Zanzibar, the island off Tanzania, is where Dr Livingstone presumed that he was 'in paradise' - with its turquoise seas, pristine beaches and luxury hotels, it is little wonder.

Nearly all accommodation in Zanzibar has to be paid for in US dollars.

MNEMBA ISLAND
Off Matemwe. A private island with probably the best diving reef in East Africa. Favourite haunt of supermodels and Hollywood stars. Book through Conservation Corporation Africa (www.ccafrica.com; email: webenquiries@ccafrica.com). £££££

ZANZIBAR SERENA INN
PO Box 4151, Kelele Square, Stone Town, Zanzibar (00 255 54 33015; fax: 33019). Stone Town's best hotel with sea-view rooms, carved staircases and a wonderful restaurant. ££

MBWENI RUINS HOTEL
PO Box, Stone Town, Zanzibar (tel/fax: 00 255 54 31832; email: mbweni-ruins@twiga.com). Very comfortable hotel with beautiful extensive gardens and tasty food, but does lack a decent beach. ££

CHUMBE ISLAND CHICOP
PO Box 3203, Zanzibar (tel/fax: 00 255 54 31040; or book through Mbweni Ruins Hotel). Stay on Chumbe Island in Robinson Crusoe style: in solar-powered huts, pumping up your water from the cistern below and watching your bread bake in a sun-trap oven. All meals included. ££

EMERSON'S HOUSE
PO Box 4044, Stone Town, Zanzibar (00 255 54 32153; fax: 30413). A beautifully restored Omani palace on Mkunazini Street. Not all the rooms have own bathroom. £

EMERSON'S AND GREEN
PO Box 4044, Stone Town, Zanzibar (00 255 54 30171; fax: 31038). Slightly more luxurious sister hotel to Emerson's House on Hurumzi Street, with rooftop restaurant. £

SALOME'S GARDEN
Bububu, 8km north of Stone Town on the waterfront, Zanzibar (tel: 01306 880 770; www.salomes-garden.com; email: salomesgarden@africatravelresource.com). Traditional Zanzibar country house originally owned by Emerson Skeens, (of the Emerson's and Green hotel). There are four majestic bedrooms.£

TEMBO HOTEL
PO Box 3974, Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania (00 255 54 33005 or 32069; fax: 33777). Comfortable hotel on Forodhani Street right by the beach, opposite the Fisherman's Restaurant. Children under six sharing with parents go free. £

FUNDU LAGOON
Fashion designer Ellis Flyte's resort has 20 luxurious, thatched bungalows built on mangrove stilts, on the beach and tucked into the hillside of Pemba island. Book through Scott Dunn (020 8672 1234). ££

SUNRISE
PO Box 3967, Paje-Bwejuu, Zanzibar (tel/fax: 00 255 811 320 206). A good honeymoon location, with decent double beds. Generator-powered electricity. £

BREEZES BEACH CLUB
PO Box 1361, Paje-Bwejuu, Zanzibar (00 255 811 326 595; fax: 811 333 151). A large resort (Club Med type), popular with families as it offers lots of activities. £

MATEMWE BUNGALOWS
PO Box 3275, Nungwi-Matemwe, Zanzibar (00 255 54 33789; fax: 31342; email: mateme-znz@tiga.com). Accommodation is in self-contained bungalows which need to be booked six-months ahead. Under-fives free. Wedding packages available. There's no electricity: lighting is by hurricane lamp. Closed May and June. ££

RAS NUNGWI
PO Box 1784, Nungwi-Matemwe, Zanzibar (00 255 54 33767/32512; fax: 33098; email: rasnungi@zanzibar.net). A big resort style hotel with rooms and chalets. £

AMAAN BUNGALOWS
PO Box 132, Nungwi-Matemwe, Zanzibar (00 255 54 320202). Bungalows and more deserted, basic bandas (huts) available at nearby Kenwe Rocks. £

Food in Zanzibar generally means seafood and rice, and it is usually well cooked and healthy. You can expect fruit, bread, eggs and coffee for breakfast at Nungwi. There are some good restaurants in Stone Town, including Blues (on the waterfront) and the rooftop restaurant at Emerson's House. Also try the Fat Fish Bar, owned by cockney carpenter Chris Jones, who lays on decent food each evening based mainly on fresh fish caught locally.

TOURS
Mitu's Spice Tour: ask outside the Ciné Afrique in Malawi Road, Stone Town.Try Rainbow Tours (00 255 54 3346), Stone Town, for snorkelling, fishing and spice tours. Or take a day trip to Chumbe Island (snorkelling equipment and lunch provided through Mbweni Ruins Hotel).

WATERSPORTS
East Africa Diving and Watersports Centre (Nungwi) offers four-day PADI open-water courses and a range of other dives from Discover Scuba to the full Divemaster course. Book through Amaan Bungalows. Sailing, waterskiing and game-fishing are also available. Dive Africa/Indian Ocean Drivers, in Nungwi and Stone Town, (PO Box 2370; tel: 00 255 54 811 326574; fax: 33 860), and One Ocean, PO Box 608 (00 255 54 33816; fax: 30 406), offer a similar range of PADI courses.

AIRPORT
Fly to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, then connect to Zanzibar.

AIRLINES FROM THE UK
Book flights to Dar es Salaam through Alliance Air (020 8944 5012; www.allianceairlines.com), British Airways (0845 779 9977; www.british-airways.com) or KLM (0990 750900; www.klm.com). The easiest option is to take the Alliance Air night flight from London, which leaves every Monday and Friday at 21.05, and the following morning take a 20-minute flight on a small plane to Zanzibar with the most reliable shuttle operator, Precision Air. Precision Air flights can be booked through Alliance Air. Check at Dar es Salaam for other charter and shuttle flights.

You could alternatively take a ferry, hydrofoil or dhow from Dar es Salaam harbour (after a taxi ride from the airport), but this takes between one and four hours and is probably more hassle than it's worth. The beauty of Alliance Air's early-morning arrival is that you can be in Stone Town for lunch. You can either book your Precision Air ticket ahead (though there can be a problem with credit-card payments) or take the fairly certain chance of being able to pick one up at Dar es Salaam airport. The office is in the departures lounge. Best to get your return ticket in Zanzibar, at Maha Travel in Stone Town before heading to the beaches, as you have to confirm it there anyway on your way back. Confirm your Alliance Air ticket at the same time.

WHO TO GO WITH
Be warned that telephone lines to Zanzibar are notoriously unreliable. It may be more convenient to arrange flights and accommodation together, through specialist agents like Zanzibar Travel (tel/fax: 01242 222027). Tailor-made trips also available.

Lots of matutus (minibus-taxis) are available. Hire one at the airport and agree a day rate for tours. The fare from the airport to Stone Town will be about US$10.

Ask at your hotel about scooter or car hire, or make a deal in the street. You will need an international driving licence, otherwise you can purchase a Zanzibar licence at the docks. Expect lots of police stops. They are very polite, generally, and will back down if you refuse to pay a bribe but in general it is easier and no more expensive to take a taxi.

For the best weather in Zanzibar, go between June and October. From December to March, the weather is very hot. High season runs from 1 June to 15 October and from 1 January to 15 February. Avoid the 'long rains' between March and June. There are also 'short rains' in November and early December.

Health: Take paludrine and chloroquine against malaria. The mosquitoes are particularly bad at Mbweni and the Fisherman's Resort. Also take insect repellent. You can spray your room with insecticide (a brand called 'Doom' is on sale in local supermarkets). Drink bottled water. Stock up in Stone Town, it's cheaper.

On your return journey, watch out for the departure tax sting: on your international ticket, you will see that you have already paid for the Tanzanian airport tax. The Zanzibar authorities may try to get you to pay again.

The Zanzibar Tourist Corporation or ZTC (00 255 54 31341) is located at Livingstone House, Stone Town, north of town on the Bububu road.