Look for the old prison built on the island but was never used for its intended purpose, instead housing quarantined visitors to Zanzibar. There's also a restaurant in the large house (formerly the General's) and there is a smaller building that serves as a guesthouse.

One of the island's main attractions, are the large land tortoises that roam around the big house. Peacocks are also inhabitants of the island.

Snake Island (Nyoka) doesn't have a beach so is not frequently visited. There are no known trails on this small island that is between Prison and Grave Islands.

Grave Island (Chapwani) is a long and thin island just to the north of Snake Island; it has graves on it primarily belonging to the British who suffered casualties while fighting against Arab slaving ships. There are other graves dating from the First World War.

Bawe Island is south of Prison Island, about a 30-minute boat ride and has some of the best snorkelling spots in the archipelago. In 1870 the island was used to anchor the first telegraph cables to Zanzibar linking it with Aden, South Africa and the Seychelles. The beach is excellent at all times of the tide. There are some trees that provide shade allowing fair-skinned people to make a whole day just sitting on the beach.

Sandbar Island is an island only at low tide. It's also located south of Prison Island. It's a popular destination when the moon is full because of the view of sunset and moonrise. After the sun sets it's very dark on the island and you can't see much but once the moon comes up and loses its redness from the horizon it's like being under a natural floodlight. The city takes on a special appearance under the red moon and looks beautiful too. As the tide continues to go out, the island gets bigger and people walk along the sandbar appearing as if they're walking on water. It's also good for day picnics, snorkelling and diving but keep in mind the lack of shade and equatorial sun.

Chumbe Island is Tanzania's first Marine National Park and it is also home to a Nature reserve that boasts an abundance of local birds and flora. It is also known as Chumbe Island Coral Park (CHICOP). Along with establishing Chumbe Island as a conservation area, several practical steps have been taken to preserve it; there are permanent moorings for boats landing at Chumbe and this prevents the need to drop anchor and kill coral. Chumbe is a private island and only authorized tour companies are allowed to moor here in an attempt to keep irresponsible boaters from causing damage to the reef. Nature trails have been set up on the island as well as an educational facility. There's a lighthouse on the island slated to be converted into an observation tower and there is an old mosque that was built in an Indian style and is unique to Tanzania. There's a nice restaurant on the island and the price of dinner includes boat transport.