Zanzibar Bay Resort & Spa Reviews

We were not informed of renovations prior to booking, very noisy during the day, with renovation and upgrade work. rooms are very average, however beautifully airconditioned, useless WIFI!! It was fairly quite so i presume the staff had been reduced, at times the bar staff were a little overwhelmed. Both restaurants were "buffet" style and the food was adequate, not nearly enough fresh seafood.

This was place was awesome and so worth the money. We actually stayed here only two nights before moving onto a super expensive place in Nungwi as a special treat. We wish we'd stuck around here! Food was massively varied and absolutely delicious, for me who will eat anything, for our 3yo who is in a picky stage, and for my vegan wife. Lots of pools, which kept our son entertained. Pier bar was breezy and beautiful. Specially booked Indian cuisine was superb. Staff were incredibly friendly and very helpful. We had one oops where the kids bed wasn't in the room when we arrived, but it was sorted and all was well. Kids work was fabulous - in fact, our son had the children's worker (Sabrina - so good with little ones) all to himself, and we could relax knowing he was safe, well-attended, and happy. I didn't need to make any complains, but saw how the staff handled a fairly belligerent guest, and they were friendly, professional and efficient. Some pools had shade. Unlike other places, while there was a lot of smoking, it was avoidable. If there isn't a nonsmoking dedicated zone, I'd probably feed back that that might be a good idea, but as it wasn't super busy we had no problem here. AC in rooms. As middle of the day the generator is liable to cut out to the AC, it might have been nice to have back up fans or something similar if the ACs all need to he switched off, but we were OK as long as we kept the room cool before 3yos midday nap. Internet was reliable and fast. Rooms were perfectly clean and pleasant. We needn't have vebe nervous about the poolside room. The pool closes at 8pm and they offer an offsite pool party for those that want it. So we had no noise troubles whatsoever. Basically, we would return here and skip the super expensive places. This was absolutely brilliant.

We stayed for two weeks, 3rd floor room,sea view as requested prior to arrival. Just started our second week. Three eating places. Normal buffet, food ok, but usual problem of flies on food etc, cross contamination by lazy tourists failing to replace covers etc. Indian resteraunt also buffet,small very good and better quality food. We used 4 times first week. They have Coconut al le carte, which is being referbed but is not part of AI. I wouldnt call it Al le carte, limited menu. Majority of guests are french,dutch german,portugese only 10% english. We made many foreign freinds. Entertainment very low key. 3 bars which close at different times but last orders 11pm. The fourth bar on the Jetty is open 24hrs. We had two late nights till 3am. Beach boys sell trips over the water to other beaches and bars. Negotiate your price to suit you. We paid £35 pp for full afternoon 2pm till 7pm. Then second time did the same trip with German friends who got it for £50 for four people. Well done to them,we will do it again for the cheaper price as the bars and sunset were really good. Back to the hotel the staff are exceptional and there are too many to name. I am well travelled and I would say Zanzibar has the poorest people I have have across, but are happy

exceptional experience all thanks to Mariam and Samuel! They definitely made an impact on our state, smiling all the time friendly and Mariam makes the most amazing margaritas ever!!! we have enjoyed our stay and they have 100% contributed to making our week memorable!! thank you so much Mamou and Samuel!!!

Fantastic resort, staff were so friendly and helpful. Lovely pool area and jetty. There was always plenty of food choice although generally consisted of rice, chicken on the bone and seafood in sauces. Only one extra restaurant included in the all inclusive and this was an Indian but we didn't enjoy the food in there. Disappointed that when we arrived at 0630 in the morning after 20hrs since we left home that we couldn't check in until 2pm unless we paid for early check-in at $35. There was no welcome drink either and when we asked for a drink we were told breakfast started at 7am! There are some little shops in the resort. I found the prices were different depending on which member of staff was working. Generally there were prices on items but with one member of staff many of these were missing and i was charged more than with other staff when prices were available. We did use the little shops outside the hotel, they stocked similar items with cheaper prices, there was no hassling either, just friendliness. Really enjoyed our trip but would probably stay elsewhere if we returned.

The hotel is nice and very clean. The staff is friendly and always meeting you with a smile. The rooms are nice, but I don't like joint bedlinnen. There were a lot of black screaming och annoying birds around the whole hotel. There is also a couple of monkeys running/climbing around, but they are mostly fun. The food was not so tasteful that I had hoped for, but there were always local food to try in the restaurant. The ocean and the pier is great. It is tide, so it is not good to bath all around the clock, but we know this before we went here. We took some adventures to a spicefarm, a safari at the mainland and visited The Rock restaurant as well. Great experiences all of them. We booked taxi here at the hotel and it was at fixed price. The poolarea is great! Lived by the pool everyday at some point and enjoyed it a lot. The sunbeds could definitely be better, some of them was broken. I recommend this hotel without a doubt. I liked it a lot.

On arrival at this hotel, after a gruelling 12-hour journey, you are then told to wait another 2-3 hours until your room is ready. The check-in clerk Gift was exceptional in upgrading me for the inconvenience. This is no way near a 4* hotel, more like a 2*. It is miles away from anything, so the hotel was the best option. The entertainment was dismal! This hotel is purely for the over 60's who just want to relax at the bars. This is definitely not for children as they have nothing for children, including the meals. For 10 days, the food was barely edible, and every dish tasted the same. Pieces of cold pizza were the only things on offer for children. Some of the meats were questionable, so stay away from them. Bring your own drinks and go half board, better off eating the local foods. If you are going to book excursions, do not use the ones in the hotel. They literally left an elderly couple behind on an excursion, with no apology. They will book you with other tourist who speak limited English, so you find yourself not understanding a word of what is being said as they cater for the masses, who happen to be Polish, French or German. The excursions are very expensive, so look elsewhere for the same deal. Stone and Spice town, bring food or you will starve while walking for hours. The only good thing about this hotel were some of the staff who are paid one of the lowest wages I have seen in Africa, so please tip them well!! The Spa man that walks around looking for business is rude and obnoxious, supporting the ladies on the beach who will give you an amazing massage for a fraction of the price will be appreciated. Lucy is wonderful!! Do your research on read reviews everywhere. I will return to zanzibar, but staying elsewhere with friends, now I have more of an insight.

We’ve really enjoyed our stay here. The rooms are spacious, cleaned nicely every day and the staff are very friendly. There is a whatsapp number you can app if something is not right and then it is solved immediately. In the evening, the staff come by again to spray mosquito spray and close the mosquito net around the bed. The drinks are good and the food is varied. In addition, it is a lovely location, where you can use sun beds by the pool or the beach. The beds are a bit dated though and sometimes have some hiccups when adjusting position.

Such a beautiful holiday destination. The resort is clean, and the staff are simply amazing. To mention a few names that my sister and I were impressed by: Loveness, Pako, Stellah, Joy, Fabian, David x 2, Ali, Jane, Noelle, Abdul, Chef Sharief for the lovely buffets... Our allocated driver as well - Amuri was too kind. To be honest, there are probably many names that I have not mentioned, but overall, I would highly recommend this resort. Appreciate all the love and kindness and can't wait to visit again. Kwaheri, beautiful team. Until next time...

Me and my sisters had an absolutely fantastic experience at this resort! The customer service was exceptional, the general staff and bar staff were excellent, and Nestory, the food and beverage manager, went above and beyond to make our stay memorable. We felt like royalty with the outstanding treatment from him and the other staff in the restaurant . The food was the best I've ever had, and the entire team contributed to the top-notch customer service... Every night they had different entertainments and alos had activities during the day. Only thing was its not too close to the city but they have shuffle cars you could book with the resort. We ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT HERE. It’s my 2nd time and can’t wait to be back again when am in Zanzibar. Highly recommend it !!

My wife and I booked a 16 day december2023/january2024 package trip to Zanzibar including a 4 day safari in the Nyerere National Park (aka Selous) with TUI and Paradise & Wilderness. We have had a fantastic trip. The people we met were all friendly and helpful. Especially the staff of Zanzibar Bay Resort and the drivers/guides of Beach & Safari with whom we took (1) a day tour of a Zanzibar Spice plantation, Changuu Island and Stone Town; (2) a 4 day safari in Selous and (3) a day tour blue-safari (snorkling). Our driver/guide Helman/William in Selous deserve a special mention for their expertise/enthousiasm and finding just about every animal in the park including the very hard to find leopard. These guys are volunteers (with only room/board) who hope to become rangers. I hope they succeed. Christmas at Zanzibar Bay Resort was perfect (great food) and New Year on the Zanzibar/Paje-beach was great fun even if it was totally chaotic. The only negative I need to mention is the beach at Zanzibar Bay that suffers from daily seaweed deposit in this season of the year.

This was the families 1st real away holiday and we had the best time ever. Staff were very friendly and always greeted with a smile. The all you can eat and drink was a bonus as there were plenty of options to choose from. Highly recommend Zanzibar if looking to go somewhere to just relax and kick your feet up.

Very nice - Fatima the guest relations and dass front office manager did they best ///Let me introduce you to the simplest and best team in hospitality. They are the staff of the Blue Bay Resort and spa in #Zanzibar. Without any exception, they are a team that works together and supports each other and complements each other. Their love for each other as a team is what attracted me the most. They are simple people but generous in their love for their work as a team. Thank you to each one of them for making me happy and making me understand the concept of loving work and loving your colleagues. There are things that I have not encountered anywhere else in the world other than in this humble place. @thebluebayhotelszanzibar

An otherwise succesfull holiday in Zanzibar during Christmas 2023 at the Hotel Zanzibar Bay Resort had a sad ending, when the day before New Year's Eve we kindly asked the reception if a family member of ours were allowed to pay us a visit for a fee hours at the hotel. She has been doing voluntary work in Zanzibar for 4 months. The hotel categorically refused a visit even though we offered to pay for her to visit us. We are shocked by the lack of kindness and inhospitality that this hotel displays in relation to flexibility. We tried to explain that the family member does volunteer work for their country, but the guest manager didn't care and said "its not my country!". It indicates to us that the hotel doesn’t care about the local people of Zanzibar and only focusing on profit. Instead we had to accept the hotel's offer to sit in reception and talk to her in the scorching heat at noon time. We can not recommend this hotel to anyone