Top five
PAJE
REASONS TO VISIT
Image: Rosa van Ederen
Paje’s magnificent strip of white sand is made for beach breaks that stay long in the memory, but the laidback village on Zanzibar’s south east coast offers far more than just a place to soak up the sun. Here are five reasons to pick Paje.
Kitesurfing With its steady winds and flat, shallow lagoons, Paje offers excellent kitesurfing conditions. Enthusiasts of the water sport head here during the two trade wind seasons from June to September and December to March and the kiters’ easy-going attitude is a good fit with the humble, laidback villagers. Unlike many other beach spots on the east coast, you can kite surf all day in Paje as high tide fills the inner lagoon while you can find similarly perfect flatwater, knee-deep conditions at low tide in the outer lagoon. The calm, shallow conditions are ideal for beginners while more experienced kiters can seek out freestyle thrills with high tide breaks over the coral reefs.
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Diving Zanzibar’s east coast is protected by a coral reef about 1 km off shore which offers excellent diving opportunities. There are a number of dive centres on Paje Beach that will take experienced divers out to the sites or offer PADI open-water courses to prepare people for their first underwater adventures. The nearby Dongwe and Bweju areas offer gentle reef dives as well as more challenging dives. Kizimkazi, a fishing village about 20 minutes from Paje, has a dive location with regular sightings of dolphins, a range of sharks, rays and even whale sharks during their migratory season. Any days too calm for kitesurfing are going to be ideal diving days with the prime time to be found between October and March when the winds start to flatten.
Seaweed soap When you are wandering Paje beach at low tide, seaweed farmers wading out into the water to tend to their crop is a familiar sight. Seaweed farming has been big business in Paje for more than three decades and an important source of income and independence for women, who make up the vast majority of farmers. Standing out in the shallows in their sky-blue smocks will be the mamas of Mwani (mwanizanzibar.com). This local company distinguishes itself in not exporting its harvested seaweed – there is a global demand for its use in medicine, animal feed, fertilizer and even as a biofuel – but rather using it to make nutrient-rich soap and skincare products at its centre in Paje village. You can see the products being made by hand on tours of the centre, where you can also buy and browse the Mwani range of products. A number of hotels and outlets in the village also stock Mwani products.
