Live music

There is live taarab music at the Monsoon Restaurant on Wednesday and Saturday nights. Otherwise, there is no one particular venue in Zanzibar Town for live music, but local artists – from traditional taarab to Afro-pop and rap – often perform at bars such as Sweet Eazy, Mercury's or the Starehe Club. To find out what's going on, ask at your hotel or look for posters around town advertising special events. The Arab fort is another good venue for live music – mostly traditional musicians and dancers, but sometimes contemporary performances, too. A couple of times each week a 'Night at the Fort' evening is organised, which includes at least two performances plus a barbecue dinner. There are often performances on other nights, too. The best thing to do is call in at the Fort during the day, and ask the staff at the desk what's happening in the evening.

Cinemas

The main cinema in Zanzibar Town is the Ciné Afrique on Malawi Road, in the Malindi area, near the port gates. There is also the Majestic Cinema on Vuga Road. Tickets are around US$0.25. Films are almost exclusively kung fu or action flicks, or Hindi melodramas, but mainstream Hollywood movies are also shown a few times a week.