Jozani forest

Jozani forest
Jozani forest covers an area of about 50 kilometers squared in Zanzibar islands of Tanzania. It’s the largest remaining stand of near natural forest in Zanzibar made up of salt marsh, mangroves, coastal forests, ground forests and savannah grasslands.
In 1930, Jozani forest was bought by an Arab who bought a sawmill inside the forest until the late 1940s when the colonial government took over ownership of the forest, the colonial government first designated Jozani as a forest reserve in 1952 but decided to gazette it as a nature reserve in 1960 . The forest still suffered deforestation and poaching because no serious conservation measures were taken despite being a nature reserve, wildlife at Jozani started to thrive recently when the reserve was upgraded in to a national park in 2005.
Jozani forests have been home to the rare and endemic Zanzibar red colobus monkey also known as Kirk’s colobus monkey, the monkey is known as Kirk’s red colobus monkey named after Sir John Kirk who was a British resident in Zanzibar town and became the first to bring the monkey species to the attention of zoological science.
The Zanzibar leopard also inhabits Jozani forest though some people believe that its extinct but some locals still believe the animal exists but sorcerers keep it for their own magic tricks. An American documentary television series in 2018 showed a camera footage of a small leopard and this proofed that the animal might still exist in the forest. The last sightings were around 2002-2003.
Jozani forest hosts several species of wildlife especially primates and some of the animals you will come across while in the forest include; Zanzibar servaline genet, suni antelope, adder’s duiker, bush babies, suni antelope and Zanzibar tree hyrax the first of its kind to acclimatize to the forest.
Birding
Jozani forest is the best birding destination for bird enthusiasts to visit while in Zanzibar. Over 40 species of birds have been recorded and some are endemic to the forest. Examples of birds at Jazani forest include; helmeted guinea fowl, white faced whistling duck, northern gray headed sparrow, house sparrow, Richard’s pipit, African pipit, eastern crested Guinea fowl, ring necked dove, red eyed dove, blue spotted wood dove, emerald spotted wood dove, African green pigeon, tambourine dove, pin tailed whydah, Common waxbill, bronze manikin, green backed twin spot, black and white manikin, African golden weaver, forest weaver, village weaver, black winged bishop, Zanzibar red bishop, African wood owl, fischer’s turaco, Madagascar cuckoo, white browed coucal, green malcoa, African palm swift, little swift, white rumped swift, African swamp hen, water thick knee, Senegal lapwing, black bellied plover, common ringed plover, mouse colored sunbird, variable sunbird, scarlet chested sunbird, purple banded sunbird, olive sunbird, East coast akalat, pemba white eye, southern yellow white eye, red rumped swallow, lesser swamp warbler, yellow breasted apalis, house crow, pied crow, black backed puff back, tropical bou bou, Eurasian golden oriole, cardinal woodpecker, red fronted tinker bird, African pygmy kingfisher, pied kingfisher, crowned hornbill, speckled mouse bird, black winged kite, African cuckoo hawk, palm nut vulture, black headed heron, goliath heron, long tailed cormorant and great crested tern among others.
The mangrove board walk
Jozani forest mangrove board walk is one of the ways for tourists to explore the forests flora and fauna, mangroves are made up of large composition of tree coverage, the walk can take about 45 minutes to an hour with a knowledgeable tour guide expounding more about the plants, birds and about Jozani as whole.
Best time to visit
Jozani forest can be visited all year round, however, fir those interested in nature walk trails the best time for visiting is during the dry seasons of June to September and December to February when the trails are in good condition. The best time for birding at Jozani forest is from November to April when migratory birds from north Africa and Europe are present in the forest.
Packing list
Tourists visiting Jozani forest must come along with; hiking or walking shoes, sun screen, insect repellents, binoculars, cameras, plenty of drinking water, light rain jacket, long sleeved clothing and many other essentials you might need to make your trip memorable.
Entry fee
Entry fee to Jozani forest is paid at the entrance, this includes guiding fee. The reception is close to the gate so after paying you will be directed to the reception where a guide will be assigned to you after showing the payment receipt.
Where to stay
There is no accommodation at Jozani forest but tourists can stay in other hotels near the park. Accommodation options will vary from luxurious beach resorts, mid range hotels and budget options. Some of the hotels you can sleep in include; Paje beach bandas, Tiki beach Zanzibar, summer dream lodge, mauwa Zanzibar guesg house, drifters zanzibar, Zanzibar dream lodge, Filao beach resort, five palms marumbi, paradise beach resort and spa, villa noemi, simba apartments hotel, Bazi’s house, shamba village, Tsunami village, fisherman lodge, Zanzibar bay resort, coconut marumbi, Joschi’s paradise lodge, Shamba village hotel, hakuna matata boutique, Tamu house paje, V hotel, tree house hotel and spa and many others.
Getting there
Tourists planning to go to Jozani have to travel to Zanzibar and there are two ways you can reach Zanzibar. Zanzibar can be reached by using a ferry or speed boat or alternatively tourists can fly in to Abeid Amani Karume international airport. Jozani national park entrance is located on the main road from Zanzibar and its open daily from 7am to 5pm.
Zanzibar
Zanzibar is an archipelago in the Indian ocean comprised of many islands but the main and large islands are Pemba island and Unguja island. The island is sometimes referred to as “spice islands” because one of the islands main industry is spices. Zanzibar today has a mix od diverse origins from Africans, Arabs, Persians, Europeans and Chinese and many more.
Zanzibar islands are a perfect holiday destination for people who love turquois blue waters, whit sand beaches, historical sites, spices and so much more. There are a lot of activities people can so whole in Zanzibar some of which can be seen below;
Snorkeling
Zanzibar islands have been rated as some of the top snorkeling destinations in Africa. There several spots on that offer some thrilling snorkeling opportunities to travelers for example; Nakupenda sand bank, Kizimazi snorkeling, prison island, Chumbe island and Tumbatu island to mention a few. While snorkeling, tourists can see abundant marine life such as; leaf fish, sea horse, humpback whale, crocodile fish, octopus, cuttle fish, frog fish, white tip reef shark, porcelain crab, blue fin trevally, lion fish, Mauritius scorpion fish, Indian ocean walk man, blue spotted ray, dolphins and green turtle to mention a few.
Explore prison island
Prison island just like the name suggests is an island that was built for errant slaves, its located abut 6 kilometers from stone town. However, the island wasn’t used for its purpose of slaves but later became a place for people quarantined woth yellow fever. The island is now home to giant tortoises.
Visit spice plantations
Zanzibar is an island of spices, there several large scale plantations found in Zanzibar and you could visit one of them and learn the process of how your favorite spice is planted, harvested and packed. Some of the spices grown in Zanzibar include; nut meg, black pepper, red pepper, garlic, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, lemon grass, turmeric and so much more.
Scuba diving
Zanzibar is also an ideal destination for divers, tourists can explore and do scuba diving at different reef dives either close to the shores or some can be accessed by a boat off shores.
Relax at the beaches
The best thing you can do after a long walk at Jozani forest is to relax in one of Zanzibar’s white sand beaches, there are several beaches to explore and relax from while swimming and un bathing.
Sun set Dhow cruise
Enjoy a traditional sun set dhow cruise with panoramic sunsets over the ocean while sipping a sun downer and observing water birds.
Explore stone town
Stone town is the capital of Zanzibar, the unique historical town is world heritage site has a lot of stories to tell from thousands of years ago. There are a lot of historical places to visit in Stone town like; Old port, former slave market, Zanzibar ancient doors, old mosques, Turkish baths and so much more.
Visit the sultan palace museum
The historical sultan palace museum was a palace for Sultan Seyyid Said from 1820s to early 1890s until it was utterly destroyed by the British in 1896. The palace was later rebuilt and used by several Sultans until it was over thrown by the 1964 revolutions. At the museum compounds are several tombs of various sultans of that time. If you love history, then there is more to learn about Zanzibar fro. The palace museum.
The other activities you can do in Zanzibar is water skiing, wind surfing, visit Forodhani food gardens, cultural encounters and so much more.