Zanzibar Stone Town Tour, Prison Island & Nakupenda with BBQ
Free cancellation · Pickup included
fromUS$68
See dates on GetYourGuideNakupenda Sandbank from Stone Town: tides, boats and fees
Tour
Zanzibar: Swimming with Turtles at Salaam Cave & Entry Fee
fromUS$29
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See dates on GetYourGuide
Nakupenda Sandbank
Photo: Google Maps- Type
- Beach
- Area
- Stone Town
- Time to spend
- Prison Island Zanzibar's Prison Island and Nakupenda Beach tour lasts 6 hours.5
- Google rating
- 4.6 (466 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026
- On the map
- Open in Google Maps
Google Maps lists no opening hours
Sandbar off Stone Town
What Nakupenda is
Nakupenda is a tidal sandbank, not a permanent island2. The name means ‘I love you’ in Swahili2.
Low tide only2
It lies off Stone Town, the historic centre of Zanzibar City, on Unguja (Zanzibar Island), one of Zanzibar’s two large islands in the Indian Ocean3. On Google Maps you’ll find it as Nakupenda Beach, listed as a beach4.
The crossing
Getting there from Stone Town by boat
The only way out to Nakupenda is by boat from Stone Town, and the tours below include pickup, so you don’t need a car.
Boat ride: 20–45 minutes1
The crossing takes 20–30 minutes2 by See Adventures’ count, or 30–45 minutes1 according to Holidays To Zanzibar. Allow for the longer end if you have plans back in town.
-
Pick a low-tide day
Ask your operator when low tide falls on your date: the sandbank is underwater at high tide.
-
Book a combined trip
The standard day trip pairs Nakupenda with Prison Island.
-
Check what the price covers
The marine entry fee is separate and collected in cash on the day.
-
Cross from Stone Town
The boat ride takes 20–45 minutes, depending on the source.
Pay on the day
Entry fees and the cash you need
Fees for the sandbank come on top of your boat trip: the marine entry fee is a separate charge, collected in cash on the day1 (checked October 2026).
Reported fees: US$21–251
Fees for Nakupenda and Prison Island
| Ticket | Adult | Child |
|---|---|---|
| Marine conservation fee | US$10 per person | – |
| Prison Island entry | US$12 | – |
| Reported fees for both stops, cash on the day | US$21–25 per person | – |
| Operator tour: Prison Island and Nakupenda Beach | US$65 per traveller | – |
GoWithGuide (booking agent); Holidays To Zanzibar (travel guide); prisonislandzanzibar.com (operator)
Ask whether your tour price already covers these fees before you book, and carry small US dollar notes so you’re not hunting for change on the boat.
Book a day trip
Tours that stop at Nakupenda
Most people visit on a combined Prison Island and Nakupenda trip, which takes six to eight hours1 in total. Prison Island Zanzibar’s own Prison Island and Nakupenda Beach tour lasts 6 hours5.
Combined day: 6–8 hours1
Zanzibar: Prison Island and Nakupenda Boat Trip with Lunch
Free cancellation · Pickup included
fromUS$18
See dates on GetYourGuideThe Ziocean Tours and Travel trip adds a Stone Town tour and a BBQ lunch to the boat stops. The Island Adventure Tours and Safaris trip sticks to the boat run with lunch and comes in options of different lengths.
The usual pairing
Prison Island on the same day
Prison Island (Changuu) is the usual partner stop, and its giant tortoises (Aldabra tortoises) are the draw: you can see and feed6 them.
See and feed giant tortoises6
The boat from Stone Town to Prison Island takes 20–30 minutes each way7. Its entry fee sits in the fees table above, and the Prison Island (Changuu) guide covers the island itself.
Who it suits
Is Nakupenda worth it?
For a family day out from Stone Town, it can be: Holidays To Zanzibar calls it one of the better family excursions from Stone Town1.
Who it suits, from what operators and guides say:
- Young children: See Adventures says children as young as three2 enjoy the sandbank.
- Limited mobility: a GoWithGuide tour says it suits most travellers, but guests with mobility difficulties should tell the operator before booking8.
- Tide-watchers: the whole day hangs on low tide, so a flexible schedule helps.
If the tides don't fit
Other sea trips and sights near Stone Town
If the tides don’t suit your dates, these trips and sights have their own pages:
- Forodhani Gardens: a small park on Stone Town’s main sea walk10, handy for the evening once you’re back on land.
- Chumbe Island off Zanzibar: guided snorkelling tours last about an hour, with all equipment provided11.
- Safari Blue: a longer sea day with guided snorkelling and a Swahili seafood barbecue lunch followed by island fruit12.
- Mnemba, off Zanzibar’s north-east coast: the island sits about 3 km off the north-east coast of Unguja, and non-guests are not allowed to land on it13.
- Salaam Cave: trips there are built around swimming with turtles; compare the Salaam Cave tour options.
- A spice farm tour: on TUI’s Jozani and spice farm tour, you see vanilla, pepper and cardamom grown and taste them straight from the tree14.
For everything else on the island, browse the full Zanzibar things-to-do hub.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons and Pexels. Authors and licences: image credits
Checked against 14 sources · last checked October 2026
- Holidays To Zanzibar (travel guide) · checked October 2026
- see-adventures.com (tour company) · checked October 2026
- Wikipedia · checked October 2026
- Google Maps listings via DataForSEO · checked October 2026
- prisonislandzanzibar.com (operator) · checked October 2026
- Wikipedia · checked October 2026
- Holidays To Zanzibar (tour company) · checked October 2026
- GoWithGuide (booking agent) · checked October 2026
- Wikivoyage · checked October 2026
- Wikipedia · checked October 2026
- Chumbe Island (official) · checked October 2026
- Safari Blue (operator) · checked October 2026
- Wikipedia · checked October 2026
- TUI (booking agent) · checked October 2026
Page history · last changed 21 October 2026
- First written
