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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 · Lagoon · Channel & pass · Reef

Stingray City

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

Area photo: mattk1979 · CC BY-SA 2.0

Stingray City is a lagoon dive inside the barrier reef off Paje and Jambiani, sheltered from the open sea. It centres on the main channel of the lagoon, where dozens of blue-spotted stingrays are likely, and ends among the large coral formations of the Eastern reef.

Where it is and how deep

Depth profile of Stingray City: typical dive 6–22 m (20–72 ft) 18 m · Open Water30 m · Advanced40 m · Recreational limit6 m22 mtypical dive
Depths on a shared scale to 40 m (130 ft); dashed lines mark common certification limits.

6.3015° S, 39.5584° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.

The dive

The dive begins around the main channel of the lagoon, where blue-spotted stingrays rest in numbers, then carries on to the Eastern reef to finish among its large coral formations. The three lagoon sites together span 6 m to 22 m, and the barrier reef keeps the water calmer than outside.

Marine life and season

  • Stingrays
Month-by-month season rating for Stingray City
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. Dive Zanzibar - Buccaneer Diving — Buccaneer Diving
  2. Stingray city (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

Wall

Napoleon Wall

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

12–35 madvanced

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

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