Hotel Kiwengwa dengan Spa

Wonderful people, magical place. I had the pleasure of staying at the hotel in October. I had a large group of almost 100 people with me. I was surprised by the amount of kindness, smiles and excellent service. Delicious cuisine, everyone will find something for themselves. The hotel is very clean, has a beautiful setting in a palm tree garden. The beach is well organized. I spent an extraordinary time there and met unique people. Thank you to the amazing manager Mr. Dass and his team: Ahlem, Saadia, Fatma, Mike, Abdul, Kumar and the rest for their wonderful hospitality. Do you want to relax in paradise while feeling at home? The answer is simple - Bluebay! ♥

This is a beautiful resort. The staff were incredibly kind and always welcome you with a smile. They have snacks and coffee/tea time throughout the day and the dinner buffets were fantastic. There is also a lot of activities like water aerobics, stretching, volleyball. The only downside: people are allowed to smoke everywhere, on the beach, by the pool, the lobby, the chill areas. It’s really gross and very unhealthy for those who do not smoke.

We've stayed in VOI Kiwengwa Resort for 5 nights. PROS: - Service was great: reception, dinning area, pool area, cleaning, gardening... all of them were always kind, polite and willing to help you if you needed assistance - Nice pool CONS: - Impossible to get into the sea without being stopped by the ”Masai” people or some others. This was very annyoing. - As before, impossible to walk near the sea without being stopped / followed by the ”Masai” people. Every attempt of saying ”enough” or saying that you don't have money with you, will be ignored. Not even that, if they finally don't get anything from you, you will be insulted. - If you are not Italian, you will feel little bit displaced. Mostly 90% of the activities are focused on the italian community. In addition, if you want to join a group activity to do some sightseeing, will not be possible as it is only offered to Italian people / speakers. All in all, I regret to say that we will not visit Kiwengwa area nor VOI Kiwengwa Hotel again due to the cons mentioned before. If you are someone looking for peace and relax this will be definitely not your place. Be also aware that this is starting to be a common feeling around the island, as our local stone town guide shared with us. Looks like you need to book a hotel with private security if you are looking for some peace.

Sultan Sands in Zanzibar is a fantastic hotel to unwind after a few days on safari. The rooms are excellent (spacious, quiet, and comfortable). The social areas are also well above average, with four pools (including a quieter one for those looking to truly relax), several restaurants, bars, and various game areas like snooker and ping pong. There’s even a spot for beach soccer and volleyball. The staff is attentive and professional, from the gardeners to the receptionists, restaurant staff, and entertainers. Everyone we encountered was friendly and eager to ensure we had a great stay. Two standout aspects of Sultan Sands, in my opinion, are the quality of the food and the beach. - The food is local, spicy, and of excellent quality with a great variety to choose from. - The beach right in front of the hotel is stunning, with soft sand, crystal-clear water, and a perfect temperature. Surrounding the hotel, the beach area has several shops selling local crafts, and there are also numerous vendors who enjoy chatting with tourists. While they are keen to sell their products, they are polite and not overly pushy if you’re not interested, which adds a charming and authentic local flavor to the area. There are a couple of areas where the hotel could improve: 1) The hotel should invest in maintaining the cleanliness of the beach in front of and around the property. The beach and ocean are beautiful, but there is quite a bit of plastic and some litter that should be collected. While I understand that the beach isn't the hotel's direct responsibility, they have enough staff to handle this additional task and greatly enhance the cleanliness of the environment. I strongly believe the hotel should work to ensure the beach is consistently clean and should encourage their staff and local vendors to participate in regular cleanups. 2) All goods at the hotel (food, drinks) are priced in the local currency. However, when it comes time to settle the bill via credit card at the end of the stay, the hotel only accepts payment in USD, with an exorbitant exchange rate—nearly 15% higher than the actual rate. If prices are displayed in the local currency, it doesn’t seem fair to force guests to pay in USD, especially with such a significant markup. My final payment ended up being considerably higher than the advertised cost for additional products and services.