Whale Watching Worldwide

Tanzania
Year Number of
whale
watchers
AAGR Number of
operators
Direct
expenditure
Indirect
expenditure
Total
expenditure
1991 None N/A None None None None
1994 Minimal N/A Minimal Minimal Minimal Minimal
1998 15,000 194% Unknown $375,000 $938,000 $1,313,000
2008 19,818 2.8% 44 $201,011 $1,486,350 $1,888,372
Capital City: Dar Es Salaam
Whale Watch Locations:
01: Kizimkazi
Whale watching in Tanzania occurs within the Menai Bay
Conservation Area, southwest of Unguja island, the larger of the
two islands of Zanzibar. Forty‐four boats, with an average capacity
of eight passengers, operate out of the villages of Mkunguni and
Dimbani, Kizimkazi. They primarily offer dolphin watching and
‘swim‐with’ tours, together with short snorkelling on coral reefs on
the return trip. Seasonal opportunistic whale watching is also
offered.
The boats are operated mainly by local villagers, although in Mkunguni, as many as 50% of the boats are
owned by individuals or tour companies operating out of Zanzibar town, about 40km northwest of Kizimkazi.
These tour companies or individuals rent the boats to the local villagers to take tourists out. The average
ticket price is approximately $20 for trips arranged in Zanzibar town. However, trips arranged locally in
Kizimkazi cost approximately $40 per boat, with boats accommodating up to 8 people.
The Menai Bay Conservation Area covers an area of 467km 2 and was established with assistance from the
WWF. The area is a marine park and is protected by the local communities, who depend on Menai Bay for
their livelihoods. The need for the conservation area arose in the 1990s as destructive fishing practices
started to have adverse impacts on local fishing industries. At the same time, the tourism potential of the
local dolphin populations was also realised, with the value of tourism quickly becoming greater than that of
fishing (dolphin meat was traditionally used as a bait for shark fishing). The Menai Bay Conservation Area is
still actively managed and is now financed through the Tanzania Marine and Coastal Environmental
Management Project, supported by the World Bank.
Because of ongoing concerns regarding the sustainability of the industry and the health of the cetaceans and
the marine environment, the Kizimkazi Dolphin Tourism Operators Association (KIDOTOA) was established in
2005. The organisation focuses on research, education and conservation regarding cetaceans and dolphin
watching tourism. Various stakeholders, including government, local institutions and community groups, as
well as operators and local businesses were involved in the establishment of KIDOTOA.
The industry has continued to grow since 1998 from 15,000 tourists and $1.3 million in expenditure to
almost 20,000 tourists and $1.9 million in expenditure in 2008. This represents an annual average growth
rate in tourist numbers of 2.8%. The number of boats in the area has also increased by 2.3% between 1999
and 2008. The growth rate is almost half of inbound tourism arrivals to Tanzania between 2000 and 2004, or
5.4%.
78