From Greece with love: How Sarah spent her honeymoon in Tanzania

Before winter hits, it is  normal for the people there to work seven days a week, and just as winter approaches, the nonstop work ceases and people get to relax and go on holidays to places with warmer weather.

Her visit to Tanzania was one of the most wonderful feats—a delightful coincidence. The bar in a hotel where Sarah’s husband works welcomed a new owner, and in Greek tradition, they presented the owner with a plant; amazingly, they found out the plant originates from Zanzibar.

Sarah and her husband didn’t know Zanzibar, so they got curious and had to Google just to know more about the island, and to their amazement, the spicy island was breathtaking and just what they were looking for as their next travel destination on their honeymoon.

“Once we found Zanzibar on Google, the water looked amazing; we had to go,” she recalled.

The world has numerous sunny beach travel destinations; nevertheless, the affordability and access to a variety of fresh food in Zanzibar did attract them to choose the island.

The couple stayed in Paje. The tides of the Indian Ocean while sitting on the white-sand beach in Paje were a sight they marvelled at. The tide would recede and expose the little crabs and shiny shells by the beach, and Sarah was enamoured by that scenery. The fish from the waters surrounding Zanzibar were the most delicious she had ever eaten.

She would be awestruck to walk into a restaurant every night and find fresh fish being served, including tuna, lobsters, and mussels.

The Jambo Beach Resort is where the couple stayed, and they were humbled by the hospitality. The hotel manager personally came over to introduce himself to them, and Sarah, who is also in the hospitality business, took that as a kind gesture. The locals working there welcomed them with bright smiles.

The dolphin trip was unforgettable; they sailed a little bit later in the day to where they could find them. They chose to go later than usual to avoid the crowding of boats at the spot. “We didn’t want to stress the dolphins with so many boats and noise,” she said.

The patience and considerate act were rewarded by Mother Nature. After they got the snorkels, they went underwater and got to see the dolphin gliding through the water.

“We preferred ethical snorkelling; you might not see many dolphins, but you will see some, and it’s peaceful even for the fish,” she advised.

Their honeymoon in Zanzibar was nothing short of magical, from the fresh food, the waves of the ocean, and the people. For the couple who work in the hotel, it was nice to be on the receiving side of the services.

The locals would get close to Sarah and ask for a picture with her with smiles on their faces. They loved interacting with the people as they strolled on the island.

On a Tropical Air flight in the wee hours of the morning, the couple landed on the mainland of Tanzania after departing from Zanzibar. A few hours later, they were in Mikumi National Park. Sarah remembers seeing a one-week-old baby elephant, a rare sight of the calf amongst the herd walking in Mikumi National Park.

Sarah was most impressed by seeing these animals in their natural habitat, walking freely, fending for themselves, and not in a zoo relying on people to feed them.

She fell in love with the majestic elephants and the towering giraffes.

“The giraffes are so huge but so graceful,” she said.

“My husband liked the lions because they were playful and relaxed while we were there,” she remembers. Sarah and her husband were lucky to see a pride of five lions. The encounter with the lions got too close for comfort when their car got stuck, an exhilarating experience in their adventure in Mikumi.

The couple remembers how their tour guide was helpful and professional throughout their tour, and they vow to book them again when they come back.

“The other tour guide scammed us unfortunately, but our first guide was the best, a nice gentleman,” Sarah recalled.

After the eventful honeymoon, people back home were eager to know more about the newfound vacation island, the location that they had just googled and decided to go to for their honeymoon.

Friends and families were also curious about the price of vacationing in Zanzibar; the usual islands Europeans used to frequent like the Maldives and Bali have become too expensive to visit, and they wanted to know if Zanzibar would require significant financial investment to fully enjoy the experience on the island.

Sarah reckons that though flights to the island from Europe would require one to dig deeper in their pockets once they are on the island, the food, the drinks, and even the accommodation are affordable. “I would recommend the visit to Tanzania to anyone in a heartbeat,” she affirmed.

The impression Zanzibar Island has left on these lovebirds’ hearts and minds is unforgettable. Sarah and her husband are already planning their visit back to Zanzibar.

“We normally take a vacation every two years, and we plan to come back to the same hotel when we go back to the island,” she joyfully said.