Dar es Salaam. Zanzibar received 100,216 international visitors in January 2026, marking a strong 19.2 percent increase compared with 84,069 arrivals recorded in the same period last year, according to the latest tourism statistics released on February 10, 2026.
However, the figure represents a marginal decline of 0.5 percent from the 100,729 visitors recorded in December 2025, reflecting a slight post-festive slowdown in arrivals.
Data from the Office of the Chief Government Statistician shows that Europe continued to dominate Zanzibar’s tourism market, accounting for 69.5 percent of all international visitors in January.
Italy emerged as the leading source market, contributing 14.4 percent of total arrivals, followed by France at 6.9 percent. Japan recorded the lowest share at just 0.3 percent.
Most visitors entered the archipelago through Abeid Amani Karume International Airport, which handled 92,580 arrivals, equivalent to 92.3 percent of the total.
Of these, 71,344 arrived on international flights, while 21,236 came via domestic flights.
The remaining 7,636 visitors entered through seaports, including 581 cruise ship passengers and 7,055 travellers arriving by ferry from the Tanzania Mainland.
Holidaymakers overwhelmingly dominated arrivals during the month, with 99,720 visitors about 99.5 percent coming for leisure. Only 0.1 percent visited friends and relatives, while 0.4 percent cited other purposes.
The statistics also show that male visitors slightly outnumbered females. A total of 58,501 visitors (58.4 percent) were male, while 41,715 (41.6 percent) were female.
Compared with December 2025, the number of male visitors increased by 2.5 percent, while female arrivals declined by 4.4 percent.
In terms of age distribution, the majority of visitors fell within the working-age population. About 84,898 visitors (84.7 percent) were aged between 15 and 64 years, while 10,241 visitors (10.2 percent) were aged 65 and above.
Children under the age of 15 accounted for 5.1 percent, equivalent to 5,077 visitors.
Arrivals from emerging markets including Poland, India, Russia, Israel, China and Ukraine declined by 1.5 percent compared with December 2025, suggesting some softening in growth from these source countries.
Tourists’ length of stay remained relatively stable, with 33.5 percent of visitors staying for seven days. The average intended length of stay in January 2026 was eight nights.
The increase in arrivals translated into strong performance for the hospitality sector. Out of 913,911 available bed spaces during the month, an estimated 800,124 were sold, resulting in a high bed occupancy rate of 87.5 percent.
The latest figures underscore Zanzibar’s continued appeal as a leading Indian Ocean destination, supported by strong demand from European markets and sustained performance in the hospitality industry, despite slight month-on-month fluctuations.
