Ras Nungwi was one of the first beach lodges to be built on Zanzibar Island after the "nowhere years" that followed independence. In those days the village of Nungwi, on the extreme northern tip of Zanzibar Island, was a sleepy palm-thatched fishing village with no accommodation other than a couple of local three bedroom guesthouses. Now it is a main centre for visitors to the island.

When South Africans Dean and Kim Yeadon came up here back in 1995, they fell in love with the place and decided to build a small beach lodge. Working in partnership with English father and son team, Peter and Tim Hendriks, they chose to site the lodge a kilometre or so to the south east of the main village, both because this gave the lodge and the villagers more privacy and because this is the most stunning stretch of white sand that you are likely to find anywhere. True that the hinterland is a bit barren and scrubby and there is a marked lack of coconut palms around, but the beach is great. The lodge that was created, although having as many as thirty two rooms from the outset, was an unpretentious place, with simple thatched bandas and a modest central dining area. Back then none of the dive sites had been properly plotted and the guys spent weeks going around with the local fishermen in their small dhows, locating and naming dozens of new sites.

In 1999 Tim Hendricks bought out the other partners and set about an extensive programme of development and improvement. During this process the lodge has lost a little of the intimacy that you associate with a simpler place, but at the same time it has gained greatly in terms of its facilities and now runs as a pretty slick operation.

It is about a one and a half hour drive from Stonetown, through the plantations and villages to Nungwi, the last half hour of which is on rough roads.

We almost always arrange a car to meet guests from an incoming flight or boat, or from another hotel on the island, up to Ras Nungwi.

Arriving at the entrance to Nungwi village, you take the turn to the right, which quickly hits the east coast and turns south, passing across rocky coral scrub for a couple of kilometres down to Ras Nungwi. A gentle incline leads down to an outstanding beach and lagoon. The colours of the sea here have to be seen to be believed and with the shocks of white sails dotted across the water, it really is a sight to die for.

The lodge itself is on a plot of land which extends perhaps two hundred metres in from the and is three hundred metres along the beachfront. There is no other development in the area, except for a little local guesthouse, which clings like an barnacle to the boundary of its larger neighbour.

Arriving at the hotel, you will be struck by the thatched oppulence of the new reception areas, which really are pretty impressive. From here there is a short flight of steps that leads to a view across the dining room and lounge areas, all open-plan and under the same complexed thatch roof.

Beyond that, the view leads out to the pool and on down to that superb beach beyond.

As well as these large public areas, there are a number of other small facilities, including pool, table tennis, darts, board games and a TV room.

There are a total of thirty two rooms here, which are divided up into four different price categories. The general rule is that the closer you get to the sea, the higher the room specification, the higher the price.

Rooms are quite nicely furnished, mostly with 'four-poster' beds. Historically we have always thought that some of the detailing has fallen a little short of what we might have expected for the price, especially in the more expensive rooms, but recent rennovation work has led to great improvements and all rooms are now pleasant, airy and wel-maintained. All rooms have airconditioning, ceiling fans and private bathrooms.

In our opinion the best rooms here are the twelve superior chalets ... 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 ... which are semi-detached in nice large round bandas, in a good position above the beach and with nice verandahs.

There are six more expensive rooms, known as superior deluxe chalets ... A B C D E F ... which have a few little extras and real Zanzibari beds, but on balance we didn't like them as much as the superior rooms. They have sliding patio doors.

Finally, at the back of the property is a row of thirteen lodge rooms, 23 24a 24b 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 ... whose interiors are also like the superior chalets but whose position is not particularly interesting, being built in a single row, like semi-detached bungalows. They do have reasonably sized private verandahs and as the garden matures around these rooms are becoming an increasingly attractive option if you would rather not spend out on (or more likely cannot get availability for) a more expensive chalet.

In rooms there is a possibility of insect ingress, so check your mosquito nets for complete integrity. Spray room with insect repellent before going to dinner. Check inside boots and clothes before putting on ... risk is very low, but there are scorpions and spiders around. Cover yourselves up and spray with repellant after dusk for prevention against mosquito bites. Actually here at Ras Nungwi there is a particularly low incidence of mosquitos thanks to the onshore breezes.

Another issue here is that Ras Nungwi really does get a very high proprtion of newlyweds, which is fine if you are swooning honeymooners, but can be terribly drab if you are not. Out on the dive boat during the day people tend to mingle and muck in together, but back at the lodge it is often a case of keeping yourself to youself. Your hosts do sometimes try to bring tables together and get an atmosphere going, but this is apparently not what the guests usually want to do on the whole.

A major issue on this side of the island is the weather and more specifically the winds. Ras Nungwi is closed for April and May, when the main rains are due to fall. Around the end of this period the monsoon winds swing around and there can be a period of quite considerable onshore breezes, especially through June. These winds are usually at their strongest in the early morning and late evening, but during June especially they can blow quite hard for days on end. Actually this is an incredibly atmospheric time to be at Ras Nungwi, especially because in addition to this lively weather, there are so few people around. And being in the tropics it never gets cold and the sun always comes out for at least part of the day. The only real downer is if you are a diver and it is too rough to go out, but this is quite unusual. For the rest of the year Ras Nungwi enjoys better weather than just about any other part of the island. Often it will be raining as you come up through the plantations near Stonetown and then will be clear and sunny as you descend down to the coast.

 

pool

he best room here by a long way is the new honeymoon suite. This is located to one side of the site, just above the beach and is very secluded. The suite is over 140 square metres and includes a private patio with plunge pool, a bedroom, lounge and bathroom.

It really is very nice indeed and feedback from our customers who have stayed there has been most complementary.

 

Ocean Suite pool

Ocean Suite bedroom