Mia Boutique Hotel

Boutique Hotel Matlai

"This hotel is just okay. We came on our honeymoon for the second part after being on a safari in Tanzania. We wanted to go to the Maldives but were under the illusion Zanzibar is the new upcoming Maldives’s and was a shorter flight from Tanzania - so we went for it. We were half board and stayed in one of the villas. There is 2 villas in the hotel and 4 bedrooms in the main hotel. The roads to the hotel aren’t the best. And the road up to the hotel entrance, you think you’re going to somewhere not great. Pretty scary at night anyways. I don’t know how else to put it. It takes around 1 hour and 30 mins to get to the hotel from the airport. Not one part of the journey was going through anything nice, just villages and towns where there is poverty and cars/bikes pipping at each each constantly so they don’t crash into each other. You need to tip everyone by the way - even people who handle your luggage at the airport. Make sure you do or they hang around basically staring at you until you do. (Not pleasant). You are greeted by the owners dogs, if you like dogs this is okay, but not the best of welcomes by dogs running around you after a long journey. We personally didnt appreciate it. The hotel generally needs some money spent on it inside as outdated and run down. The outside looks good if you were looking at it from the beach though. Food is just okay also. Nothing amazing. The breakfast was probably the better meal. We had fruit platters and scrambled eggs on toast or pancakes. The hotel has a gym…. Everything is made out of wood and is outside. (Traditional) but not what we expected and didn’t use it. The butler then went to take us to an outside shed to show us a bush baby. Which was inside there with the door shut, (to protect it apparently) but upon arrival is was lying flat on the floor dying, which wasn’t pleasant to see. The butler wasn’t to know this but it’s not what we wanted to see at all and was upsetting. Maybe the staff should check first before showing guests? The electric goes on and off constantly. (Maybe the hotel should get a better generator? So guests aren’t affected.) The water for the shower goes off when the electric goes off also, so you may be left with body wash on you or shampoo in your hair for a period of time until it comes back on and when it does come back on it might be for 30 mins or 30 seconds, so you better hurry. Not relaxing. And if the electric goes off before bed time then you can be woken up to all the lights coming back on etc. or your phone not charged for the next day. Internal doors within the premises make loud noises when being closed if they aren’t closed quietly or carefully, this can wake you up or disturb any relaxation. The tv in the bedroom is a smart tv so you can watch YouTube or Netflix which is good. You also have aircon and a ceiling fan in the bedroom. The bathroom also has a ceiling fan. The ladies in the spa are very good at their jobs and the spa is very relaxi"

Hekaya Zanzibar

"We have booked the henkaya hotel and it has been a ver good idea : familiar, better and personal service, , clean.. on the beach.. (better place can't be)..and a fantastic cook!! There is an every day menu, always excellent .. You must try the cake at breakfast!!!"

Karafuu Beach Resort & Spa

"Beautiful resort. Great food. Great staff. Everyone is super friendly and really good at their job. The spa was fantastic. The animation team, especially Jackson, was superb. Unfortunately the resort is far away from everything, so you need to hire a car to do anything outside the resort . That’s the only minus point I would give."

Upendo Beach Boutique Hotel Zanzibar

"My husband and I visited on the last leg of our honeymoon, following 6 nights on safari in Kenya. We were sadly not overly impressed by our stay here. We were greeted by the manager, who was very friendly and receptive, and did his best throughout our stay to ensure we were happy. We had no complaints about the hotel itself, rooms were lovely, the hotel was clean, and a lovely white beach / ocean view. However, this hotel / location is just missing something. We were on a half board catering basis, and although the food was really delicious at Upendo, it was the same small menu & cuisine every day, and we very quickly got bored of the food / had everything that we fancied over the 6 days we stayed. The restaurant has a very relaxed vibe / not a very romantic setting - it's more of a day time beach bar, which is fine for lunch, but we expected somewhere more formal for evening meals. We felt this was generally the same in all eating places along the beach, and we really struggled to find somewhere to eat each day, particularly Valentines day. There were a few issues during our stay including building work going on right outside our room (at the place next door), palm trees bashing against our room throughout the night, sewage smell coming into our bathroom, and the hygiene of the staff who came to turn down our room each day. This is not a reflection of the hotel itself, but sadly meant that our experience on holiday here was not what we had in mind. The hotel manager did do his best to rectify some of the issues and we were grateful of that. Another thing to note, is we were not aware before about the crime / culture / safety on the island - upon arrival we were advised not to walk right along the beach, but even walking left, we were harassed by children looking for money / staring at our pockets and felt very uncomfortable. We did not feel at ease to leave the hotel despite the multiple day trips on offer, which was a shame. Overall, the food offerings and variety let this down for us, and lack of formal restaurant / no atmosphere."

Shanuo Beach Bungalows

"Amazing property : great location - across from the Rock restaurant Unforgettable views Extremely knowledgeable and friendly owner/hostess Exceptional breakfast Beach front property I would recommend it to both families and couples."