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2026 costs for Zanzibar
Zanzibar in 2026: gorgeous beaches, a UNESCO old town, and a growing pile of fees and friction
By RuinMyTrip Editorial
Zanzibar had a record year. The archipelago logged 917,167 international arrivals in 2025, up nearly 25 percent from 736,755 in 2024, and European travelers, led by Italy at roughly 14 percent of visitors followed by France and Poland, now dominate the mix. That surge is exactly why the honest version of this trip looks different than it did a few years ago: more fees, more construction, and more scrutiny of who act…
What nearly ruins it: The fee stack is the honest headline. Between the mandatory $50 to $100 e-visa, the $10-per-person-per-night hotel levy added on top of your room rate since August 2024, and the n…
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Written by RuinMyTrip Editorial from published research and official sources, not from a personal trip. It is not a traveler review and is never counted in the community rating. How we research.
Practical tips
Editorial- Apply for Tanzania's e-visa in advance at visa.immigration.go.tz; visa on arrival was abolished in January 2025 and processing takes 2 to 5 business days.
- Budget an extra $10 per person, per night for Zanzibar's hotel infrastructure levy, in effect since August 1, 2024, on top of your quoted room rate.
- Check your return airfare includes the international departure tax (about $45 one-way, $90 round-trip) that airlines began folding into ticket prices from November 1, 2025.
- Start malaria prophylaxis (atovaquone/proguanil, doxycycline, or mefloquine) before you go; risk is high across the entire archipelago, and there is no vaccine.
- US citizens need Tanzania's $100 multiple-entry e-visa even for a single trip, not the standard $50 single-entry visa other nationalities can use.
- Ask directly where a beachfront resort's land title comes from before booking; Zanzibar's own parliament flagged widespread forged and disputed land titles in 2025.
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