Chake Chake

Capital of Pemba

The largest town, and capital of Pemba is situated half way along the west coast overlooking Chake Chake creek.  At the heart of the town is a bustling fruit and vegetable market, with a smaller fish market down the hill near the old harbour.  Small streets and alleyways leading off from the main market are lined with small shops selling everything from plastic mugs to halua, a sticky sweet made from wheat, sugar and spices.

Although lacking Stone Town's narrow streets and impressive architecture, Chake Chake is still an interesting place for a morning visit to the market, or a gentle afternoon stroll up to the ground of the hospital's physiotherapy department, which offers stunning views across the creek.  Other points of interest are the Chief Minister's office, given a strangely nautical appearance by hollow cement tubes, rather like portholes, built into the tower, and the old Omani fort near the hospital, thought to date back to the Portuguese occupation.  Chake Chake also has a small cinema on the road leading out to the airport which offers a limited choice of Bollywood flicks and action movies and the occasional relatively recent Hollywood releases.

Tourists are almost as much of an attraction to the locals as the other way around, and greeted with a friendly smile and a few words of welcome, although English is not as widely spoken here as Unguja.

Chake Chake Lodges with Style

Our team at Specialist Tanzania regularly visit Pemba's growing choice of accommodation to check on hotel quality, service levels and new developments. Here's our choice of Pemba lodges which offer a nice mix of style, location, ambience and service. To include your choice in any of the holidays we offer, just contact us for a quote!

> Fundu Lagoon
> Manta Resort