Papasi

If you’ve ever arrived at Zanzibar’s port with your arms full of luggage and a weary long-travelled expression on your face, you probably ended up willingingly or unwillingly picking up a 'papasi' on your way to find a taxi. Papasi are unlicensed tourist touts that cruise around looking to catch tourists and take them somewhere, for a fee. As the Swahili word meaning ‘tick’ suggests, papasi are hard to get rid of once you’ve picked one up. A casual stroll in the marketplace to buy some souvenirs can quickly become a frustrating battle for your solitude.

Touts are familiar to anybody used to travelling in areas with a reasonable number of tourists. Most local papasi are just regular guys looking to get a commission from any extra business they bring to hotels and tour companies. They aren't tour guides and you shouldn't use them for this either. Travellers should be aware that most hotels now refuse to pay commissions to touts (they are ultimately bad for business) but there are a small minority that still accept the unlicensed service. You should never feel forced to accept a recommendation.

Though papasi are annoying and sometimes overwhelming, the best way to handle them is to tell them you’ve already got your trip fully booked and you don’t need any extra services. A few words of Swahili often help to persuade a papasi that you aren't a total fish out of water. If someone is really bothering you, be polite and firm. If you are worried, walk into the nearest hotel, restaurant or office and tell the staff you’re being followed.

Papasi are not well tolerated by most licensed companies and locals are annoyed when tourists become distressed by the unwanted attention. Zanzibaris are extremely welcoming and they pride themselves on their hospitality. After all, travellers have been stopping here for a thousand years.