I want to share the EPIC time I had on the recent T World Tours trip to Zanzibar in Sept 2024. It was, without a doubt, the trip of a lifetime and I LOVED every moment! This is my first time writing an online review for anything, but it was precisely the reviews of other travelers with T World Tours that was the deciding factor for me. So I want to do my part in encouraging others to do the same! I will start at the beginning. The trip was a birthday present to myself which I knew I wanted to be a luxury trip to a country in Africa. As it was to be my first (of hopefully many) trips to the African continent, I wanted to travel with fellow African-Americans who would likely also be experiencing Africa for the first time. I also wanted a mix of luxury-relax moments + interesting, fun activities. The T World Tours trip to Zanzibar checked all of these boxes and, after reading the rave reviews, I signed up. I was impressed right from the beginning with the super-efficient, transparent website and quick, close contact with Taliya. She was on top of everything, offering tips on proper clothing to wear in Stone town (as per her offer to help, I sent her photos of different outfits and she told me which one would be best) as well as practical travel tips such as buying a luggage tracker, portable charger, waterproof cell phone case and esim card – all of which I had never bought before but certainly used on the trip, particularly when, due to a short connecting flight, my luggage did not arrive with me in Zanzibar. That was resolved the next morning but Taliya was right with me the whole time via WhatsApp advising me what to do with the airport authorities, etc. The 5-star hotel at Nungwi beach was AMAZING! A beautiful resort with super friendly personnel (“Jambo” = good morning!) including Maasai as security, lovely large rooms, several pools (including my favorite - an infinity pool to the Indian Ocean), and delicious food and cocktails at our disposal as the package is “all-inclusive”. My first impression when I stepped into my room was a surprise “Happy Birthday” message spelled out in flowers on my bed! Thrilled and pampered right from the beginning!! Speaking of feeling pampered……A key part of the T World Tours experience that I think is understated on the website is the fact that we had two professional photographers (Otto and Diaz) with us at all times taking spontaneous and posed photos of us as a group and also tons of solo photos if you wanted. They even used drones to take photos of us on the boat trips and beaches! The resulting photos are AMAZING! They make me feel like a top model ….and all included in the package! That first night I met my fellow travelers, total 7 women and 2 men, mostly millennials from late 20s to late 30s and then there was me celebrating my 55th ……but since I look much younger (haha….ehem!), we all got along great and no one called me Aunty! We had an amazing first meal, got to know each other, and things just clicked. I think it´s a special thing when strangers come together to travel with open hearts and minds and, on this trip like I said, discover Africa, the motherland, together for the first time. It was just a special vibe throughout. The next day we visited Stone town where we saw the UNESCO site of the slave trade and later a spice market. Then we had a special treat for lunch: a traditional Zanzibar meal on an organic farm, sitting outside on the ground and eating with our hands (food tastes better that way our host said). It was one of the best meals I´ve ever had! Delicious! The next day was probably my favorite: a trip on a traditional boat (with drinks, fresh fruit, etc.) to Prison Island to see the gigantic turtles (some close to 300 years old) and then lunch on a sandbank (incredible fish and seafood on the grill – mouthwatering!!) and swimming in the gorgeous, warm Indian Ocean. That night we went to Coccobello, the hottest club in Zanzibar where we had the VIP lounge. What happens in Coccobello stays in Coccobello but suffice it to say that we arrived back to the hotel a little after 4am!! The next day was a free day and I was going to visit the school where I had donated but another opportunity arose to go on a quad trip (my first time on a quad) through the interior of the island and ending up on the beach. I´m SO glad I did this…it was AMAZING!! I passed through all types of vegetation and terrain stopping in two villages to buy biscuits and rice for the people and visit their houses. Super fulfilling in all aspects…I´m getting emotional just remembering it!  The next day was our boat party with a chef and DJ – super fun!! Then alas, we came to the last day (my birthday) when we visited a turtle rescue organization in a gorgeous lagoon with green turtles. And finally that night, we had our farewell dinner of amazing seafood under a beautiful, flowered canopy setting on the beach, complete with the staff singing and dancing the “Jambo Bwana” song for my birthday. So special!! I see that I´ve run out of adjectives to describe how incredible the food was. The abundant fruit and seafood tasted 1000x better than the food at home….and the sauces….! I hope I´ve done it justice but words can´t fully describe it. You must go and experience it for yourself! I´ve been back home two weeks now but the spirit of Zanzibar and its lovely people have stayed with me. I´m cooking with the spices I bought in the market, listening to the Afrobeats playlist that Taliya recommended, and taking life “pole pole” (slowly, calmly). I want to thank the T World Tour staff and partners who took such great care of us: Ally (our super tour guide!), Ibrahim, Otto, Diaz, the guide in Stone town, the boat crews, chefs, organic farm owners, turtle conservationists – ALL of whom had T World Tour polo shirts on when we arrived. Super class act and world-class organization! I will DEFINITELY be going on more T World Tours!!

TWT did its THANG with this trip to Zanzibar!! My trip to Zanzibar was magical, amazing, memorable, and fun as hell! Ali was an amazing host for this trip; we were very blessed to have him give us the best experience in beautiful Zanzibar! Ado and Diaz were a great photo/video duo that I know got enough footage for us to share with our great grandbabies! Each day of the trip went pretty flawlessly. It was great to just get up and show up without having to stress on the logistics because TWT handles it all. Stand outs for me were the farm to table meal (still craving that entire feast), seeing the tortoises at Prison Island and feeding turtles at the turtle sanctuary, Nakupenda sandbank, boat day, giving back to the kids at the local nursery school, swimming carefree in the crystal clear waters of the Indian Ocean, and of course a night out at Cocobello will go down in history for best night life I've ever experienced! I will cherish this trip forever and it was such a bonus blessing to experience Zanzibar with an amazing group of individuals. Thank you TWT for this magical trip to Zanzibar -- The Maldives of Africa!!! :)

This was definitely the best trip of my life! I loved everything about it from the people I met, the food, the culture in Zanzibar & the hospitality. Everything was well coordinated with no hassle & I would recommend anyone to book with T World tours. You definitely gonna have the time of your life !