Kilindi Zanzibar Reviews

When talking about the greatness of Kilindi, we could talk about the amazing villa, the exquisite food, the privacy, the incredible private beach with turquoise water and plenty of activities to do, or the attention to detail. But what made our experience a 10 out of 10 was the excellent attention from our villa host Salum. Salum made sure that we were comfortable at every moment, that every detail was as expected and that we weren't missing a drink or snack for a second. He also took such good care of my wife's severe allergy to nuts, double checking every meal with the chef. He made us feel so welcome and taken care of and made the difference in this beautiful resort. Would 100% recommend.

Our stay at Elewana Kilindi Zanzibar from the 11 to 14 of August was nothing short of extraordinary. From the moment we arrived, we were enveloped in an atmosphere of pure luxury and tranquility. Our villa host, Salum, was exceptional. His attentiveness and knowledge of the property made us feel truly cared for. The highlight of our trip was undoubtedly the cooking class with Chef Hellen. Her culinary expertise and infectious enthusiasm made for an unforgettable experience, and we even received a certificate and the recipe to take home. The service provided by Hopeman at the reception and Michael, the front office manager, was impeccable. Their professionalism and friendliness contributed significantly to our overall enjoyment. A special mention goes to the General Manager Lisa Jackson for creating such an exceptional establishment. Lisa is an absolute gem. Her warm and welcoming personality creates an instant sense of belonging for every guest. From the moment we arrived, she made it a point to personally greet us, ensuring our stay was nothing short of exceptional. Her dedication to guest satisfaction is unparalleled. We were touched by her thoughtful gestures, such as offering us refreshments and snacks whenever we were outside the property. Her genuine care elevated our overall experience. She generously shared her insights, helping us make the most of our time in Zanzibar. Her passion for the hotel and the island is infectious, and it's evident in the exceptional team she has cultivated. Every morning, we started our day with a refreshing blend of tropical fruits, a burst of sweetness. The seven-course dinner on the terrace was a culinary masterpiece, showcasing the chef's creativity and passion. The crowning jewel of our culinary experiences was the seafood BBQ by the beach. Freshly caught delicacies, expertly grilled to perfection. Every aspect of our stay exceeded our expectations.We indulged in a variety of exciting water activities, including snorkeling, a breathtaking sunset cruise on the Indian Ocean, thrilling jet skiing, and peaceful kayaking. Elewana Kilindi Zanzibar is truly a hidden gem where relaxation and indulgence reign supreme. We cannot recommend this hotel highly enough and look forward to returning in the future.

Our stay at Elewana Kilindi was nothing short of extraordinary. The property is breathtaking with beautiful vistas of the ocean and lush landscaping. The villa was truly exceptional with the trio of rooms and plunge pools. Fantastic amenities throughout. Very serene and romantic. The pool area and beach access are both wonderful also. We appreciated the meticulous attention of our team, particularly Baraki, with his professional and personable service skills, attending to our needs and making appointments. It all contributed to a seamless and memorable experience. The entire staff was friendly, kind and more than willing to help with anything or to answer questions. The Chefs are also to be commended for their diverse and divine cuisine. We appreciated the perfect pacing service and quality of our meals, including the very romantic beach BBQ and Swahili dinner. It all enhanced our stay. I so appreciated the chefs accommodating my dietary needs. Additionally we appreciated the spa attendants expertise and serenity provided for our services there. We also enjoyed the Taste of Zanzibar cooking classes provided as an amenity. A delight to meet other guests and fine together with the meal we cooked. Overall, our stay was a lovely way to end our safari with such a beautiful place and great team to make it all special.

Kilindi service is what makes this place truly amazing! Big shout to Lisa the GM, Julius our Villa Host, even the super nice trainee and the entire staff. They really take care of you here and it’s immediately felt upon arrival. They genuinely want you to have a great experience. All the staff is super hospitable and has so much energy ready to serve you. When you’re celebrating a special occasion they even dance and sing you songs. It’s so cool. Also the food is delicious. We met the chef from South Africa who was so nice. But really hats off to Julien and Lisa the Gm. They are amazing. Lisa greets you every morning makes sure you’re happy and looked after. Easy to have a beautiful property, but the service is guided very well by Lisa and her team. Small touches I recognize: we walked down to the beach, the trainee asks us if we want anything from the bar, the security guard collects trash and protects the cleanliness, we went offsite tours and they pack lunches, the greetings from everyone. Thank you for a nice Zanzibar experience

The Kilindi Zanzibar goes above and beyond in so many ways. The service, attentiveness and attention to detail is remarkable. The food is outstanding. The setting is gorgeous. The rooms are spacious and beautiful and comfortable. The spa treatments are otherworldly. The people are unforgettable. Lots of superlatives, yes, and all well-deserved. I cried when we left! Special mentions to Sahele, our butler; the lovely ladies at the spa; James, our housekeeper; and Lisa, the GM. And everyone else who made our stay so very special. A few tips: - Do not miss the Swahili dinner! An absolute favorite - Take the cooking class - Take a sunset cruise (the resort can help you book this)

One of the best resorts I ever stayed in. 1- The service is incredible, the people here are amazing and it ia humbling how great the treatment is. 2- They went above and beyond to provide services that we requested even if not available. 3- The food is great and the experience is special 4- VERY SPECIAL RECOMMENDATION: DON'T MISS TASTE OF ZANZIBAR, amazing culinary experience. 5- The place is quite and relaxing with great views. Most importantly we met great people and made great memories. Special thanks goes to: *Michael: For great hospitality and overall a great person * Witness: Always available and providing the best support with a smile * Nasra: For taking care of our villa * The people at the beach for providing amazing experience with great spirit * Housekeeping for keeping the room in best condition and always leaving some nice messages * The people at the bar for the amazing moments and celebrating with us our special occasion * The great chef organizing Taste of Zanzibar for one of the best experiencez we had Thank you Kilindi Team for the amazing experience

We spent 6 nights at Kilindi. All inclusive. Worth every dollar spent. Our private server Lillian was so kind and attentive to our needs. Villas were so private with amazing views of the ocean. Bathroom was open air and amazing privacy. Pool was perfect for lap swim. Spa was amazing. Do the 2 hour African Experience. We did this as a couple. General Manager Lisa was very attentive to our needs as well.

We had the best time! We couldn't have chosen a better place to honeymoon, we were made to feel so welcome and it was such a special place to stay. Huge shout out to our host Julieth, she was so kind and patient with us and nothing was too much to ask. The experience wouldn't have been the same without her. Would absolutely recommend to anyone visiting Zanzibar, if we could give more than 5 stars we would!

The beach is a huge disappointment! Kilindi hotel has a beautiful territory. It also has a very friendly and helpful staff and a very good kitchen with diverse food. However, when you are on Zanzibar the most important is the beach and here we had a huge disappointment. The hotel shows very beautiful pictures of the beach with blue water, however, you need to be aware that it’s not always like that. During low tide which is between 9am and 15pm the beach is completely dry and there is no place to swim, unless you want to walk around 20 mins to the public beach or get back in the swimming pool. The sunset is at 18.30, so basically you can only swim for 3 hours during the day. See the pictures of what we experienced during our stay in the end of September. Besides that, there are lots of fisherman boats (which don’t look nice at all when there is no water) and you almost constantly hear how fishermen fixing their boats with some hammers. There is also quite often a smoke from the fire that fishermen make to repair their boats. It was very disturbing. But the worse part is that either due to the low tide or because fisherman don’t throw away dead fish- but the last 3 days we also had an absolutely horrible smell of dead sea animals or rotten fish coming from the beach. The smell was even at our villa, so we had to close all windows. Another thing is that the hotel has 5 starts, however, there is no gym. The quality and cleanliness of the public furniture (e.g. sunbed covers and towels) is not on the highest standards as there were lots of yellow stains (probably from the suncream) Also, the bathroom is located outside in the separate area. It has a cool view but not complete privacy and it requires you to climb a few stairs which is not convenient in the middle of the night when it’s dark and/or raining. So some improvments defifnitely needed to justify the 5 star rating and the price. Overall, I would give 4 stars to the hotel and 2 stars to the beach.

The staff do everything they can to make your stay excellent. The facilities are great (highly recommend trying the spa), the food is excellent and you’re made to feel very special. A particular shout out the Lilly and Lisa (the general manager) for everything they did for us.

Stayed for five nights following a safari in Tanzania. Service was amazing, took care of our every need. Our Guest ambassador Barike was wonderful and attentive but not overly so that you felt uncomfortable. All of the other staff we encountered were also lovely and very efficient. The pavilions (rooms) have everything you could need. We loved the included laundry service daily. The beds are huge with mosquito nets are very comfortable. I must mention however that the bathroom was in a separate pavilion up a flight of stairs ( not fun when needing to use in the middle of the night). However we did mention this and were offered an alternative room, which we declined but this might be something to consider requesting if you think it’s an issue for you. The food here is absolutely outstanding! We had seafood platters TWO nights which was delightful!! You can eat anywhere at the hotel even in your room if you want. We opted to eat in the restaurant for breakfast and dinner and always had lunch by our own pool. Every meal was top notch!! Cocktails also delicious. It was my birthday during our stay and that night all the staff sang Happy Birthday to me Zanzibar style. Lilian has an amazing voice!! I had a spa treatment which was delightful and included a bottle of champagne! All in all a great place to just chill and relax in total privacy. Thank you again to all the wonderful staff at Kilindi!

For me it is very rare to Write a Review, but in this case I could not help, I needed to let you Know! I have been to the best Hotels around the world (FourSeasons, Mandarin Oriental, SixSense and so on) but in my opinion there is no better experience than a really good Safari lodge. You have a Great Service, Great Food and the best of it is that it is a quite intimate experience. But what Kilindi gives you, I have Never experienced before! It is as if you are in a Safari Lodge on the Beach! The Service is so overwhelming (They will Know what you want and think Even before you do), the Food is absolutely astonishing and your surrounding is like paradise! I stayed for 10 Nights and i have to say it will be my number one Memory. I have to thank especially Saloum, who was my guest ambassador and has always been there when I needed him, but was Never TOO attentive. It was the Perfect Balance (which is very Hard to achieve). Thank you so much for this. Also thanks to the General Manager, who was always really and truthfully interested in the wellbeing and feelings of her guests. Even if i just mention those two, everyone is great! After mentioning all the above, I think I do not have to say, that the Food and the rooms are georgeus and yes, you have sometimes quite some tide, but when you have high tide there is no better (Most beautiful, calm and intimate) beach than this one. If you can, do Not hesitate to come here.

Staying at Kilindi hotel was an unforgettable experience. From the beautiful location, in a bush garden, to the uniquely designed villas, set on multiple levels, with separate bathrooms, lounge area and two plunge pools. One pool was accessed from the room. The room was very large, circular, decorated minimalist yet very functional. Everything very nicely maintained and very clean both the room and the entire resort. Thank you very much to our housekeeper. We stayed in villa 5, but next time we would like to stay in villa 3. We were visited daily by monkeys, eating in two trees nearby. The entire resort is all-inclusive and adults only. The food was excellent. From breakfast through lunch to dinner. Breakfast we generally ate in the villa, on the terrace only once during our week-long stay we had breakfast in the restaurant. Lunches and dinners are generally ordered from the menu, with daily catch of the day offerings. We had two exceptions to this rule, an amazing Valentine's Day buffet with lobster, seafood, and other great food. The second instance was a dinner on the beach also grilled seafood, chicken, lobster. A wonderful dinner. The restaurant itself also beautifully located and designed with a pool around which tables were set in the evening. And most importantly, what makes this hotel great - amazing people. from our maid Felisterto the buttler Saiun (sorry if I spelled it wrong), to the gardeners, the people cleaning the pools every day, to the chefs to Derren and Liz managing this hotel. Very friendly, helpful, smiling and trying to make your stay a memorable one. Especially thank you for your help with my wife's illness. Liz recommended us a hospital arranged transportation. so that after a few hours we returned with a diagnosis and medication. Thank you again to the entire Kilindi team for a wonderful and memorable stay. We will be back!!!! Derren for you with Żubrówka.

Kilindi is an oasis. It is where we ended our East Africa trip, and was the perfect ending for the hustle and bustle of our various safari stops. While we didn't love that it was a 90 minute drive to and from the airport, it was well worth it. I believe that there are 15 suites in the all-inclusive, adults only property. We were in one of the suites that was facing the beach (I don't think that any of the suites are directly on the beach), and it was stunning. We saw both our suite and the suite that our friends had (numbers 8 and 7, respectively), and both had multiple levels, spaces, and structures. There is an outdoor open large bathroom space with double sinks, rainhead shower, toilet, etc. Below the bathroom is an open lounge area. There is also a main structure that houses the bedroom. The bedroom is large and well-appointed. The suite also has 2 (yes, TWO) private plunge pools, of which we took advantage. The main area has a lounge, bar, dining area, large T-shaped pool, etc. The food was delicious. We had breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the main dining area except for one dinner on the beach, and one breakfast in our room. The beach dinner was beautiful and quite memorable, not only for the gorgeous setting and sunset, but also for the grilled chicken and seafood that were served. This review HAS TO mention our personal butler, Lilian (Lily), who took care of both our friends and us. She was so wonderful and took great care of us!