Bawe Island
Accommodation in room types indicated
All inclusive option available (enquire with us for cost)
“Zanzibar meets the Maldives” – this small island off historical Stone Town boasts 70 hugely spacious and luxurious suites (all with private pools!) including 8 gorgeous over-water villas of the type commonly associated with the Maldives!
Bawe Island uniquely blends Zanzibari character with elements of Maldivian style – in particular the 8 over-water villas (the first off the East African coast) add a particularly glamorous aspect!
The various villas are both luxurious and hugely spacious (the smallest land-based villas are 200sqm for example!) and the fact that they all boast private pools is particularly attractive!
Loads of activities are available both on the island itself (think padel, tennis, futsal and a comprehensively equipped gym) as well as the ocean surrounding it (from the usual snorkelling and scuba diving, to glass bottomed kayaks, wake boarding and kite surfing)
Guests rave about the quality of the food and service on Bawe – and there’s plenty of variety on offer too, including the varied live cooking stations at “The Sand”, the sand floored main restaurant, the Asian/teppanyaki speciality restaurant “Rising Sun” and the Italian flavours available at “Sinfonia” – and best of all is that there are no buffets here with everything prepared fresh and individually!
The coral reefs surrounding Bawe are some of the most extensive and attractive off Zanzibar
Stone Town is a short 15 minute boat ride away, so if you fancy popping across to explore the streets of this famous Unesco World Heritage site then you’re ideally located
The wide tidal range typical of the East African coast means that at very low tides the water beneath the over-water villas can pretty much disappear
The sandy stretches of beach are largely located on Bawe’s south-eastern shores, meaning you can’t walk out directly onto the beach from villas in other areas of the island (then again all villas have private pools so you can always enjoy a refreshing swim no matter where your villa is located)
Stone Town is close by with the lights of the town being quite prominent at night, so you don’t have the total sense of isolation and seclusion enjoyed by other islands
The result is stunning and completely different to anything else in the entire archipelago – yet very familiar to anyone who’s ever looked at pictures of Maldives island resorts
70 Villas (62 land-based and 8 over-water)
Yes - and plunge pools in all villas
“Zanzibar meets the Maldives” - that’s what immediately springs to our mind when trying to describe the new resort on Bawe Island. But first, a geography lesson…
Not many people are aware that Zanzibar is actually an archipelago consisting of 2 large islands - Unguja (the island that everyone thinks of as “Zanzibar”) and Pemba Island to its north – and then some 50 smaller islands that lie scattered like pearls in the surrounding ocean. Of these small islands, only a few offer tourist accommodation, with the 2 most prominent being Mnemba (famous for its superb, rustically styled yet hugely expensive luxury lodge) and Chumbe Island (home to another even more rustic gem boasting a handful of simple eco-bungalows and famous for its superb snorkelling)
Bawe Island – another small island (just over 30 hectares in size) lying just a 15-minute speedboat ride from Zanzibar’s historic capital, the famous World Heritage gem of Stone Town - has taken this traditional “small and rustic” lodge blueprint and gleefully torn it up. Instead they have looked unashamedly to the Maldives for their inspiration! (not altogether surprisingly given that Bawe Island is part of the Cocoon Collection which counts 3 upmarket Maldives resorts amongst their portfolio of properties). The result is stunning and completely different to anything else in the entire archipelago – yet very familiar to anyone who’s ever looked at pictures of Maldives island resorts.