Read 9 traveller reviews of Echo Beach Hotel

Named after the 1980 hit song by Martha and the Muffins, Echo Beach Hotel on Zanzibar is a relatively new, small lodge which opened in October 2007. It's owned by Sue and Andrew Page – a British couple who previous ran Le Moulin L'Étang, a distinguished little B&B in the Loire Valley, for some 14 years. It aims to be a small, high-quality place with good food and a beautiful location; just right for lazing around in comfort.

We first visited Echo Beach in February '08, just a few months after it opened, and we stayed for two days; we found a lodge that is well on its way to achieving its aim! There were still some corners to round out – but that's usual for such a new place … and we were impressed that both owners were living there full time, running the hotel – and that both were determined to make it work well.

The rooms at Echo Beach look out to the sea (all have a sea view), and encircle the lodge's swimming pool. There are two rooms in each of two double-storey units, and a further five individual cottages – making just nine rooms in total.

These differ slightly in fixtures and fitting, but are broadly the same in style. The bedroom has a Zanzibari-style double bed, swathed in a mosquito net, with bed-side tables and lamps. (There's mains electricity with 3-pin UK-style plugs here.) There's also a wardrobe, and usually a few chairs and a chaise-longue standing on the floor, where large stone tiles have been polished to a gleam. The general feeling is one of space – even if sometimes the individual pieces of furniture don't go together perfectly.

High-quality fabrics have been used throughout, including lovely cotton bed linen, silk cushions and fluffy towels in the bathroom. All the rooms have effective and quiet air-conditioning, and a ceiling fan above the bed.

Every room at Echo Beach Hotel on Zanzibar has an en-suite bathroom attached, which again is very large and quite modern in design – you'll find plenty of big stone surfaces and no clutter. It's clear that Andrew and Sue have brought some very high-quality bathroom fittings; I think to allay anyone's fears of poor African plumbing!

The results are generally very smart, cool bathrooms with sinks sitting on pedestals, taps in the walls and positively enormous walk-in showers – which give a great shower!

Each room has large, sliding French doors which open onto a good-sized balcony, overlooking the pool and sea. These are, to some extent, screened from the neighbouring chalets with colourful, billowing fabrics – but they're not completely private.

Echo Beach's large dining room and bar area stands at the north end of the pool, and is a vast, thatched structure with a highly-polished stone floor. It's also got a sea view to one side – like pretty much every other place in the lodge! Under this airy roof, there there's a well-stocked bar, a small relaxing lounge area with comfy chairs, and a scattering of tables, set for meals.

On our last visit here, we ate at Echo Beach several times, and the food was consistently very good and very well presented. Attractive dishes of modern European style, with lots of seafood and a sprinkling of Zanzibari spices, which tasted good and fresh.

Echo Beach Hotel really isn't the obvious place for activities; it's more a place to relax by the lovely pool, wander on the beach, snooze in a hammock and generally chill. That said … there's an excellent water-sports and activities centre at Breezes Beach Club, including a good PADI dive centre, and that's barely 10 minutes' walk north along the beach.

Lodge overview

Lodge type: Beach

No. of bedrooms: 9 rooms

Season: Seasonal

Ideal length of stay: 3 nights or more would be perfect here - it's pure relaxation.

Geographics

Location: Michamvi Peninsula, Zanzibar

Directions: It takes about 35 minutes to fly to Zanzibar from Dar es Salaam, and then it's a further one hour by vehilce to Echo Beach.

Accessible by: Fly-and-Transfer

Key personnel

Owner: Echo Beac is owned and run by Sue and Andrew Page.

Food & drink

Usual board basis: Half Board

Dining style: Inidividual Tables

Dining locations: Indoor and Outdoor Dining

Room service: Yes – it's possible, but there are no phones in the rooms

Drinks included: Drinks are not included; they are charged as an extra.

Children

Attitude towards children: Children are welcome at Echo Beach, but in limited numbers

Age restrictions: There are no age restrictions for children at Echo Beach

Activities: There are no special activities for children

Equipment: There is no special equipment available for children

Generally recommended for children: Yes - although the balconies on the two top rooms would not be safe for children – so we'd recommend ground-floor rooms for them.

Central communications

Power supply: Mains Electricity

Communications: There is good mobile reception for some networks here.

TV & radio: None available.

Health & safety

Malarial area: Yes

Medical care: For minor illnesses and injuries there are two first-aid boxes, but no first-aid trained staff. There is a local medic at a nearby clinic, or a European doctor will drive out for an hour from Stone Town.

Dangerous animals: Low Risk

Security measures: Two policemen and an askari ( a guard – ofthen of Maasai origin) at night; one of the police is armed. There are two askaris on duty during the day.

Fire safety: Tiny fire extinguishers in the rooms (in wardrobes) – and smoke alarms in the rooms.

Extras

Disabled access: On Request

Laundry facilities: A good laundry service is available for an extra charge.

Accepted payment: Cash Euros, US dollars or Tanzanian shillings are accepted. Echo Beach will also accept Visa and Mastercard credit cards, with a charge of 5% commission.

^ Top of page