MAFIA ISLAND AND ITS REEFS ARE RENOWN AS AN EXCELLENT,
WORLD-CLASS DIVING DESTINATION.
Snorkeling with whale sharks in Mafia

ABOUT bwd&ws

Blue World Diving & Water Sports is a PADI Five Star Resort Diving Centre (#35390) established in 1995 with the opening of Kinasi Lodge by Tanzania’s Vice-President Dr Omar Ali Juma.

Our goal has always been to provide to our guests a complete set of in-house services of the highest standard and professionalism to abide by our principles and ensure service, safety and security standards that we would want to experience ourselves.

There are also practical reasons for this – guests do not have to travel out to another facility, we can offer best possible rates, and we provide food, snacks and beverages on all excursions as included in hotel rates. Furthermore, we provide full and comprehensive insurance cover for our guests on all excursions provided by us, which means we must manage and perform the services, not simply out-source them.

Human Resources… a new working model because our strength is our people

New activities and excursions in diving and water sports in 2022

These new business opportunities include a tourism information and service centre, a re-designed and enhanced whale shark excursion programme, a new dive centre in the north of Mafia Island, and a kite-boarding experience and training centre that will take advantage of excellent seasonal wind and beach conditions all over the archipelago with an agile activity plan (this will take visitors to remote beaches, tidal sand banks and islets wherever the winds and tides are most favourable at the time…. here comes excursion kiting Mafia-style.

Our Team of Specialized Guides

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que tambien ingresó como texto de relleno en documentos electrónicos, quedando esencialmente igual al original.

MAFIA ISLAND

Chole Bay is blessed with a number of excellent dives within the Bay, ensuring diving in almost any weather, as well as easy access. Visibility varies with the wind and tides, and is generally poor on outgoing tides as there is the normal accumulation of organic and granular matter in the water. The diving is tide-dependent for this reason and also to avoid strong currents at the dive sites which are close to the mouth of the Bay (Kinasi Pass). We usually dive on the full low, full high or on the incoming tide for the Kinasi Pass drift dive and the Chole and Kinsai walls. Diving outside the Bay is subject to weather conditions and tides, as it can be dangerous to negotiate Kinasi Pass on an outgoing tide; however, once outside the Bay the dives are not tide dependent.

Previous slide
Next slide

Almost all Mafia’s best diving is at depths of less than 30m so it is a sport diver’s paradise. The reefs of the archipelago offer a staggeringly beautiful and varied display of marine life. The excellent condition and high diversity of the reefs stimulated the creation of Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania’s first marine park. Examples of most kinds of tropical marine habitat occur here, including exposed fringing reefs, rock walls, soft coral and algae-dominated reefs. The diversity of animal and plant life is hard to match, with over 50 genera of corals and 400 species of fish so far identified; many more still await determination. There are excellent examples of giant table corals, delicate sea fans, whip corals, and huge stands of blue-tipped staghorn corals. Large predatory fish and turtles are common and surprisingly unaffected by approaching divers.

Almost all Mafia’s best diving is at depths of less than 30m so it is a sport diver’s paradise. The reefs of the archipelago offer a staggeringly beautiful and varied display of marine life. The excellent condition and high diversity of the reefs stimulated the creation of Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania’s first marine park. Examples of most kinds of tropical marine habitat occur here, including exposed fringing reefs, rock walls, soft coral and algae-dominated reefs. The diversity of animal and plant life is hard to match, with over 50 genera of corals and 400 species of fish so far identified; many more still await determination. There are excellent examples of giant table corals, delicate sea fans, whip corals, and huge stands of blue-tipped staghorn corals. Large predatory fish and turtles are common and surprisingly unaffected by approaching divers.

Safety and Excursions Management

Previous slide
Next slide

Safety and Excursions Management

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Previous slide
Next slide

We have just moved into our completely redesigned and re-built dive centre with its new deck for apres sea drinks and socialising, with its own drinks refrigerator and snack grill.

Previous slide
Next slide

OUR
FACILITIES

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Previous slide
Next slide

you can zoom with your fingers

KINASI WALL
This is a sheltered bank reef, moderately deep and steeply sloping from 8 to 21 metres. It runs south-east:north-west for approximately 800 m and is an excellent dive on a slack tide or with a slight incoming current. It is in superb condition and composed of many species of hard and soft corals and supports a great variety of shoaling and solitary fish and giant clams, seafans, large groupers, and Napolean wrasse; there are abundant reef and pelagic fish, and turtles (especially the hawksbill) are often seen. One of our most popular dive sites.
CHOLE WALL
Another bank reef that joins the Kinasi Wall but lying north-east:south-west, also about 800m long. A steep bank of coral descending to 15 m, usually with excellent visibility, and ending in coral rubble and sand. A panorama for the diver as there is a startlingly rich tapestry of corals enveloped in clouds of tiny fish, dominated by colourful damselfish and fusiliers; numerous butterflyfish and angelfish. Especially interesting for the many species of colourful nudibranchs and flatworms. This is an excellent night or introductory dive. A great dive full of interest.
CORAL GARDENS
A very large area of beautiful coral outcrops or “bommies”, lying in a wedge behind the Kinasi and Chole walls. The coral is very densely packed and continuous behind Kinasi wall; elsewhere the coral is separated by seagrass and sand patches. This is an excellent site for photography with a very high diversity of fish, colourful corals and anemones and the shallow water makes visibility excellent. This is a shallow water dive, often undertaken as the last phase of one of the wall dives. Excellent for snorkelers behind Kinasi Wall at low tide.
THE CORAL PATCHES
This site comprises three extensive and spectacular coral patches at 9 to 17 m that are separated by sand channels. The many species of coral are packed around the ancient Porites formations. There are a large number of dense shoals of fish, equalled only by Kinasi Pass. A peculiarity is the occurrence of large numbers of spotted garden eels, so named for their habit of living together in “gardens” in the sand around the coral.
THE PINNACLE
The Pinnacle is a 12 m spire of ancient coral rock (7o57’005S/39o47’850E) lying in the inner Kinasi Pass, close to the last rock island. Maximum depth is 24m at the base of the spire. This is a spectacular dive for the unusual structure and the mixture of reef and pelagic fish in the channel. Home to a very large potato cod and a very large resident moray in a hole on the “whale-back” of rock that slopes off the western side of the stack and many giant batfish.
KINASI PASS
After completing a tour of the Pinnacle the diver heads south-west to the side of the channel, the Kinasi Pass dive, rightfully famous as a stunning drift dive. The Pass has two walls, commencing with a deep 20-26 m shelving reef, then a shallower one at 6-15 m. The diver floats along a wall with small caverns and overhangs, with great shoals of juvenile and adult reef fish, barracuda and carangidae that sometimes block out the light, a vast array of corals, parrotfish, large groupers and pelagics coming and going with the tide. A fantastic dive.
MILIMANI REEF
Extremely picturesque with unusual coral formations through which the diver navigates. Spectacular layered coral peaks. This is followed by vast Porites formations that are dome-like, with many lionfish, glass fish and moray eels. From here it slopes away to 21 m with a wide variety of soft and hard corals. This site is good in all conditions as it is only slightly affected by currents; an excellent second dive.
MSUMBIJI
This site consists of a small primary reef with a variety of soft and hard corals on slopes and sheer walls down to 15 m. Away from the central formation are spires of coral that provide archways and overhangs for the diver to explore. Beautiful anemones of fluorescent red colour and rays (especially blue spotted) are common. This site is a good introductory dive but has unpredictable visibility conditions
Previous slide
Next slide

MAFIA ISLAND AND ITS REEFS ARE RENOWN AS AN EXCELLENT, WORLD-CLASS DIVING DESTINATION.

Scientists have confirmed that Mafia has some of the richest reefs in the World, with an unparalleled variety of hard and soft corals and diversity of tropical fish. We have dived on fabulous sites from Mafia to Kilwa offering shallow to deep reefs of immense beauty and richness, bommies, channels, walls and caves, drift and night dives. These are new sites and we have years of exploration still to do.

Previous slide
Next slide

A number of the reefs around Mafia are both snorkelling and dive sites, with shallow reef sloping away to walls.

The snorkelling here is truly excellent for the beginner and those more experienced. The shallow water and constant tidal movements provide excellent light, showing off the wonderful colours of both soft and hard corals.

Previous slide
Next slide
Previous slide
Next slide

NIGHT DIVE

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que tambien ingresó como texto de relleno en documentos electrónicos, quedando esencialmente igual al original.

Previous slide
Next slide

Mafia Island has great spots for kayaking and at both Kinasi and Lua cheia you’ll find free kayaks for touring the bays and beaches and for exploring the little islands around Mafia.

Previous slide
Next slide
Previous slide
Next slide

EXCURSION DIVES

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Previous slide
Next slide

BLUE WORLD IN BWENI

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Kinasi Lodge has a beautiful private beach with soft white sand

Do you need
more Info?

Please send us your email and we will contact you soon

Contact Us Now via WhatsApp We are Here to Help You

FIND US,
FOLLOW US,
CONTACT US

FIND US, FOLLOW US,
CONTACT US

Copyright © 2020 KINASI LODGE
All Rights Reserved

PHONE:
+27 (0)72 293 – 0475
stay@mafiaisland.com

ADDRESS:
Utende, Marin Park Area.
Mafia island, Tanzania

Made with by Felipe Nieto ( KAKA )

Safety and Excursions Management

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que

Diving
in Mafia Island

Mafia Island and its reefs are renown as an excellent, World-class diving destination.

Scientists have confirmed that Mafia has some of the richest reefs in the World, with an unparalleled variety of hard and soft corals and diversity of tropical fish. We have dived on fabulous sites from Mafia to Kilwa offering shallow to deep reefs of immense beauty and richness, bommies, channels, walls and caves, drift and night dives. These are new sites and we have years of exploration still to do.

We are indebted to FRONTIER Tanzania for some of the information in the text which follows. Their report on the diving in Mafia - The Guide to the Diving of Mafia Island: an Unexplored Paradise.

Chole Bay is blessed with a number of excellent dives within the Bay, ensuring diving in almost any weather, as well as easy access. Visibility varies with the wind and tides, and is generally poor on outgoing tides as there is the normal accumulation of organic and granular matter in the water. The diving is tide-dependent for this reason and also to avoid strong currents at the dive sites which are close to the mouth of the Bay (Kinasi Pass). We usually dive on the full low, full high or on the incoming tide for the Kinasi Pass drift dive and the Chole and Kinsai walls. Diving outside the Bay is subject to weather conditions and tides, as it can be dangerous to negotiate Kinasi Pass on an outgoing tide; however, once outside the Bay the dives are not tide dependent.

Almost all Mafia’s best diving is at depths of less than 30m so it is a sport diver’s paradise. The reefs of the archipelago offer a staggeringly beautiful and varied display of marine life. The excellent condition and high diversity of the reefs stimulated the creation of Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania’s first marine park. Examples of most kinds of tropical marine habitat occur here, including exposed fringing reefs, rock walls, soft coral and algae-dominated reefs. The diversity of animal and plant life is hard to match, with over 50 genera of corals and 400 species of fish so far identified; many more still await determination. There are excellent examples of giant table corals, delicate sea fans, whip corals, and huge stands of blue-tipped staghorn corals. Large predatory fish and turtles are common and surprisingly unaffected by approaching divers.

Snorkeling
in Mafia Island

A number of the reefs around Mafia are both snorkelling and dive sites, with shallow reef sloping away to walls.

CORAL GARDENS
Located on the shallow reef backing the Chole and Kinasi Walls; the maximum depth is 8 m and the snorkeller is usually in 3 to 6 m. A very extensive and superb photographic site with numerous coral "bommies" in seagrass and sand patches. A high diversity of reef fish with each "bommie" demonstrating a small world of great colour and variety. Stands of "fire" coral (Millepora spp).
KINASI PASS ISLETS
The two larger islets in the main Kinasi Pass (Kisiwa Kubwa, Kisiwa Ndogo) are superb snorkelling sites with protected anchorages in sand on the inner, Bay side. There are scattered "bommies" and shallow reefs between and around the islets. Lionfish and the Titan triggerfish are very common. Open-billed storks, hadada ibis, little egrets and fish eagles are resident on the islets. A small pool, hidden in the centre of the largest islet, can be reached by swimming through a narrow channel in the rock. Small groups of nocturnal cardinal fish lurk in the shady crevices. The "bommie" adjacent to the largest islet falls away to about 15m and houses a fascinating complex of corals and fish.
DARUSI & MIEWE ISLAND
Darusi is another complex reef surrounding an ancient Porites coral rock island covered in creepers, succulents and herbs. There is a variety of habitat types including two very interesting walls for the better free-divers. This is a wonderful snorkeling area and one can see a great deal as well as more unusual creatures such as the Spanish Dancer, lionfish, stone fish, clams, bat fish and small morays.
MANGE REEF
In the shallows surrounding the Mange atoll are some of the most beautiful stands of branching staghorn corals, best appreciated by snorkelling. Large expanses of shallow coral and sand patches with brilliant illumination for superb snorkelling and photography. On the western side the reef falls away to a fabulous sloping wall dive.
KITUTIA
Snorkelling just off the main sand cay and in the channel facing Jibondo Island. A wonderful day trip for all with a picnic on the sand islands at low tide.
JIBONDO PASS
A shallow reef in the channel north of Jibondo Island with many scattered bommies in sand. There can be strong tidal movements but this is an ideal site to see many colourful parrotfish of all sizes.
CHOLE CHANNEL AND REEF
Just in front of Chole Island, facing Kinasi, is a shallow reef with many soft corals and seagrass, sloping to a maximum depth of 15 m. A fine site also for drift dive training. This area has a high diversity of bottom-living filter feeders due to the regular tidal movements. Soft corals, seapens, anemones and sponges carpet the seafloor in a diverse array of colours and forms. Interspersed are numerous small coral "bommies" with their own individual communities.
NORTH SIDE OF KINASI PASS
On the north-eastern side of the Pass, not far from Miewe and Jina Islands, there is a field of seagrass with scattered "bommies" and shelves or coral.
Previous slide
Next slide

The snorkelling here is truly excellent for the beginner and those more experienced. The shallow water and constant tidal movements provide excellent light, showing off the wonderful colours of both soft and hard corals.

Night Dive
in Mafia Island

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que

Kayaks
in Mafia Island

Mafia Island has great spots for kayaking and at both Kinasi and Lua cheia you’ll find free kayaks for touring the bays and beaches and for exploring the little islands around Mafia.

kayaking_2.png

We have both single and double touring kayaks, so great fun for couples to paddle away for an excursion alone. As they can go into very shallow areas kayaks are fun at all times. The kayaks are also designed to carry a cool box for drinks and snacks and have 'dry' compartments for storing towels and cameras. And best of all the kayaks are free-of-charge to our guests.

excusion dives
in mafia island

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que

Blue World
in bweni

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta)

Lorem Ipsum es simplemente el texto de relleno de las imprentas y archivos de texto. Lorem Ipsum ha sido el texto de relleno estándar de las industrias desde el año 1500, cuando un impresor (N. del T. persona que se dedica a la imprenta) desconocido usó una galería de textos y los mezcló de tal manera que logró hacer un libro de textos especimen. No sólo sobrevivió 500 años, sino que