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A rocky coral reef sloping into blue water, with a yellow fish in the centre and small orange fish swimming above — Paje & Jambiani.

Paje & Jambiani · Tanzania · Wall · Drift

Napoleon Wall

Corals crowning the rim of a drop-off beyond the barrier reef

Area photo: mattk1979 · CC BY-SA 2.0

Napoleon Wall is an outer-reef drop-off off Zanzibar's south-east coast, reached by boat through the mlango gap in the barrier reef. Corals crown the top of the wall, and the face is drifted with a current that runs north or south, usually at an unhurried pace.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Napoleon Wall: typical dive 12–35 m (40–115 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit12 m35 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

6.3634° S, 39.5881° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

The rim of the wall sits at about 12 m, where corals sit on top of the wall, and the face drops from there to 35 m. Big holes along the sides hold turtles, rays and other larger sea life, and the site takes its name from a resident Napoleon wrasse. Groups drift along the wall in whichever direction the current is setting that day, north or south, with the boat following above to pick them up at the end.

Marine life and season

  • Napoleon wrasse
  • Sea turtles
Month-by-month season rating for Napoleon Wall
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
GoodGoodFairFairFairGoodGoodGoodGoodGoodFairFair

Season follows Paje & Jambiani: No month stands out as a peak; March to May brings the main rains, and November and December a second, lesser wet spell.

Sources

  1. Explore our Dive Sites - Buccaneer Diving — Buccaneer Diving
  2. Dive Zanzibar - Buccaneer Diving — Buccaneer Diving
  3. Napoleon Wall (OpenStreetMap) — OpenStreetMap contributors

More dive sites in Paje & Jambiani

Lagoon

Jambiani Lagoon

Seahorses on seagrass and harlequin shrimp on the Eastern reef

6–22 mintermediate

Lagoon

Lagoon Mounding

Nudibranchs, leaf fish and snake eels on a varied inner reef

6–22 mintermediate

Reef

Powoni

Table corals crowded with sweetlips and unicornfish

9–30 mintermediate

Coral garden

Sau Inn Garden

A colourful patchwork of assorted corals rich in small life

6–20 m · max 25 mintermediate

Lagoon

Stingray City

Dozens of blue-spotted stingrays in the lagoon's main channel

6–22 mintermediate

Similar dives elsewhere

Wall

Njao Gap

Pemba Island · Tanzania

The northbound current sweeps divers through the gap into the lagoon

5–40 madvanced

Wall

Fundu Gap

Pemba Island · Tanzania

The sand floor beside the wall drops away past 80 m

5–40 m · max 80 madvanced

Wall

Groupers Grotto

Kizimkazi & Menai Bay · Tanzania

Massive groupers along a sloping wall

to 35 madvanced