Jambo! Hello to all! We recently returned from our wonderful trip to Zanzibar (which we love to call “Zanzi”) wish to give you hope and valuable tips if you want to spend a holiday in these parts …, like all journeys, especially in Africa, there are things very beautiful and less beautiful things, you just know everything and becomes more ‘simple! The topics are grouped by type …
For information vs we started three of us: myself (Fabio) my wife Kate and our 7 year old son Alexej December 6 (evening) and we came back on the 14th.
Before the trip ...
Tanzania (and thus Zanzibar) is a part of Africa where there is so endemic malaria, yellow fever and many other “bad” diseases that you find listed in any tourist book (The Lonely Planet ed. 2005 on Tanzania eg.). Of course we must not think too much otherwise you most ‘. If, however, you are likely to nature and worry normally … Change destination, there are many others with minor “problems” that unfortunately or fortunately are typical of the African regions.
Yellow fever: is not required but if you are coming directly from Italy flown away “dark continent”, from the capital or want to do a safari in Tanzania, is mandatory! The vaccine (like all vaccines) is done at the Department of National Health Service and is their a fee). Remember that it must be a few months (at least 2) before the trip because it needs a reminder to be 100% effective.
Malaria in Zanzibar, despite all the tour operators tranquilize, has continuously cases of malaria, especially children who do not have the money for treatment. And all the giorni9 year people die because of malaria. Malaria is transmitted by a mosquito female and the type of malaria present qs region is of the worst kind. And ‘curable, but the parasite that the cause may be present in our blood throughout our lives. There is no 100% cure for malaria and in some rare cases and could be deadly if taken later. This is not to say it, but it’s the truth.
Malaria prophylaxis never covers 100% but only 98%. That leaves some small chance of contracting the disease during prophylaxis, obviously if bitten by an infected mosquito. This is unlikely during the dry seasons from July to November, while the risk increases slightly as the top becomes more ‘moist. To be avoided is the period of the rainy season, from March to May, unless you are risk takers … During our stay at the resort there were no mosquitoes (or at least were very few …), especially on the coast it was very windy and probably that the away, but inside from dusk to dawn … It is not excluded.
The best defense is to equip themselves mosquito repellents (strong ones for the tropics or taking a homeopathic treatment that generates a smell on our skin that turns out to be unpleasant for the mosquitoes …).
Making the prophylaxis or not? Many people in the village have not achieved and we took Malarone.
And ‘the ultimate in care and prevention and is very well tolerated and has no side effects compared to Lariam, which seems to have a devastating effect on some subjects. The only difference is the price: Lariam is loanable and you pay only the cost of the recipe, not the Malarone and costs in Italy more than 53 € per pack. From 12 tablets. A stay of 7 days involves the consumption of 15 tablets (starting from the day before until 7 days after your return.) Who lives close to Switzerland, can ‘buy in pharmacies Swiss in little more’ than 40 € per pack with a saving of 25 % of