The rooms must have paper napkins. Glasses should also be provided in the rooms. Be prepared for power outages on this Island.

The breakfasts and lunches were excellent! The staff is very friendly and helpful. There are mangroves, coconut palms, and sandy beaches in close proximity to the hotel. Right next to the dining area, there is a colony of fruit-eating bats living in a mangrove tree. The sea is good for swimming at high tide. The excursions offered are quite good, especially snorkeling among the coral at Mange Reef. I highly recommend this excursion (and don't forget sun protection clothing, caps and polarizing glasses)! The Blue Lagoon excursion is also very interesting, I recommend it. I just wanted to share a little tip to help you have a swim or snorkel in the Blue Lagoon. I've found that a protective suit with long sleeves and pants (like what you'd wear for summer windsurfing, or a simple long-sleeved t-shirt and athletic pants) can be really helpful in avoiding those little bites from the small marine crustaceans (Isopoda) that are pretty common in this lagoon (but absent in the open sea). While they're not dangerous, their bites can be quite painful (like gadfly bites), so it's always good to be prepared! I hope this helps!

Stayed in February 2024

Nothing.

Beautiful resort surrounded by lush gardens. The rooms are rustic but beds super comfortable and clean. Credit cards accepted. There's a fan. English plugs.Each room has a quaint porch (african style) with seating. Some rooms have only cold water in the showers. I did not mind as it was super warm but if an issue, let them know in advance to put you in the hot water rooms. There are stairs down to the restaurant so not for those with bad knees. Saw elderly couple who managed fine though.The bar and dining area with super strong WiFi, looking onto the sea. The staff go way beyond to help with anything. They truly make the place so special. Snorkelling trip with bbq lunch on the sandbar was utterly amazing. They bring everything, table, chairs etc, even a cold beer. Some of the fish I saw while snorkelling were huge compared to what I have seen elsewhere in the world like maldives. It was magical. They can also take you to an in land salty pool with crystal clear water... on one of the smaller islands...reminded of Thailand and to the ruins of the African Queen's Palace. The boat trip through the channels of islands had a feeling of going down the Amazon River. The food was amazing. Limes picked fresh from the trees there. I can't remember eating a diced tomato salad that tasted so good. There's also a few restaurants, shacks to go to further down the beach..near the village. Sit with your feet in the sand, watch the boats while you sip your wine. Can walk or tuk tuk If you thinking of booking here on Mafia Island, just do it. They do airport pick up You will be well taken care of by literally everyone from Dar es salam flight departure, arrival, hotel staff, to the tuk tuk drivers.

Stayed in March 2024

The payment of 23.60 us a day for marine park. Its too much money.

Lovely nature It was an amazing place, good staff especially ED and Norah made sure we were looked after. Ally amazing Host. We had a great time.

Stayed in February 2024

The are always turing off the fridge and when you ask for a beer or wine is warm

The location is super nice

Stayed in January 2024

The bungalow is quite basic. It gets sweaty without aircon (it has a fan). But if you can live with that for a few nights, everything is great!

Nice and cute compound. Directly on the almost private beach with mangroves. Nice staff and great service.

Stayed in December 2023

Shower and it stayed really warm in the bungalows.

The staff was extremely friendly and a nice view on the mangrove. Food was delicious and enough choice of drinks.

Stayed in December 2023

No air conditioning but the fan was efficient.

Located on Chole Bay with a colony of resident flying foxes in front of the bungalows. They served a nice, healthy breakfast.

Stayed in October 2023

It would have been nice to know before I booked that if you stay at a hotel in Utende you are required to pay a fee of 23,60 USD per night since it is located in the Marine Park. On the other hand, I would have had to pay this fee for every day I was diving even if I stayed at a hotel outside the Marine Park.

Very nice place to stay at if you are traveling alone and if you are mainly visiting the island for diving. Only a 10-15 min walk at the beach to come to the dive centers and restaurants at the beach. The staff was very friendly, welcoming and accommodating. The food was very good (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and it was not a problem to get vegetarian dishes. My room was simple but had everything I needed and a very nice ocean view.

Stayed in February 2023

none

friendly staff

Stayed in December 2022

Only spent one night but definitely could have stayed more. Cute basic bungalows perfect for a remote island getaway. Restaurant food was tasty and they were able to accommodate my preferences for vegetarian dishes.

Stayed in October 2022

we stayed here for 6 nights. If you want to visit Mafia Island, this is a must; complete tranquility, very helpful staff, excellent food and wide range of excursions.

Stayed in October 2022

The place has a great potential that shall be improved. Walls are really dirty and shall be repainted, as well as there are huge holes with all electric cables out. Water is always cold, not possible to have a warm shower.

The bungalows are placed in a very nice and quite location, the staff is incredibly welcoming and friendly, always ready to help and make you feel at home. good food, slightly repetitive, but really really fresh.

Stayed in October 2022

the bungalows blend well into the natural environment. the location on the bay in the mangrove is beautiful. The village of Utende is lovely and seems “lost in time”, a welcome relief from a fast paced life.

Stayed in March 2022

very hot inside the bungalows

very helpful staff good food nice activities being offered

Stayed in January 2022

No hot water in my room (not sure about the bungalows); should get wider curtains for the room, that can cover the whole window for privacy; should get a generator as we had storms almost every day and there was always a power cut so no power at night for fan and charging electronics was a bit annoying; just a suggestion to get more sun beds at the beach and perhaps an extra towel to use there, it is beautiful there so it should be used more. Activities/tours are quite pricey compared to other places, they could have them discounted for guests.

Location was amazing, by the beach, just 15 min walk to Utende either through the beach on low tide or through the road. Stayed in the new rooms which were quite basic but spacious, clean and tidy and the beach view was beautiful. All the staff was pleasant and helpful, very involved and patient, even with sometimes difficult guests. Breakfast was the Mafia standard, had dinner once and food was very good but expensive and not very big portions. There is a kayak free to use which I didn’t get the chance to as the weather wasn’t great but I’m sure it’s nice to use it to explore the nearby mangroves and seascape. Overall good value for money and if ever back in Mafia I will stay here again!

Stayed in January 2022

It says on booking.com that there is aircondition - there is no aircondition only a fan. I think that is a bit deceiving. It is a problem since the bungalows get very hot.

close to the beach, however the water by the beach was not so nice. Food was fine. The best thing about this place was the staff. Very friendly who will show you around

Stayed in January 2022

Room, was basic and not finished yet.

The service is great,guys at the bar are very helpful. Location is just on the beach.

Stayed in December 2021

Everything is paced slowly.

Very friendly people and good breakfast at beautiful location. Do not forget to make sure airconditioning is available. Vegetarian options were nice.

Stayed in November 2021

Very beautiful amazing place, very nice and helpful staff. They were not disturbing but helped a lot even with a tiny problems which we were about to tolerate. It is a best place to stay on Mafia

Stayed in March 2024

The state of our room was quite bad, no proper walls, made of straw and seethru and door was loose, hence lots of bugs getting in, and flooding with rain. It was nothing like in the pictures (basically we were given another room that was older than the ones shown in the pictures, paying full price)

The location is very nice and the staff was very kind

Stayed in January 2024

A stronger WiFi would be if great benefit.

A small local family run business. They go the extra mile to make your stay perfect.

Stayed in November 2023

Great individual customer service, super friendly!

Stayed in November 2023

N/A

Everything was good! Mao is so welcoming and attentive!

Stayed in May 2023

Me and my boyfriend stayed at mafia beach bungalows for 7 days and had the best experience! The bungalows are just at the beach, the beach both have the really cool mangroves and good swim opportunities. The place is located a 10 minutes walk from Utende village which we liked very much since we could choose when we wanted to have a more relaxed time or more activity. The rooms are clean and the food is delicious! I can really recommend eating at the hotel! The best with our stay was the beautiful location but also the very friendly and helpful staff! They were happy to help us with anything we needed and we felt very welcomed. We would definitely stay here again if we come back to Mafia!

Stayed in February 2023