Paje Beach Apartments gives you an authentic Zanzibar experience while still offering the western comforts we are used to. The resorts laid-back beachy vibe and seafront location make it the perfect spot to kick back and enjoy local life. Located in the heart of Paje town, guests can wander along the beach past the neighbouring resorts or walk through the windy streets behind to explore some of the local seafood restaurants.

The rooms are newly renovated and very spacious, with large en suite bathrooms, air con, refreshments, and a small terrace. The rooms are arranged around the small pool which is behind the bar and beachfront restaurant.

We ate at the restaurant several times, and enjoyed a local Swahili-themed meal, as well as a delicious crab dinner. Breakfasts offered a wide range of buffet pastries, cereals, fruits and meats, as well as eggs cooked to order.

The resort has an in-house dive center (Buccaneer Divers) that is well--run and used by several of the neighbouring hotels.

Buccaneer Diving is located in the grounds of Paje Beach Resort and is a well-organised and busy shop that is also used by guests from neighbouring resorts. They have a dedicated pool for training and several dive boats to offer 2-tank dives each day.

The center itself has a washing area and a dedicated staff member for equipment washing, as well as rental equipment and a briefing area. Guests walk down the beach to the dive boats which are small wooden panga-style boats with a full shade. Entry is via a backward roll into the water, and you can take your equipment off on the surface before boarding after the dive. The surface interval was on the boat and we were given refreshments and water.

One thing to note is that the dive time shifts each day on a 2-week schedule due to the big tidal variation in Zanzibar. This means that your 2-tank dive could start as early as 6am or as late as 2pm. It also means that there is no house reef or snorkeling area at the front of the resort.

We dived in a group of 4 with one guide who was pleasant but didn't point out too many things. The diving is comparable to easy Caribbean diving, gently sloping reefs and good coral and rock cover with a nice range of interesting small to medium-sized fish life. Dive times are limited to 43 minutes so that both dives can be fitted in around the tides.

I would recommend diving with Buccaneer Divers - they were safe, organised, and a pleasure to interact with.

I spent 7 nights on the Blue Force 2 in November 2021 and had a fantastic trip. The pre-trip service from their office was helpful and efficient and everything was arranged as planned.

The boat is slightly tired but has everything required for a comfortable trip. The dive deck is spacious and has a large central camera table, there is plenty of deck space on the upper decks to relax, and everything was very clean and tidy.

The food was excellent, very varied, and fresh. The chef made an extra effort for those with dietary requirements and even made a birthday cake for one of our group. The staff was exceptional, especially the local guides who were knowledgeable, professional, and very friendly.

Overall, this boat offers excellent value for money, it may not be luxury but we more than go what we paid for.

Where to start! The Galapagos has been at the top of my bucket list for years, so this trip was highly anticipated. From a marine-life perspective, it didn't disappoint, and we saw far more than I was expecting. However, visibility wasn't great so some sightings felt fleeting at best. At Wolf and Darwin, we saw plenty of individual hammerheads and a few small groups, however, they were shy and didn't come closer than 15m. The poor vis meant we didn't get to experience the huge schools that this area is famous for, however, I'm sure they were there just out of sight. We also saw a good number of big Galapagos sharks, and a couple of whitetip reef sharks.

One of the highlights was spotting a huge whale shark. It spent some time doubling back and did a big figure of 8 loop so that we got a really great view. On another dive we saw 3 Mola mola at a cleaning station and then a single Mola mola during our safety stop, but , again, visibility wasn't great so we only watched them for less than a minute before they disappeared.

I was really blown away by the abundance of life here. The reefs are alive and bustling, and the fish don't seem scared of divers. I've never seen so many turtles and moray eels!

Diving can be challenging, especially for inexperienced divers. Expect STRONG currents at some sites, where you duck behind a rock and hold on. There is also quite a bit of bluewater diving and safety stops, choppy surface conditions, and it can get cold. In December the lowest temperatures we recorded were 13C at Fernandina! But it's worth it to see the marine iguanas and Mola mola.

Galapagos is reasonably undeveloped but definitely caters to tourists. There are countless t-shirt and souvenir shops, and the tortoise reserve is interesting. If you have some extra time, I would suggest visiting some of the more outlying areas where the wildlife is exceptional.