Reviews of Pongwe Beach Hotel

"Great location a lovely 'private' white sand beach. Attentive staff and good food. Although popular you do not get the feel of a large establishment - other than at evening meal - when the dining room has something of a refectory feel.

Rooms are only very simply furnished - those on the (beach) front seem to have better options for relaxing, we only had a simple bench on the porch but we made use of the ample options of loungers, hammocks and rondovels on the beach itself.

Easy place to relax. Activities are limited unless you taxi elsewhere: snorkelling is an option, but very wind/tide dependent. 'Good' snorkeliing would be a bonus rather than an expectaion - unless you pay for the more expensive trip to Mnemba. Good pool though, and swimming from the beach is great too." See all these reviews: 9n in Zanzibar; 7n in Tanzania

"We arrived around 7pm to a really warm welcome from Kara. We were shown to our room (Vals room) which had such a perfect outlook & was just a few steps away from the Indian Ocean. The room had a fantastic outlook & was well equipped. The shower was a little weak but hey, who cares when you're in such beautiful surroundings! We liked the idea of complementary gowns & kangas & to have fresh coffee delivered in the morning was also a great touch (even though we were forgotton 1 day & only got 1 cup the next - the thought was there!!)

The dining & lounge areas were furnished in bright prints & every evening we took advantage of the various games available (dominoes, bao, scrabble etc) whilst enjoying olives, nuts & popcorn prior to our evening meal. The food was always very well presented, plentiful & served by smiling staff. They were happy to meet any request for variations in a meal (eg I used to ask for chilli omelette in the mornings!) We would possibly have enjoyed a little more 'spice' (Zanzibar - Spice Island??!) but appreciate that not everyone else shares our passion for this!!

It was great having a private beach as we rarely encountered more than a handful of other people during the day & even though once the tide had retreated the water was too shallow to swim, there were all sorts of interesting things to look at in the water such as urchins, sea slugs(!) & of course some beautiful shells to collect! We used this time to take advantage of the lovely infinity pool - again, this area was never crowded.

We took a trip on the dhow out to the reef & tried a bit of snorkeling & hand-line fishing - great fun, several different species caught! It was a perfect winding down place - everything we needed amongst the most fabulous setting. We only went out one day, up to Nungwi for some game fishing. There seemed to be a stark difference in the two places & we're so glad we chose Pongwe! No negatives - only the coffee blanking blip!!" See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 6n in Zanzibar

"An absolutely fantastic place to kick back and relax - the beach is postcard worthy, the food is excellent and the service is outstanding.

The rooms are pretty but rustic, which we loved - it was warm at night, but the fan was a life-saver! The resort has a family atmosphere, with staff and guests all intermingling in a very comfortable way.

Pongwe is also excellent value - we couldn't think of anything more you would need from a beach holiday." See all these reviews: 6n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar

"We arrived at Pongwe Beach Hotel and were greeted and told "Welcome to Paradise" - when we walked out onto the beach we understood what they meant!

The setting is fantastic - the resort is a row of lovely thatched beach bungalows, surrounded by beautiful gardens and palm trees looking out onto a turquoise warm sea and blue sky. There is an infinity pool with a nice sunbathing area scattered thatched umbrellas to provide shade. The beach bungalows are quite simplistic but clean and all that you need for a beach resort. There were nice touches such as providing a beach basket with fresh beach towels everyday and having a green flag system for ordering drinks etc.

There was a range of activities at the hotel such as snorkelling, kayaking etc. and the hotel staff were happy to help arrange other activities through third parties. The food was of a very high quality. Each day a set dinner menu was circulated but the staff seemed very flexible to allowing for dietary requirements and likes/dislikes. They are keen to arrange for a candle lit dinner on the beach at least one night during your stay.

Pongwe is a place for chilling out in lovely surroundings with great service and great food. There are activities to do but it is not a lively resort. We came away feeling well rested and well fed!" See all these reviews: 8n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"After a week on safari, this was PERFECT! The accomadation was nice looking out over the beach. Talcum powder sand and Turqouise sea - picture postcard.

Days were spent lying in hammocks reading books and playing in the sea. Snorkelling straight from the beach is very limited but when you go out with the boat, it is really worth it - lots of fish!

Service lacked the personal touches that we had recieved previously through our trip, but it was still fairly good. The food was nice and fairly flexible when wanting to change the set meals. The Seafood platter on the beach was LOVELY!

Cocktails and games in the bar before dinner was really nice.

Bear in mind that many people really stick to being in couples at this resort so not overly social but perfect if you want to have some time out. Pure Relaxation!!!!!!!" See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 7n in Zanzibar

"An amazing place which was slightly let down by the staff. The location was fantastic, the accomodation comfortable and clean, the pool absolutely stunning, the little touches like the sarongs and beach bags were great and the food good.

However when we were there the service seemed rather chaotic and took away from the overall experience - for example at breakfast, you'd have about 4 different people trying to take your order, things would get forgotten and your toast would always arrive 10 minutes before or after the rest of your breakfast.

Also, I was hugely excited about using the little flag you get given to use on the beach to signal you want drinks, but after 25 minutes waiting I eventually gave up and went to the bar. It's a shame as if they got this sorted it would have been such a fabulous place but the poor service let it down." See all these reviews: 6n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"White sands, beautiful clear blue sea, palm trees with hammocks, a truely lovely setting. On our arrival to our room we received a bowl of fruit, sparkling wine on ice and a lovely message congratulating us on our Silver Wedding Anniversary, a very welcoming touch.

The rooms were nice (we were given the family cottage, even though there were only 2 of us) it was spacious and clean, the bathroom had 2 showers and was certainly big enough for a family of 4. The water from the showers is slightly salty but we didn't find that an issue. The main bedroom and bathroom were a little on the dark side as the whole cottage was under a thatched additional roof and therefore not allowing much natural light in, but not much time is spent in the rooms. There is no safety boxes in the rooms which we found a little inconvenient but there is one large safe at the reception area that you have to ask a member of staff to get your posessions from. You can access this between 7.30am and 8pm.

The dining area is quite large and has a lounge area at one side with comfy chairs, bar serving a wide variety of drinks and an endless cocktail list.

The food was very interesting and varied. The staff were pleasant and efficient.

All in all it was a lovely place to spend a few nights totally relaxing in paradise surroundings." See all these reviews: 6n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"We really liked Pongwe, although not a 5 star accommodation, it was great for a beach holiday.

Fantastic staff, could not do enough for us and got out of their way a few times to fully satisfy our requirements; always available for a nice chat and joke with us, but also very efficient; waiters, bar man and house keepers, all great and happy people. Great food with a strong Thai influence, one simple but tasty menu prepared every day, which indicates quality and freshness.

The beach and the sea were lovely and it was great to laze around there and swim, in privacy, guarded by very nice Masai people.
The snorkeling is not really worth doing but it's still nice to get on a boat for a couple of hours and hand fish the soup of the day for the fisherman at the same time.

One thing that we didn't like: the bathrooms, which are in serious need of TLC (look a bit like prison showers!). The showers work quite well and you do get nice hot water but it wouldn't take much to paint everything white and add a couple of shelves and a slightly more inspiring mirror to make the whole room very pleasant. The bed was comfortable and the bedroom was big and rather well decorated, all in nice little chalets, a couple of steps from the lovely sand.

The beach was raked everyday and very clean." See all these reviews: 7n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"Pongwe is a beautiful place a place that dreams are made of. White sand, turquoise blue sea, coconut palms, and very good food.
Nothing to do but to relax and enjoy doing nothing.

We had Champagne in our room when we arrived, with compliments from the management. My husband had a birthday whilst we were here,so we had a candle lit dinner on the beach. We had a fish platter absolutely delicious.The staff came dancing and singing happy birthday on to the beach with a birthday cake. Everyone were very friendly and nothing was to much trouble.

We enjoyed our stay here." See all these reviews: 6n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania

"I don't think either of us will forget the moment we arrived at pongwe. Simply stunning. We were already talking about a return visit after five minutes! The hotel is laid out as a series of thatched beachfront rooms/bungalows around a stunning white coral sand private beach with an open sided communal bar/dining area in the centre. At one end is a beautiful infinity pool overlooking the sea which comes in very useful as the tide only comes in twice a day. Although the emphasis here is not on five star resort luxury, this place provides exceptional quality, comfort, privacy and relaxation, all set against the luxurious backdrop of palm trees and the Indian Ocean. Owing to its popularity the hotel is usually running at full capacity but doesn't accommodate many people and so never feels crowded.

The food here is fantastic. There is a buffet of fresh tropical fruit and cereals with cooked breakfast available to order, whilst lunch and dinner are prepared from set menus with plenty of fresh fish, vegetables, salads, rice etc. all cooked using exotic combinations of local spices. They are more than happy to accommodate any dietary requirements that you might have, and the waiting staff are extremely friendly. (The cocktails are a must by the way- prepared with fresh local juices and delivered with a big smile! Perfect by the pool....)

They have generators running throughout the day here and power points in all the rooms so electricity is not an issue. (Plugs are the same as the UK) Water for the shower and the sink taps is basically naturally filtered sea water so not good for drinking (!) but there is plenty of bottled water available.

If you can tear yourself away from the idyllic surroundings then the hotel can organize a variety of excursions for you including diving, tours of a spice plantation, trips to nearby islands and so on, although the atmosphere is so calm and relaxing here that it is difficult to leave!

This is definitely not an option for those looking for wild nightlife but for anyone wishing to spend some or all of their stay on Zanzibar in a state of comfortably relaxed tropical bliss then we couldn't recommend pongwe beach hotel enough. (Recommended to book WELL in advance....)" See all these reviews: 8n in Zanzibar; 4n in Tanzania