Mnemba Island is a single small island located about 3 km off the northeast coast of Unguja, the largest island of the Zanzibar Archipelago, Tanzania, opposite Muyuni Beach. It is roughly triangular in shape, about 5000NaN0 in diameter and about 1.51NaN1 in circumference. It is surrounded by an oval reef seven by four kilometres in extent. These reefs have been declared a marine conservation area. Mnemba Island and its reef are sometimes called Mnemba Atoll which is incorrect because an atoll is an island that encircles a lagoon, which is not the case for Mnemba Island.
Mnemba Island is a popular scuba diving site, with a wide variety of corals and associated species, as well as occasional sightings of larger species such as turtles and dolphins. Calm conditions are most frequent in November and March, with maximum visibility. The island itself is privately owned and can be visited only as a guest at a price of US$1155 to US$1600 per person per night (2015 rates). As Mnemba is a private island, non-guests are not permitted to land on the island.[1] [2] [3] The island has a 200-meter exclusion zone around the island within which non-guests are not permitted.[4]
Mnemba Island is a 90-minute drive from Stone Town across the main Zanzibar Island, before a twenty-minute boat crossing.
The marine reserve comprises four distinct habitats which are home to a diverse array of Indian Ocean wildlife:
Green sea turtles can be seen laying their eggs on the beaches between February and September.