Top 10 Marinas in Tanzania
Tanzania's Indian Ocean coastline stretches nearly 800 kilometres from the Kenyan border at Vanga southward to the Mozambique Channel, encompassing the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba, and Mafia as well as several smaller islet groups. The mainland coast is fringed by mangrove deltas and tidal creeks, while the offshore islands sit in some of the most biologically rich coral reef systems in the western Indian Ocean. The north-east monsoon (kaskazi) brings settled weather from November through March; the south-west monsoon (kusi) dominates from May to September and can make Dar es Salaam harbour particularly uncomfortable with significant swell.
Dar es Salaam Yacht Club
The Dar es Salaam Yacht Club (DAYC), founded in 1933 on the shores of the main harbour, is the primary yachting facility in mainland Tanzania. The club offers mooring buoys and a small jetty for visiting yachts in the inner basin at DSM Port anchorage area, sheltered from the harbour's main commercial traffic. Water, showers, bar, and basic provisions are available at the clubhouse. The club's racing programme runs throughout the year, with a particular emphasis on the inter-club series against the Zanzibar Yacht Club. Customs formalities for Tanzania are completed at the main port office a short walk away.
Tanga Yacht Club
Tanga, Tanzania's second port city at the northern end of the Tanzanian coast, hosts the Tanga Yacht Club, which maintains a small fleet of racing dinghies on the Tanga Creek. The creek provides a well-sheltered anchorage in 4–8 m, though the approach requires attention to the shifting bar at the entrance. Tanga was the site of the first engagement of the East African campaign in World War I, and its old German colonial architecture gives the town a faded grandeur. Provisions and fuel are available at the central market and the nearby service station.
Zanzibar Stone Town Anchorage
The anchorage off Zanzibar's Stone Town on the west coast of Unguja Island is the most atmospheric in East Africa. Vessels anchor in 5–12 m over sand and coral, directly in front of the Old Fort and the House of Wonders. The Stone Town quay accepts small tender landings and provides access to the UNESCO-listed medina. The Zanzibar Yacht Club, adjacent to the historical seafront, can assist visiting yachts with mooring buoys. Clove and cinnamon plantations cover much of Unguja's interior, and the spice market in town explains Tanzania's historic role as the global centre of clove production.
Kizimkazi Anchorage
Kizimkazi, at the southern tip of Unguja (Zanzibar Island), offers a small bay anchorage in 4–8 m with good holding over sand. The village is famous for resident pods of humpback and spinner dolphins that frequent the channel between Unguja and the offshore reef; organised snorkelling trips run daily from the beach. The Kizimkazi Dimbani mosque, first built in the 12th century and retaining original Kufic inscription panels, is one of the oldest mosques in sub-Saharan Africa and a remarkable shore excursion from the anchorage.
Elestik Marine Company
Elestik Marine Company operates on the Dar es Salaam waterfront and provides basic haulout and repair services for vessels operating in Tanzanian waters. The facility includes a slipway capable of handling boats up to approximately 30 m length overall. Engine work, fibreglass repair, and antifouling are available. While the facility lacks the deep-water infrastructure of a full service boatyard, it fills an important gap on this section of the coast where specialist marine services are otherwise several hundred nautical miles away.
Natural Harbour — Mafia Island
Mafia Island, approximately 160 kilometres south of Dar es Salaam, encompasses the Mafia Island Marine Park, one of Tanzania's premier marine protected areas. The natural harbour on Mafia's west coast provides anchorage in 4–10 m over sand and seagrass behind a fringing reef that filters the Indian Ocean swell entirely. Chole Bay on the island's eastern side offers an even more enclosed anchorage used by liveaboards who come specifically for the diving — the channel between Mafia and the offshore reefs is well known for whale shark aggregations between October and March.
Mahale Mountains National Park Harbour
Lake Tanganyika, the world's second-deepest lake at 1,470 m, offers a unique inland sailing environment on Tanzania's western frontier. The harbour for Mahale Mountains National Park on the lake's eastern shore is accessible only by boat or light aircraft. Yachts and motorboats navigating Lake Tanganyika anchor in the park's designated areas, where encounters with resident chimpanzee communities in the Mahale forests are arranged by the park authority. The lake's water is gin-clear and warm at the surface, cooling rapidly below 100 m depth.
Harbour for Local Traffic — Kilwa Masoko
Kilwa Masoko, on the mainland coast about 300 kilometres south of Dar es Salaam, was historically one of the richest trading cities in sub-Saharan Africa, dealing in gold from Zimbabwe's interior from the 10th through 15th centuries. The small harbour for local traffic serves the fishing fleet and the ferry to the offshore ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani — a UNESCO World Heritage Site with surviving Portuguese fort, Arabic palace ruins, and a great mosque. Yachts anchor off the town in 5–10 m over sand and mud, with good protection from southerly swells provided by the barrier island.
DSM Port Anchorage Area
The designated anchorage area off Dar es Salaam's commercial port covers a substantial area of the Msimbazi Bay and accommodates yachts waiting on clearance, weather windows, or resupply. The anchorage can be rolly during the kusi monsoon when south-westerly swell wraps around Ras Kiromoni, but in settled conditions it provides adequate holding in 8–15 m. The ferry terminal for Zanzibar, Pemba, and the southern islands operates from the same port area, and provisioning is possible at the Kariakoo Market in central Dar es Salaam.
Explore on the map
Tanzania's sailing grounds span open ocean crossings to Zanzibar, Pemba, and Mafia, as well as inland lake passages on Tanganyika and Lake Victoria. Use the interactive map to plot legs between the mainland anchorages and the offshore island groups, factoring in the seasonal monsoon shifts that define Tanzania's cruising calendar. The sailing map layers together marina positions, reef extents, and channel bearings from Tanga in the north to Kilwa in the south. Click on Tanzania on the map to access anchorage depths and the pass coordinates that unlock each of the island groups.