Mnemba Island Snorkeling: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

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If you’re traveling to Zanzibar Island in Tanzania, Mnemba island snorkeling trips are one of the more popular activities offered. I recently went on a Mnemba Island snorkeling trip and want to share the good, the bad, and the ugly of these snorkeling trips.

Where is Mnemba Island?

Mnemba Island is a small private island located about two miles off the coast of Unguja Island, the largest island in the Zanzibar archipelago. This Indian Ocean island is surrounded by a four kilometer oval reef that has been declared a marine conservation area, making it an excellent snorkeling spot as well as a great location for scuba diving.

How to Get to Mnemba Island

Mnemba Island is a private island that is access restricted. You can only get to Mnemba Island by boat trip. Only hotel guests have access to Mnemba Island, however, local boat tours offer excursions to snorkeling spots in the coral reefs off the coast of Mnemba Island.

What Marinelife Can You See at Mnemba Island?

There are approximately 600 species of coral reef fish that can be seen in the underwater world of the Mnemba Island reefs. Dolphin watching is popular here, with three species of dolphins frequently spotted. Humpback Whales can be spotted from July through September and Whale Sharks can also be seen. From February through September Green Sea Turtles lay their eggs on the nearby beach, so they can also be spotted swimming among the corals.

The Best Time to Visit Mnemba Island

November through March offer the calmest conditions and best visibility for scuba diving and a snorkeling trip in the underwater world off the coast of Mnemba Island.

Mnemba Island Snorkeling: The Good

The sea life in this snorkeling spot is plentiful and beautiful. While we didn’t spot any green turtles in the marine reserve, there was tons of fish life and the coral reefs were relatively healthy looking. With most boat tours, snorkeling gear is included. The colorful sea creatures, ranging from yellow snappers to moorish idols were plentiful and it was a fun snorkeling experience. Also in the good category was our return boat ride to Nungwi, during which our guide cut up a huge variety of fresh fruits which were a refreshing and delicious snack after snorkeling as we hadn’t yet had a lunch break that day.

Mnemba Island Snorkeling: The Bad

But let’s talk about the bad. I booked in advance and the day of my trip was dreary, rainy, and a very windy day, and the sea conditions were quite rough, making snorkeling a challenge. The waves were the highest I had ever experienced while snorkeling and it made the experience quite challenging. The tour went rain or shine and had I chosen to not go, I would have been out money.

Mnemba Island Snorkeling: The Ugly

But that’s not the worst of it. I thought the dolphin watching part of the tour would happen if we were to simply spot dolphins near Mnemba Island. However once one boat had seen dolphins, it ended up with 20+ boats chasing the dolphins and people jumping in to swim with them. It was all very aggressive and intrusive to the dolphins and I felt horrible being part of the whole experience. I chose to stay on the boat and not swim with them, but since there were several other snorkelers on my boat who wanted to see the dolphins, I didn’t have the option to leave. To be clear, this is not behavior I ever want to take part in and it’s on me that I didn’t research the tour well enough because had I known, I certainly wouldn’t have taken it. Our tour company was not the only one out there, so the odds are good that most or all snorkeling excursions near the island will take part in this behavior. At times there were probably 30 snorkelers from a variety of boats in the water with the dolphins.

In terms of tours, this is not one I would recommend as it had only a single snorkeling stop and per the guide’s instructions, had snorkelers harassing an endangered species.

If you truly want to snorkel in the area, I would wait to book on-site and ensure that your trip does not include dolphin chasing activities. You may need to book a private tour so you don’t end up on a boat with people who do wish to snorkel with dolphins.