Zanzibar's newest five-star resort brings style, sustainability and sophisticated mystique to the unique archipelago
Zanzibar. The word has always had an aura of exoticism for me, conjuring an island at the edge of the world, a land of balmy tropical breezes, of swaying palms and hammocks on white-sand beaches, of spicy fragrances and dhows’ sails billowing against golden sunsets. My imagination would run wild, too, with exotic human elements—foreign cultures, customs, cuisines, garb, history and architecture.
This soft-focus fantasy came into sharp relief recently after a Tanzanian wildlife safari when I landed at Zuri Zanzibar, the archipelago’s newest five-star resort, keen for some R&R. The seemingly mythical land of my imagination turned out to be everything I had dreamed, and Zuri Zanzibar was the luxurious embodiment, right down to the pristine beach and hammocks strung between palm trees.
Location
Set in the Indian Ocean 50 kilometres off the coast of Tanzania, the beautiful archipelago of spice islands has been an important crossroads of trading routes between Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia for centuries, resulting in a fascinating fusion of cultures.
Zuri Zanzibar occupies a gently sloping hillside and 300 metres of sugary white sand at Kendwa Beach, on the northwestern tip of Zanzibar’s main island, Unguja, about an hour’s drive from the international airport. The realisation of a 10-year passion project by Czech entrepreneur Václav Dejčmar, it opened in the latter half of 2018 and is a member of Design Hotels.
