, to see the Zanzibar red colobus, a monkey found only on Zanzibar. These are from the camera. They move around a lot, so I took a lot.

In the trees

Also in the forest

Most likely Sykes’ monkeys (the guide called them blue monkeys) and an elephant shrew, the two you usually see there

Where I stayed · Park Hyatt Zanzibar

Five nights in Stone Town on Hyatt points, 25,000 a night, plus a Suite Upgrade Award. Breakfast was included.

The suite

The beach below

From the balcony, morning to sunset

Part four · Stone Town

Walking in

Sunset on the waterfront

The fishing boat as the sun touches the water

Leaving on Ethiopian

Booked through Aeroplan: 90,000 points plus CA$229 for two, Ethiopian business class to Istanbul with a 23-hour stopover in Addis Ababa → The shorter flight from Zanzibar to Addis Ababa had a full lie-flat seat.

Zanzibar to Addis Ababa

The Premium Lounge entrance at the Zanzibar airport

The lounge in the dark during a power outage

The flight map from Zanzibar to Addis Ababa

The seat area with the Cloud Nine pillow and bedding

Chicken with rice, a salad and chocolate cake