Zanzibar is small enough to see a great deal in one day and large enough that a badly planned route wastes half of it in the car. This is the order that works.
Morning: Stone Town
Start at 8:30 while the alleys are still cool. Two hours covers the old fort, the House of Wonders waterfront, the former slave market memorial and the carved doors of the merchant quarter.
A licensed walking guide is worth adding here. The streets look pretty on their own; the history is what people remember.
Midday: spice farm and lunch
Twenty minutes inland, a working spice farm shows clove, nutmeg, vanilla and cinnamon growing, usually ending with fruit and a Swahili lunch cooked on site.
This is the natural break in the day, and the shade is welcome at noon.
Afternoon: forest and beach
Jozani Chwaka Bay National Park is the only place to see the endemic red colobus monkey, and the boardwalk through the mangroves takes under an hour.
Finish on the east coast for a swim and a late-afternoon drink, then home at your pace. A full day like this runs roughly 8:30 to 18:00.
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