MAFIA ISLAND

Mafia is a large island lying off the southern coast of Tanzania , south of Zanzibar near the Rufiji Delta. The island covers an area of 822 square kilometres (approximately 30 miles from north to south, and up to ten miles in width). Mafia is a 30-minute flight from Dar es Salaam or Zanzibar . Tourism here is only on a very small scale and with very laid back and friendly locals – Mafia rightly deserves to be termed an unspoilt Indian Ocean holiday paradise.

Mafia Island is the site of Tanzania 's first Marine Park , which was gazetted in 1995. The Park covers the southern half of the island and part of the northeast, and is one of the most important marine habitats in the world. It has mangroves, sea-grass beds, coral reefs, inter-tidal reef flats, lagoons and coastal forest. The terrain of the island is mainly sandy and flat. There is a ridge forming a backbone to the northern end but at its highest point it does not exceed 200 feet above sea level. Along this ridge there is firm and fertile clay soil and cultivation of annual crops is possible. On the eastern shores there is some coral rock, making cultivation impossible. Chole Bay on the east of the island forms the hub of Mafia’s limited tourism development. There are three upmarket lodges here and the whole area is protected by the Mafia Island Marine Park , part of a community tourism association formed in 1995 to try and preserve the island’s appeal and individuality. The bay is surrounded with coral reefs teeming with sea life, has a number of isolated sand bars, and is sheltered by a reef that runs unbroken for the length of the island. Chole Bay is ideal for swimming, snorkelling, sailing and diving . Chole Bay , Mafia's protected deep-water anchorage, is part of a protected marine park. Its natural horseshoe shape offers great beaches. Outside the bay there are some unique reefs that offer spectacular diving, including colourful coral gardens, walls at various levels and many shelves and coral heads.

Mafia, along with the other islands lying off the east coast of Africa , has shared in the long and interesting history with seafarers and traders from ancient Greeks and Persians to Portuguese, German, Arab and British. There are written accounts, which go back as far as two thousand years; the earliest is a Greek text, the Periplus of the Erythraen Sea, which is dated around A.D. 110. Most subsequent accounts, up to the arrival of the Portuguese on the coast in the fifteenth century, were written by Arab geographers. The Portuguese were eventually ousted by the Omani Arabs who dominated the coast and much of the interior from the beginning of the eighteenth century until the late nineteenth century when the British and Germans colonised Kenya and Tanganyika respectively. During the Omani period, the most important settlement on the coast was Zanzibar Stone Town , the seat of the Sultan of Zanzibar. During this period links between the coast and interior were strengthened, based largely on the trade in ivory and slaves.

The oldest ruins on Mafia are located at Kisimani Mafia near to Kilindoni. Many of them have now been washed into the sea, but, according to the archaeologist Neville Chittick, who conducted excavations there in the 1950s, the earliest strata of mosques date from around the tenth and eleventh centuries. Another British archaeological expedition on Juani Island in the 1950s uncovered coins dating from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries (Freeman-Grenville 1957). Some archaeologists consider Kua was built before that, while others attribute a later date.

Mafia is the ideal location for total relaxation in the sun, sand and sea, and a marine paradise for scuba and deep sea divers. The pristine coral reefs are spectacular offering a colourful undersea adventure experience, the world’s most unique underwater seascape.

The nearby Rufiji River system makes the waters around Mafia particularly nutritional. As a result the reefs are especially brilliant with over 50 genera of coral, walls at various levels and many shelves and heads. As well as attracting over 400 fish species common to the Indian Ocean, they are a meeting place for 5 turtle species and many larger oceanic fish – placing Mafia amongst the finest diving areas in the Indian Ocean.

Other holiday activities on Mafia Island include bird watching, fishing and visits to local villages, historic archaeological sites, coastal forests, coconut plantations and traditional boat-building yards.

ACCESS
Regular scheduled flights are available from Dar es Salaam , Arusha, Zanzibar , Selous (via Zanzibar ) and Serengeti (via Zanzibar )

ACTIVITIES IN MAFIA
Scuba diving – explore spectacular coral reefs
Snorkelling
Kayaking
Sailing
Deep sea diving – ultimate underwater safari
Deep sea fishing
Relaxing on pristine beaches
Boat safaris to nearby islets
Visit ruins of ancient mosques at Kisimani
Mafia Bird Watching
Visit local fishing villages and coconut plantations

Contact Us to plan your holiday to Mafia Island.

Holidays to Mafia island can be combined with a holiday in Zanzibar,Dar es Salaam, Selous, Ruaha, Saadani, Mahale or Northern Tanzania.

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