Zanzibar is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful islands in the Indian Ocean, if not the world. It is one of the best-kept travel secrets and remains unspoilt by mass tourism.
Zanzibar archipelago is approximately 35km off shore from the Tanzania mainland and only six degrees south of the Equator.
It is comprised of two main Islands, Unguja (also called Zanzibar Island), and Pemba, along with many smaller islands and atolls. These provide miles and miles of palm lined beaches and colourful coral reefs perfect for diving or just soaking in the laid back atmosphere.
Zanzibar has been popular throughout history with artists, musicians and poets and still captivates people to this day. The very name conjures wonderous images and evokes intrigue. find out more
Monday, 22 July 2019
Wednesday, 4 November 2009
Monday 19th October : Ras Nungwi – Neptune Pwani
After a successful internet session in the lounge of Ras Nungwi, we moved on to our next stop for the night on the North East coast and were delighted to find newly tarred roads and the occasion sign to help us on our way.
Neptune Pwani was a straight up winner with me, we arrived through large iron gates to bright pink flowers climbing the walls that boarder the resort and an impressive drive way leading to an open reception area with a central fountain and smiling Italian faces!
This was our first taste of the All Inclusive larger hotels on the Island and it was just as promised – beautifully maintained and managed with excellence, nothing was out of place and nothing a problem. All the Villas which contain 4 rooms each have individual solar panels & their two free form pools are the biggest on the Island. I finally got to swim and we had an afternoon to ourselves for reading and sunbathing in the shade. This was the first buffet style self service hotel and the food was 5* with a fresh fish grill, pasta station where dishes were made to order and you created your own sauces ( chilli, cheese & bacon for me and boy oh boy is Zanzibari chilli HOT ) and much much more.
I enjoyed our day at Neptune Pwani and would happily have stayed a few more though it would certainly result in serious weight gain.
Neptune Pwani was a straight up winner with me, we arrived through large iron gates to bright pink flowers climbing the walls that boarder the resort and an impressive drive way leading to an open reception area with a central fountain and smiling Italian faces!
This was our first taste of the All Inclusive larger hotels on the Island and it was just as promised – beautifully maintained and managed with excellence, nothing was out of place and nothing a problem. All the Villas which contain 4 rooms each have individual solar panels & their two free form pools are the biggest on the Island. I finally got to swim and we had an afternoon to ourselves for reading and sunbathing in the shade. This was the first buffet style self service hotel and the food was 5* with a fresh fish grill, pasta station where dishes were made to order and you created your own sauces ( chilli, cheese & bacon for me and boy oh boy is Zanzibari chilli HOT ) and much much more.
I enjoyed our day at Neptune Pwani and would happily have stayed a few more though it would certainly result in serious weight gain.
Sunday 18th October : The Z Hotel – Ras Nungwi
We left The Z shortly after mid day and headed north to call in at the new Hilton Doubletree - a large development on the site of Nungwi Beach Village, the final resort on the northern tip of the Island.
They have built four blocks of rooms each with beautifully crafted local furniture and views out to the Ocean. We were suitably impressed and where you often find the international branded hotels can leave you feeling you could be anywhere in the world, this property had a distinct Zanzibari feel.
Though the hotel is in its final stages of completion, the staff were lovely and we had a beach front table for lunch and a really tasty beef & aubergine pizza – a new one on me and one I’ll be repeating when I get home along with upside down banana caramel cake from Olakira & spiced corgette soup from Echo Beach!
After lunch we headed to Ras Nungwi where we managed to get the last five minutes of sunshine on the beach and both promptly fell asleep. We awoke for dinner and saw a patter emerging of Sleep, Eat, Hotel Inspection, Eat, Drive, Hotel Inspection, sleep, Eat , Sleep and back to the beginning again. When visiting hotels which we didn’t have time to stay at it was only polite to at least stay for lunch. October 2009 is going down in Tarquin & Susie history as the best fed month of our lives!
Ras Nungwi was lovely and catered for an older crowd than the The Z Hotel with a much more subdued vibe and a place where most seemed to be fed and in bed by 9.30 – ourselves included.
They have built four blocks of rooms each with beautifully crafted local furniture and views out to the Ocean. We were suitably impressed and where you often find the international branded hotels can leave you feeling you could be anywhere in the world, this property had a distinct Zanzibari feel.
Though the hotel is in its final stages of completion, the staff were lovely and we had a beach front table for lunch and a really tasty beef & aubergine pizza – a new one on me and one I’ll be repeating when I get home along with upside down banana caramel cake from Olakira & spiced corgette soup from Echo Beach!
After lunch we headed to Ras Nungwi where we managed to get the last five minutes of sunshine on the beach and both promptly fell asleep. We awoke for dinner and saw a patter emerging of Sleep, Eat, Hotel Inspection, Eat, Drive, Hotel Inspection, sleep, Eat , Sleep and back to the beginning again. When visiting hotels which we didn’t have time to stay at it was only polite to at least stay for lunch. October 2009 is going down in Tarquin & Susie history as the best fed month of our lives!
Ras Nungwi was lovely and catered for an older crowd than the The Z Hotel with a much more subdued vibe and a place where most seemed to be fed and in bed by 9.30 – ourselves included.
Friday 16th – Sunday 18th October : Kilindi – The Z Hotel
Our car was delivered to Kilindi and we set off for The Z Hotel after one last exquisite meal at Kilindi – open Steak Focasia with the most deliciously pleasing sharp dressing which brought through 5 or 6 different flavours, the sign of a wonder chef for sure ! A slight Brandy haze was washed away and we set for the open road.
10 minutes later we were driving along the main road into Nungwi looking for a sign for The Z but failing this we headed down towards Le Gemma and around the back of the hotels from Kwendra towards Nungwi. We later found out that Hafis ( The Z Hotel General Manager) is in talks with the village council to confirm a position for The Z Hotel sign. Self drive guests are very rare indeed in Zanzibar so we were pleased as punch when we arrived using our own local knowledge and the knowledge of a local when we hit a dead end which happened to be the wrong side of the reception wall of the Z, so near.....
We parked up in the courtyard and were met by smiling faces, cold towels and juices before signing in and putting names to faces of the Z team who we work so closely with.
After the lovely James, Haf’s right hand man, showed us around the hotel we settled into The Z Suite which takes the whole of the top floor of one of the two accommodation blocks – wowzer. One balcony was home to our roof top Jacuzzi & the other a seating area with a beautiful brass telescope to keep a look out for pirates. Tarquin had great fun with the Internet connection (TIA as our Leonardo does say in his lovely Rhodesian accent) but he managed to refrain from throwing the laptop over the balcony into the infinity pool below.
Sunset cocktails followed by some giant tempura prawns, crab cakes and two perfectly cooked fillet steaks with mash & vegetables = sleepy travellers and an early night.
The following morning, a full English breakfast was delivered to our room at 9.30am and we guiltily ate not on the balcony overlooking the ocean but in the Air Conditioned room watching Top Gear on BBC world satellite – our first viewing in 10 days and as I caught the end of the news i was deeply sadden that Stephen Gately of Boy Zone had passed away. My little sister Tara was a huge fan and Stephen was her favourite. God rest his soul.
The charming Hafis then took us for a hotel inspection and we were very impressed with what we saw. The 2 cottages set on stilts over the ocean are something else, the upstairs bedrooms have balconies with double doors opening out to you own private Oceanscape, impossible not to wake totally chilled.
Naturally I owed it to the future guests of Pure Zanzibar & The Z Hotel to sample the Spa and enjoyed an hour long deep tissue massage from Agnes at the Lemon Spa.
That evening we dined in Saruche on Surf & Turf for the boy and a lovely chicken dish for myself, delicious wine & after dinner we headed out to Matemwe for a little party and then on to Kwendra for an altogether larger ‘half moon’ party. Tarquin wants to bring chilled and intelligent beats to Zanzibar, I second the notion as after the run of Bob Marley and gangster rap Swahili style came what we guess is the DJ’s offering for the foreigners – YMCA, Boom Boom Boom, various Euro Cheese and a collection of what can only be described as a Yamaha Keyboard demo heaven with an overlay of Baby Baby Baby. The Spanish Costas circa 1992.
10 minutes later we were driving along the main road into Nungwi looking for a sign for The Z but failing this we headed down towards Le Gemma and around the back of the hotels from Kwendra towards Nungwi. We later found out that Hafis ( The Z Hotel General Manager) is in talks with the village council to confirm a position for The Z Hotel sign. Self drive guests are very rare indeed in Zanzibar so we were pleased as punch when we arrived using our own local knowledge and the knowledge of a local when we hit a dead end which happened to be the wrong side of the reception wall of the Z, so near.....
We parked up in the courtyard and were met by smiling faces, cold towels and juices before signing in and putting names to faces of the Z team who we work so closely with.
After the lovely James, Haf’s right hand man, showed us around the hotel we settled into The Z Suite which takes the whole of the top floor of one of the two accommodation blocks – wowzer. One balcony was home to our roof top Jacuzzi & the other a seating area with a beautiful brass telescope to keep a look out for pirates. Tarquin had great fun with the Internet connection (TIA as our Leonardo does say in his lovely Rhodesian accent) but he managed to refrain from throwing the laptop over the balcony into the infinity pool below.
Sunset cocktails followed by some giant tempura prawns, crab cakes and two perfectly cooked fillet steaks with mash & vegetables = sleepy travellers and an early night.
The following morning, a full English breakfast was delivered to our room at 9.30am and we guiltily ate not on the balcony overlooking the ocean but in the Air Conditioned room watching Top Gear on BBC world satellite – our first viewing in 10 days and as I caught the end of the news i was deeply sadden that Stephen Gately of Boy Zone had passed away. My little sister Tara was a huge fan and Stephen was her favourite. God rest his soul.
The charming Hafis then took us for a hotel inspection and we were very impressed with what we saw. The 2 cottages set on stilts over the ocean are something else, the upstairs bedrooms have balconies with double doors opening out to you own private Oceanscape, impossible not to wake totally chilled.
Naturally I owed it to the future guests of Pure Zanzibar & The Z Hotel to sample the Spa and enjoyed an hour long deep tissue massage from Agnes at the Lemon Spa.
That evening we dined in Saruche on Surf & Turf for the boy and a lovely chicken dish for myself, delicious wine & after dinner we headed out to Matemwe for a little party and then on to Kwendra for an altogether larger ‘half moon’ party. Tarquin wants to bring chilled and intelligent beats to Zanzibar, I second the notion as after the run of Bob Marley and gangster rap Swahili style came what we guess is the DJ’s offering for the foreigners – YMCA, Boom Boom Boom, various Euro Cheese and a collection of what can only be described as a Yamaha Keyboard demo heaven with an overlay of Baby Baby Baby. The Spanish Costas circa 1992.
Thur 15th Oct 09
After a well earned lie in – the first since our departure some 10 days earlier, we were driven north to the exquisitely charming and other worldly serenity of Kilindi. As we stepped out of the vehicle and were handed vanilla scented ice cold towels to refresh our weary souls we looked at each other with a ‘this is what it is all about’ glint to our eyes.
From the reception area which overlooks the domed roofs that characterise Kilindi, we ascended to the walkways linking the individually designed Pavilions and were shown to a table on the shaded decking of the chic restaurant.
Russell, the Food and Beverages Manager, was behind his elegant bar with water cascading down a huge granite like slab forming the back wall which at this point I just wanted to hug (the wet wall, not Russell). Much to Tarquin’s delight the hotel was half full of Models on a Fashion shoot from Belgium. As I contemplated the scene of a mere mortal like myself in swimwear next to a model half my age & width, I ordered a burger, sunk a few full fat fizzy drinks and retired to the privacy of our own pavilion where i was revered as the true goddess I am !
After a siesta in our palacial size bed (the equivalent of 2 queen size beds) we joined the rest of the guests in the dining area for a dinner of slow roasted goat with orange & beetroot, pea & mint ravioli for Susie & Red Snapper for Tarquin, followed by a locally inspired pudding with a fresh ginger ice cream.
Kilindi, we love you.
From the reception area which overlooks the domed roofs that characterise Kilindi, we ascended to the walkways linking the individually designed Pavilions and were shown to a table on the shaded decking of the chic restaurant.
Russell, the Food and Beverages Manager, was behind his elegant bar with water cascading down a huge granite like slab forming the back wall which at this point I just wanted to hug (the wet wall, not Russell). Much to Tarquin’s delight the hotel was half full of Models on a Fashion shoot from Belgium. As I contemplated the scene of a mere mortal like myself in swimwear next to a model half my age & width, I ordered a burger, sunk a few full fat fizzy drinks and retired to the privacy of our own pavilion where i was revered as the true goddess I am !
After a siesta in our palacial size bed (the equivalent of 2 queen size beds) we joined the rest of the guests in the dining area for a dinner of slow roasted goat with orange & beetroot, pea & mint ravioli for Susie & Red Snapper for Tarquin, followed by a locally inspired pudding with a fresh ginger ice cream.
Kilindi, we love you.
Wednesday, 28 October 2009
Wed 14th October
Seronera, Serengeti – Arusha – Zanzibar
Waking up at Olakira camp for our final day on Safari, my eyes flickered open to come into focus on the horizon of the Serengeti plains and a rich golden orange sun illuminating the earth. A breathtaking sight to wake to, especially when you are still tucked up warm in bed and beginning to contemplate the day ahead.
Breakfast was served in the mess tent at 6.30am, toast and omelettes prepared on the barbeque grill and fresh juice to set us up for our game drive before flying out from Seronera at 11.05am.
This last morning we had an exciting ring side seat for a pair of Cheetahs hunting for their breakfast amongst a vast heard of Thomson’s Gazelle. Not dissimilar to watching our domestic cats in the UK creeping low to the ground before pouncing on unsuspecting prey – only the Gazelles clearly sensed the Cheetahs whilst they remained hidden close to the ground amongst the grassy plains. The Cheetahs tried to flank the herds but to no avail as they are nimble little creatures and as soon as one goes they all bolt like wild fire. I particularly enjoyed the chivalry of the male gazelle who stood firm protecting the females to the rear of the heard, furthest from where they sensed danger. Females in the wild are revered, protected and even boss if you are a hyena !
Final stop on our northern Tanzanian adventure was to visit the beautiful Maru Kjopes, an ancient Maassai meeting point which was used for ceremonies before the tribes were moved south from the Serengeti to Ngorongoro. Kjopes is a Dutch word which means ‘big head’ and refers to the clusters of large rocks found off the beaten track in the south east of Seronera. On the giant rocks sits a singular rock drum around 1.5 metres high and 3 metres wide. There are concave cups the size of fists set in the rock and a beating stone which when hit into the individual ‘cups’ gives a different tone. You can bang out a tune Masaai style to the audience which in our case was a leopard in the distance dragging his breakfast to the shade of the rocks. You can imagine the great festivities that took place here through the years and the scene of Massaai tribes coming in from every direction on the 360 panorama of the Serengeti – a word that in Massaai translates to endless plains.
By 10.30am we arrived at Seonera airstrip for our flight with Coastal Aviation to Zanzibar via Arusha. An informal check in procedure which consisted of walking to the aircraft, putting your bag in the hold, being part of a head count and buckling up saw us taking off bang on time. Well, the second time as our first attempt at take off was aborted due to Impala on the runway. 10 minutes in Arusha gave us enough time to have a quick chat with Anita before running back to our connecting flight. It was a little touch and go as our bags had been moved onto the second aircraft for Arusha – Zanzibar & as we had run into the departures lounge to see Anita we had to put our bags through the scanner before departing again (not something they have at Seronera) and a glass bottle was detected.
I politely but firmly informed the guard who was telling me this was a problem that it was not a problem as we had just flown in with the said bottle in hand luggage and any more chit chat with him & we would miss our flight which was revving up to depart. I scurried across the runway flapping my arms and still talking to the guard protesting and as soon as we got to the aircraft the security officer asked me if I had whisky with a smile – I said ‘No, it’s Rum’ and with a big grin again he ushered us onto the plane and off we went !
On arrival into Zanzibar we were met by a driver from Zanzibar Unique with a bottle of ice cold water each and an air conditioned car to drive us to Swahili House in the centre of Stone Town.
The hotel was formally International house and is so much so in the centre of Stone Town that we had to park a few windy streets away as there is no vehicle access to the labyrinth within the old town.
Swahili House is set over 5 floors with an open inner courtyard and rooms situated around the galleried landings. The walk up to the roof top restaurant is a dizzy one when coupled with the intense early afternoon heat and though there is a lift shaft in place, the lift is waiting at Dar Es Salaam port to be released from customs.
Well worth the climb though is the roof top bar and restaurant, Tarquin & I went up for a refresher before heading out to explore Stone Town at 4 in the afternoon and after 10 hours we were still there - all exploration on this particular afternoon was done from the rooftop !
Great cocktails, great service, the best food in Stone Town and the views are stunning. They even have a roof top Jacuzzi and a few sun beds for those who find tanning a daily essential! Hats off to Alex Innes, the chef from the UK who has seen the refurbishment of Swahili House kitchens & the hotel opening in December 2008, creating a destination in itself for rooftop sun downers and dining in the heart of Stone Town.
Waking up at Olakira camp for our final day on Safari, my eyes flickered open to come into focus on the horizon of the Serengeti plains and a rich golden orange sun illuminating the earth. A breathtaking sight to wake to, especially when you are still tucked up warm in bed and beginning to contemplate the day ahead.
Breakfast was served in the mess tent at 6.30am, toast and omelettes prepared on the barbeque grill and fresh juice to set us up for our game drive before flying out from Seronera at 11.05am.
This last morning we had an exciting ring side seat for a pair of Cheetahs hunting for their breakfast amongst a vast heard of Thomson’s Gazelle. Not dissimilar to watching our domestic cats in the UK creeping low to the ground before pouncing on unsuspecting prey – only the Gazelles clearly sensed the Cheetahs whilst they remained hidden close to the ground amongst the grassy plains. The Cheetahs tried to flank the herds but to no avail as they are nimble little creatures and as soon as one goes they all bolt like wild fire. I particularly enjoyed the chivalry of the male gazelle who stood firm protecting the females to the rear of the heard, furthest from where they sensed danger. Females in the wild are revered, protected and even boss if you are a hyena !
Final stop on our northern Tanzanian adventure was to visit the beautiful Maru Kjopes, an ancient Maassai meeting point which was used for ceremonies before the tribes were moved south from the Serengeti to Ngorongoro. Kjopes is a Dutch word which means ‘big head’ and refers to the clusters of large rocks found off the beaten track in the south east of Seronera. On the giant rocks sits a singular rock drum around 1.5 metres high and 3 metres wide. There are concave cups the size of fists set in the rock and a beating stone which when hit into the individual ‘cups’ gives a different tone. You can bang out a tune Masaai style to the audience which in our case was a leopard in the distance dragging his breakfast to the shade of the rocks. You can imagine the great festivities that took place here through the years and the scene of Massaai tribes coming in from every direction on the 360 panorama of the Serengeti – a word that in Massaai translates to endless plains.
By 10.30am we arrived at Seonera airstrip for our flight with Coastal Aviation to Zanzibar via Arusha. An informal check in procedure which consisted of walking to the aircraft, putting your bag in the hold, being part of a head count and buckling up saw us taking off bang on time. Well, the second time as our first attempt at take off was aborted due to Impala on the runway. 10 minutes in Arusha gave us enough time to have a quick chat with Anita before running back to our connecting flight. It was a little touch and go as our bags had been moved onto the second aircraft for Arusha – Zanzibar & as we had run into the departures lounge to see Anita we had to put our bags through the scanner before departing again (not something they have at Seronera) and a glass bottle was detected.
I politely but firmly informed the guard who was telling me this was a problem that it was not a problem as we had just flown in with the said bottle in hand luggage and any more chit chat with him & we would miss our flight which was revving up to depart. I scurried across the runway flapping my arms and still talking to the guard protesting and as soon as we got to the aircraft the security officer asked me if I had whisky with a smile – I said ‘No, it’s Rum’ and with a big grin again he ushered us onto the plane and off we went !
On arrival into Zanzibar we were met by a driver from Zanzibar Unique with a bottle of ice cold water each and an air conditioned car to drive us to Swahili House in the centre of Stone Town.
The hotel was formally International house and is so much so in the centre of Stone Town that we had to park a few windy streets away as there is no vehicle access to the labyrinth within the old town.
Swahili House is set over 5 floors with an open inner courtyard and rooms situated around the galleried landings. The walk up to the roof top restaurant is a dizzy one when coupled with the intense early afternoon heat and though there is a lift shaft in place, the lift is waiting at Dar Es Salaam port to be released from customs.
Well worth the climb though is the roof top bar and restaurant, Tarquin & I went up for a refresher before heading out to explore Stone Town at 4 in the afternoon and after 10 hours we were still there - all exploration on this particular afternoon was done from the rooftop !
Great cocktails, great service, the best food in Stone Town and the views are stunning. They even have a roof top Jacuzzi and a few sun beds for those who find tanning a daily essential! Hats off to Alex Innes, the chef from the UK who has seen the refurbishment of Swahili House kitchens & the hotel opening in December 2008, creating a destination in itself for rooftop sun downers and dining in the heart of Stone Town.
Tue 13th Oct 09
Today was our last full day to explore the vast grass planes of the Serengeti. We were up early to catch sunrise and hopefully some game before the heat of the day set in. Whilst most of the Serengeti is grassy planes with few trees it also has a river that attracts the animals as the only source of fresh water for miles. Along the banks we were lucky enough to see lots of elephants, lions, hippo and a couple of crocodiles, plus all the now familiar gazelle, zebra and wildebeests. Randomly enough we also bumped into our French rescuers from the day before and witnessed a male lion ‘mark his territory’ all over their Land Rover.
Over the course of the day we were lucky enough to see elephants chasing lions, lions starting to eat their recent catch of buffalo, a leopard resting in a tree and troops of elephants refreshing in the river. Unlike the other parks we had visited this was easily the most spread out but I personally felt gave the best viewing, for wildlife at least.
By the end we were thoroughly knackered, coated in dust and slightly sore from the outrageously bumpy roads but very glad and fortunate to have seen and done what we have. Needless to say there is potential for a stupidly long slide show once we get back if anyone would like to sit through the thousands of pictures??
Over the course of the day we were lucky enough to see elephants chasing lions, lions starting to eat their recent catch of buffalo, a leopard resting in a tree and troops of elephants refreshing in the river. Unlike the other parks we had visited this was easily the most spread out but I personally felt gave the best viewing, for wildlife at least.
By the end we were thoroughly knackered, coated in dust and slightly sore from the outrageously bumpy roads but very glad and fortunate to have seen and done what we have. Needless to say there is potential for a stupidly long slide show once we get back if anyone would like to sit through the thousands of pictures??
Big thanks to Anita from Love Live Africa and Ali our driver.
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