structural:scholar_edition
Culture

Zanzibar's most famous event is the Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF), also known as the Festival of the Dhow Countries. Every July, this event showcases the best of the Swahili Coast arts scene, including Zanzibar's favorite music, taarab. Zanzibar is the birthplace of the British singer-songwriter and band leader of Queen, Freddie Mercury.

Important architectural features in Stone Town are the Livingstone house, The Old dispensary of Zanzibar, the Guliani Bridge, Ngome kongwe (The Old fort of Zanzibar) and the House of Wonders. The town of Kidichi features the Hamamni Persian Baths, built by immigrants from Shiraz, Iran during the reign of Barghash bin Said.

Zanzibar also is the only place in Eastern African countries to have the long settlement houses formally known as Michenzani flats. The flats were built with aid from East Germany during the 1970s to solve housing problems in Zanzibar.