Mafia Island

Just a 30-minute flight south of Zanzibar, Mafia is the one island off Tanzania’s coast that really encourages visitors to explore its offshore islands and sand bars.
The name ‘Mafia’ derives from the Arabic word “Morifyeh” meaning archipelago.
The island’s lush vegetation offers refuge for a great variety of creatures including monkeys, small antelope and fruit bats. Mafia’s real draw however, becomes apparent once you slip below the Ocean’s rippling surface.
Home to the oldest and largest marine protected area in Tanzania, all of Mafia’s reefs are at depths of less than 30 metres, making it a great location for all levels of divers and snorkelers. The reefs offer a staggeringly beautiful and varied display of marine life from the smallest nudibranch to the giant grouper.