Mafia sits about 50 km off the Rufiji delta and receives a tiny fraction of Zanzibar's visitors. Its marine park was Tanzania's first, and the reefs inside Chole Bay are among the healthiest in the Indian Ocean — hard coral gardens, walls and more than 400 species of fish.
From October to March whale sharks feed in the plankton-rich water off the west coast, close enough to shore that snorkelling with them is genuinely reliable rather than a lottery.
October to March for whale sharks; June to October for the calmest diving conditions.
About 394 km², with the marine park covering the southern bays and reefs.
A resident seasonal population feeds off the west coast between October and March.
Short flights from Dar es Salaam or Zanzibar to Mafia airstrip.
Mafia is a diving and snorkelling island first, but there is enough history and mangrove to fill the days you are not in the water.
Add a few days on Mafia to any safari and you'll wonder why it isn't busier.
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