Winding alleyways make their way past carved doors before spilling into crowded marketplaces. Zanzibar, today an autonomous part of the East African country of Tanzania, was once, not too long ago, a Sultanate. The island—23 miles off the African coast and colored by generations of Arab, Indian and European influences—has seen tourists flock there in increasing numbers, drawn not only by the exotic history but by the pure white beaches, licked by a brilliant cobalt sea.

Tourism has multiplied by a factor of 20 since the 1980s, and this past year nearly 400,000 foreigners traveled to Zanzibar. Among them, of course, are Jews, including thousands of Israelis. Zanzibar is one of only two sub-Saharan African countries with direct flights from Israel.

“We have been arranging for rabbinical students or young couples to travel there for holidays for the last five to six years,” says Rabbi Shlomo Bentolila, who directs Chabad-Lubavitch of Central Africa in the Congo. “There has never been a local Jewish community in Zanzibar, so it has always been about catering to the needs of the varied Jewish travelers.”

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Seeing the rapid growth and potential for creating a Jewish environment where none existed, Bentolila enlisted Israeli-born Rabbi Shneor and Mushka Shmulevitz—together with their 8-month-old son, Menachem Mendel—to establish Chabad-Lubavitch of Zanzibar. They set up shop on the island earlier this year.

Tourist numbers continue to grow, and aside from the two months of monsoon season, roughly April to May, they are a constant presence. Unlike those visiting the many Chabad outposts geared to Israeli backpackers—such as in Cusco, Peru or Kathmandu, Nepal—Jewish visitors to Zanzibar are mostly vacationers, people spending a week in an affordable paradise, and Chabad is located in the popular coastal resort town of Nungwi. It is not only Israelis traveling there, with tourists coming from the United Kingdom, Europe, South Africa, Australia and the United States. Aside from the tourists, there are handfuls of Jewish business people, representatives of NGOs and diplomats who live there full-time.