What Darajani is
Darajani is the main market of Stone Town and the town’s commercial centre, sitting on the inland edge of the old quarter along Creek Road. What it feels like to walk into — a working market for residents rather than a visitor attraction — is set out in the Stone Town guide and in the food and market tours guide, and is not repeated here.
What this page adds is the market’s position in the heritage property and the state of the building works around it, because that is the part that changes and the part a visitor arrives without.
Where it sits in the World Heritage property
Darajani is not incidental to the inscription. The nominated conservation area was defined as the built-up streets of Stone Town and the open areas along its eastern border together with the older part of Darajani Street. UNESCO’s current description of the property boundary repeats it: the property is bounded to the east by open areas and the older part of Darajani Street. The market is the edge of the World Heritage site.
The nomination also records the Zanzibar Municipal Council as the owner of the market, along with the town’s designated open and public spaces.
The works around it
The Darajani area has been under redevelopment for several years and this is the main thing a visitor should expect. The Zanzibar authorities notified UNESCO of a Darajani Bazaar project in 2022. The joint UNESCO, ICCROM and ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission of July 2023 visited a Darajani Corridor Business Centre under construction, recorded that two schools had been relocated with one demolished and the other being rebuilt, and recommended that the project be reassessed and reconceptualised to reduce its effect on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value, with a full heritage impact assessment.
By the advisory mission of January 2025 the authorities were presenting the Darajani parking and commercial developments as a set piece. A large open-air car park had been completed, along with a parking tower between Darajani and the Malindi quarter, and further development was described as depending on decisions not yet taken. The mission noted that no formal plan proposal existed.
The practical consequence is that the approach to the market has been a building site on and off, and the layout a visitor is told to expect may not be the one they find.
Common questions
Is Darajani a tourist market?
No. It is where the town shops. That is its interest and also why it can feel unwelcoming for the first few minutes. The Stone Town guide covers how to approach it.
Is Darajani inside the World Heritage site?
The older part of Darajani Street is. The property boundary was drawn to include it, and the market forms the eastern edge of the inscribed area.
What is being built around the market?
A business centre project, car parking including a parking tower towards Malindi, and school rebuilding. UNESCO’s monitoring mission in 2023 asked for the scheme to be reconsidered and assessed for its effect on the heritage property.