Zanzibar insurance fee not a concern for South African travellers
Zanzibar’s mandatory insurance fee, introduced last year, did not seem to affect tourism to the island too badly this past December.
Zanzibar still popular for South African travellers
Despite it’s imposed insurance fee, the island of Zanzibar reported increased numbers of tourists over the recent December period.
According to Travel News, stats show that South Africans were among the increased number of visitors flocking to Zanzibar over the holidays.
As per the office of the Chief Government Statistician Zanzibar, the island welcomed 91 611 international visitors in December, a 30.5% increase from the same period last year.
South Africa was also revealed to be Zanzibar’s second-largest market after Europe, contributing 7.9% of all arrivals, an increase from December 2023, when South Africans accounted for 7.2% of arrivals.
The Tanzanian authorities had also reportedly discounted the fee for tourists from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) just before the festive season, allowing these travellers to pay just $22 (R400) rather than the full amount.
A mandatory fee
In August last year, authorities in Tanzania announced that a new mandatory insurance fee would become applicable to all tourists visiting Zanzibar from 1 September.
This fee would require Zanzibar-bound travellers to fork out an additional US$44 (+/-R800) per person on arrival for compulsory insurance.
The insurance covers tourists for stays of up to 92 days on the island and encompasses various aspects that have previously been problematic for visitors to Zanzibar. These include health, loss of baggage, accidents, emergency evacuation, loss of passports and even repatriation of remains in case of death.