Mangrove Lodge

I have never stayed in a hotel where the service and experience progressively got worse each day. Everything just started going downhill during our second day you wake up in the morning and the first thing that happens is you are asked about joining one of the tours and offer through the hotel and they do that every chance they get and the moment they find out that you have a booking For a tour with another company and not through them, they will just little snide comments and make you regret your decisions. The second thing was the food you had to order lunch hours before and when you ordered for specific time you get to the restaurant you still have to wait at least another 30 minutes to get it, I ordered calamari on one of those days for eight and only got four small pieces of calamari and that was it just for small pieces of calamari and fried plantain so that was basically two dollars per calamari. There was an element of feeling unsafe because one of the mornings as I was walking up to breakfast there was a strange man just walking around and when I get to breakfast, one of the staff members there tells me that there’s a man who has been asking about me and looking for me and as I turned there, that man is standing right there and my question was, how are you letting this man on the premises, and what if you wanted to come to me and you guys are letting him walk around this entire place because I ran into him on the other side of the hotel so there was that as well which made me feel extremely uncomfortable and uneasy and unsafe. They didn’t spray any mosquito spray as it’s common in the area to in and spray the room with mosquito spray at the end of each evening they only did that first night and we had to keep them and each time it was met with just a sigh of inconvenience like we were inconveniencing them getting there difficult worth it and I think that is the one thing I can attest to being the better part of this entire establishment, but that aside the services awful. You will go hungry, we told the bar open a specific time but it wouldn’t open. Also they change their rules at one day. It’s OK to have a meal by the bar closer to the beach the next day you can’t do that but then you’ll see them. Send them food down for specific people so that was also extremely offputting, I can safely say I will never set foot in that place ever again. Also, the WiFi was bad

UNSAFE - Avoid at all costs! I stayed here with 2 friends. We booked 3 separate rooms and arrived very late, only to be told we had only booked 2 rooms, so two of us had to share a bed for several days, before the owners realised their error. Even then, the owners refused to compensate us. The male owner Haji, screamed at us despite his own error, and was extremely intimidating. He is a bully and frightening, particularly if you're a female. We had no choice but to continue staying there as we couldn't afford to move elsewhere but he made the rest of the stay extremely unpleasant for us. His wife, Marina, is too scared to express her opinion and just does what he says. To this day we have not received any compensation. They are thieves and liars! All the showers are outdoors and the only privacy is provided by a fence made of thin branches, meaning there huge gaps between the branches. Anyone can peer through while you're having a shower. I had to shower with a bikini on. The lodge is has to be accessed from a 1km sandy rural road which is very bumpy and damages cars. Asa a result many cabs refuse to come to the lodge. It is also next a local township so quite often while you're swimming in the sea, it is filled with local people/kids who wash their cows in their water and often ask you for money. It takes away from the experience. Mainly for your safety from the owners, AVOID at all costs, esp if you're female.

Beutifull until you have issues that need to be resolved. Hell unleashed: I have been lied to, accused of had an agressive owner to deal with. This was the firts time ever after travelling half the world that best holiday ever ended up with boltted doors inside the room.

Charming place lots of beautiful foliage wonderful staff .love the outdoor shower experience, great meals and very inexpensive. Not far from Stonetown but brace yourself for the rough dirt road ride to the lodge .Besides that lovely chill spot for pure relaxation.. Can't thank the entire staff enough for all that they do. Lovely pool and beach was accessible,a must try is the Seafood platter . Haji and the staff many thanks again for your hospitality may you be blessed.

What a fantastic place to stay Haji and his staff could not do enough for us and made you feel 'at home', 15 out of 10!!!!! for friendliness and the way they looked after us. The tropical gardens were beautiful and it was great to walk down to the pool on the beach where there was a laid back bar for enjoying a drink before dinner

We visited the Mangrove Lodge for our honeymoon looking to unwind after some adventures on the mainland. If you are looking for a quiet and peaceful place to relax in Zanzibar, this is it. Even if the lodge was fully booked, you hardly notice any of the other guests. The whole resort is spacious and the layout lends itself to privacy. The staff were incredibly friendly and accomodating, the rooms were clean, spacious, and the outdoor showers were cool! The food is delicious, and you might even spot a bush baby or colobus monkey hanging out while you indulge!