Tribes Travel

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Tribes Travel

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Matemwe Beach Village

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About Matemwe Beach Village

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Matemwe Beach Village is a small guesthouse located out on its own on an idyllic, long stretch of palm-lined, white sand beach on the the North East coast of Zanzibar Island. Just off-shore from the guesthouse is the world-famous Mnemba Atoll, whose circling reef has some of the best diving in East Africa. Along the beach lie palm-thatched villages, where the local people live a traditional life dominated by fishing; Matemwe Beach Village really is set in a classic tropical paradise.

Many of the guests come here primarily for the diving at the renowned Mnemba Atoll; Matemwe Beach Village has its own full, 5 Star IDC PADI dive school. Others come here to relax after having climbed Kilimanjaro, or having been out on safari in the Serengeti. The atmosphere is very congenial, and guests often find themselves striking up friendships with fellow travelers.

There are seventeen very comfortable, thatched ensuite cottages, grouped at varying distances from the beach. All cottages have fans and two have air conditioning, though this is not usually necessary, as there is nearly always a sea breeze. The cottages include five suites, suitable for small family groups, and a secluded, very stylish, highly romantic Honeymoon Suite, with large Jacuzzi.

The lodge is centred around a single large open-sided space looking onto the beach, which serves at the lounge, bar and restaurant. As one guest put it: "This is the most chilled chill-out spot I have ever found". There are books and games to entertain guests who want to take a break from the beach and sun, and two new inter-connected swimming pools have been built this year, providing additional facilities for guests and allowing Matemwe Beach Village to offer novice Scuba diving trial sessions on site.

Salum, the chef at Matemwe Beach Village uses a lot of fresh products provided by people within the community. The menus are small but good, and change daily for every meal. Favourites include grilled fillet of fish with a passion fruit sauce, and chicken kebabs with a chilli garlic dressing. Vegetarians are also well catered for. The atmosphere at Matemwe is chilled and laid-back but this does not mean you wait half an hour for a beer; the staff are friendly and attentive.

The journey from Stone Town to Matemwe is about 1 hour by car.

Activities: one of the main reasons for coming to Matemwe is for the world class diving at Mnemba atoll. There is enough variety on Mnemba for about 4 to 5 days worth of good diving, maybe 8 to 10 dives, although the reef is always ready to spring a surprise or two. Mnemba is a circular reef, with aquarium conditions on the inside and some good wall-diving on the outer. Diving here is a year-round event, with reasonably good conditions to be found on the atoll under almost all weather conditions and visibilities of 20 to 40 metres are the norm. They regularly see turtles and dolphins here and are often lucky enough to see (or even get a tow from) whale sharks and pilot whales. The on-site diving school is able to offer the full range of PADI certificate courses, as well as try-dives and snorkelling trips for the non-divers. Other activities include beach walks, reviving early-morning ocean swims, snorkeling, sailing, fishing and bicycling.

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Information

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Highlights

  • Great location for snorkelling and diving.
  • Long white sandy beach.
  • Very friendly staff and chilled out place.
  • Good value accommodation and variety of rooms.

Situation

North east coast of Zanzibar Island, Tanzania.

Activities

Scuba diving at Mnemba atoll. There is an on-site diving school. Other watersports include swimming, snorkelling, sailing. There are also opportunities for beach walks, cycling and fishing.

Facilities

17 thatched en-suite beach cottages, all with fan and 2 with air conditioning. 5 suites suitable for families and there is one honeymoon suite. There is a central lounge, bar and restaurant area. There are 2 swimming pools and a selection of books and games to pass the time.

Open

Closed 18 March - 1 June

Pricing guidelines for Tanzania

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We hope the following will give you a rough idea of costs. These are quoted per person based on twin share for two people, without international flights but including internal flights. We’ve used good standard accommodation throughout. There are nearly always ways to spend more money than we’ve suggested (!), but these prices show a good and realistic range for each type of trip.

International flights will add from about £600 to £800 depending on the season and route (unless the airlines have special offers). Tanzania can combine easily with other East African countries.

For each accommodation on this website you will find an indication of the price. The bands are based on the price per person per night at peak season and are represented by the following values for this country:
£

  £50 to £150

££

  £150 to £300

£££

  £300 to £500

££££

  £500 to £800

£££££

  Over £800

For a specific personal quote based on any tailor made itinerary you have in mind, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help you.

  • Example tripPrice per person
  • 1 week high quality safari in the northern circuit (eg with Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Manyara, Tarangire ...)Between £2500 and £3500
  • 2 week southern Tanzania safari and Zanzibar holidayBetween 3000 and £4000
  • 1 week stay on an Indian Ocean island (Zanzibar, Mafia, Chole, Pemba)From £1000 +
  • 1 week Kilimanjaro climbAround £1500

Tribes Advisor

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Matemwe Beach Village has quite a backpacker feel about it. Its very basic but clean and comfortable enough. Ideal if you’re looking for somewhere to relax after a Kili Climb. If staying here I would recommend the Shamba Suites which are split level Masai style huts built together in a kind of village setting as they’re not as basic as the standard rooms. The Asali Suite is totally self sufficient and comes with a private kitchen and chef, a Jacuzzi, open air shower and loo! Perfect for honeymoons or special occasions. There is a white sand beach which can be very seaweedy at times. Also, the tide goes out a long way and its approx a 30min walk to the sea at low tide so not ideal if sea swimming is a high priority. However, this place is great for divers as a fab reef is very close by!

Hannah, Africa Travel Co-ordinator. Visited May 2009

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