Luxurious Villas By Region:
Zanzibar Garden Residence, Tanzania
Description:
Of all the royal residences built by the Sultans in the nineteenth
century, Zanzibar Garden Residence is the only one to survive intact.
This wonderful house is concealed amongst the verdant foliage of a magical 30 hectare walled garden above Fuji Beach, about 8km North of Stone Town.
Staying here is a completely unique experience. A maximum of 10 guests are invited to really make themselves at home in the house and be looked after by the delightful staff.
Turning off the main road in Bububu, between the run-down shanty shops, you follow an unlikely looking rutted track down through the shambas towards the beach.
A massive wall runs down the left hand side for the last 200 meters and just near the beach a huge carved door is part-hidden under the bougainvillea.
Use your weight to push the door open and enter the secret garden.
The first thing you see as you enter is the tiny mosque and if the time is right you will hear the imam singing the call to prayer from within.
Round the corner and between the palm, orange and lime trees you will see the upper veranda of the main house.
Up the path past the fountain ... give a shout and one of the staff will hurry out to meet you.
There are four bedrooms in the house, all with great character and wonderfully furnished with Zanzibar beds and other genuine antiques. Three are off the huge central atrium on the first floor, the fourth on the ground floor.
The master bedroom is the superb Princess Salome's Room, with its high ceilings and ten picture windows, which give magnificent views over the gardens and the sea. To add to the mystery, a wonderful secret stair descends from one corner into a catacomb of a bathroom. This is definitely amongst our top ten rooms in Zanzibar, if not our absolute favorite.
Sultan Barghash Room is the next best room. It has a fine four poster bed and a private veranda with views down into the garden and the ruined hamam and out across the bay towards town. The ensuite bathroom is off the private veranda.
The third room off the first floor atrium is Princess Khole's Room, which has a kind of sleep-on-the-floor-in-an-alcove type arrangement which some people may find romantic or interesting, but which we have never been too impressed with. We are awaiting news of refurbishment works to be carried out on this room before taking any bookings for it.
The fourth is Sultan Majid's Room, which is a nice large room on the ground floor, containing two big double four posters and an ensuite bathroom with sunken bath and door out to the back garden.
Zanzibar Garden Residence is not so much a hotel as a private house, which comes complete with a staff of seven. Samuel and his wife Esta are your hosts, along with Salum the cook, Yusuf and Abdallah the gardeners, Lucas the watchman and mad old Mzee Abdallah whose role is undefined. They are all lovely.
If you make the effort to get to know the staff you will be rewarded, but it is up to you to break the ice. Ask them to show you how to play bao.
Every morning Samuel asks guests whether they would like lunch and dinner and discusses the various options along with cook Salum. Guests then give Samuel only the money to go shopping for the ingredients and any drinks and that's all you pay. You can even go shopping with him too if you fancy a visit to the markets. Meals are usually served to guests together on the upper terrace, but can be served in the rooms or private balconies if requested. The food is authentic Zanzibari style and very good. We particularly recommend the fish kebabs, lobster & crab claws, followed by chocolate cake and chocolate sauce (okay, so that last one isn't quite so authentic).
Zanzibar Garden Residence does not pretend to offer five star accommodation. It is a unique and very special place, beautifully decorated and genuinely magical.
But this is an African house and you must be prepared to overlook little annoyances like squeaky doors, the odd peeling wall and a general lack of water pressure. Just keeping a beautiful little operation like this going in Zanzibar is a major achievement and to be applauded.
When Samuel runs out to the plantation and brings you back a fresh coconut with a couple of straws on a plate of frangipani petals, you'll understand what we mean.
Amenities
- 4 Bedrooms
- 4 Baths
- Private Beach
- Security
- Boats
- Housekeeper
- Chef
- Gardener
- Houseman
- Butler
$ - Please Enquire
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