Spice Farm Tour with Traditional Cooking Lesson

The hosts of this tour (many involved) try very hard to make the tour informative and fun. The main guide (for us Chiquita) was on top of his game and he was willing to spend as much time as necessary to allow us to learn about the plants rewarding us with high fives when we managed to successfully identify them. He was ably assisted by a young trainee who was one step ahead in collecting the necessary leaves, fruit and roots. This same young man produced woven baskets, crowns and necklaces for take home treats. The cookery lesson was organized by Haitham. It was not really a cooking lesson but we were allowed to be hands on during the procedure accompanied by the team singing with great energy. Later the food she prepared for lunch was delicious. We also sang while a young man sprinted up a tree with great strength and ability. We were delighted when we realized a group of colobus monkeys were in the surrounding trees. This Union spice farm is part of a community project and tourism is essential to the livelihood of the local people. There is an opportunity to buy locally made toiletries and also bags of spice. Also, we wanted to tip the team members who had made the days so enjoyable. Before you go make sure you have the means to do this.

My friends and I really enjoyed this tour. The guides gave in depth information about all of the plants and we learned so many interesting things. It was a combination of walking trails and looking at plants and sitting and listening to information and watching the process of cooking with the plants and spices. They made it fun and entertaining. If you are interested in plants and spices, I highly recommend this tour.

Perhaps the best experience on our entire trip. Amazingly beautiful and educational. Our driver Juma was super sweet and very punctual. Our guide Alhamisi was amazing and knew how to make it all exciting. Very in depth knowledge of most plants, and even know what to call it in many different languages.

We took this tour with our three young children, ages 6, 4, and 1. It was amazing. The company was easy to communicate with and very professional. We got to see spices growing like vanilla, cardamom, cinnamon, turmeric, nutmeg, peppercorn, and many more. Plus we saw coconuts, pineapples, passion fruit, and star fruit. There was a cooking demonstration of a traditional Zanzibari dish, and a super delicious lunch served. Lunch included fish, but you could opt out of fish if vegetarian. The kids had a great time asking lots of questions. Our guide was very patient with the kids and very informative. I highly recommend this tour for anyone, but especially for families with small children.