Hotels near Maruhubi Historical Sites, Zanzibar City

I have been to Hotel Verde several times, twice of which were business related. Unfortunately this time I was quite disappointed with the overall experience. While it wasn’t all bad, there is much more to be expected from such an establishment and I hope the management will take necessary actions to make this place wonderful again. Improvements needed: 1. Maintenance: The hotel seems to be suffering from poor maintenance. My bathroom ceiling had cracks, one of the wardrobe lights in the middle was broken/missing, the iron brought in to my room on request was broken and could not regulate heat therefore almost burning my shirt, the security hook on the iron made it difficult to take advantage of the iron cords length making it almost impossible to iron, the hangers in the wardrobe had a design fault such that you cannot remove them like other hotels to easily hang clothes like suits etc., the toilet left an odor in the whole bathroom after each flush despite closing the lid and the door. These are a few items I noted. 2. Staff Training: While the staff had an overall nice demeanor and very welcoming, they require some more training on providing an above and beyond experience to guests for a hotel of this caliber. A housekeeper promised to restock towels in my room in a short while which ended up being close to an hour and by then I had already used the in room bathrobe as an alternative to not miss an appointment I had. That was sloppy. The reception staff did not have a proper system of tracking what they held for guests especially during a time when multiple high level events are happening at the hotel causing a lot of anguish and confusion. items that were needed by noon 🕛 for a function were only later retrieved by 10pm resulting in a loss of productivity that those items were expected to have. Everyone seemed lost. 3. Slow WiFi: Not sure if it was just my room but the internet speed was on the slower side. These experiences made the stay this time a 2/5 for me. Hope the hotel will improve in the future.

Facilities: complete Hygiene: very good Environment: very good Service: Very Tanzanian, very good

The hotel is overly priced for what is offered. Don't get me wrong, it is a nice hotel, clean, decently decorated, and central in Stone Town, but not worth the exorbitant rate closer to four figures, when it really should be mid-range. The food while well presented (for instance the sea food charcuterie) is again- not worth the high price paid, and rather basic. We stayed NYE and they ran out of dessert and had nothing really planned save for a free cocktail for guests. Most of the staff are great and well-trained though but again, overall, the experience does not match the high price tag!

In order to transfer and catch up on jet lag, I chose this relatively new hotel with free pick-up and drop-off. Look at the photos. It is much more expensive than ordinary hotels at the airport, but it is actually older. The room has no view and it takes 20 minutes for the bath water to heat up. Early check-in for an early flight will cost an additional US$70, which is more. You have to pay for a bottle of water...the only advantage is free pick-up and delivery

The front desk provided a room that was already occupied. When we checked in at 23:00 late at night and opened the door, a middle-aged man was already sleeping on the bed. The man was frightened and very angry. Similarly, we were also very frightened and felt very embarrassed. For such a misunderstanding, the front desk only apologized to the man, but did not apologize to us. After changing rooms, our twin bed room was changed to a double bed room. The hotel did not explain this. Because it was late at night, we gave up changing beds and rested. There was a musty smell in the room, and a bottle of mineral water was empty, and it was not cleaned. There were many flies flying around in the restaurant during breakfast. I am very dissatisfied with this accommodation experience.

The hygiene is very average. The bed feels unwashed. There are unknown hairs on the sheets. If you stay here, it is recommended to bring a disposable three-piece suit. You have to bring your own towels. They only provide a bed and a place to shower. There are a lot of flies in the dining area, and the beach behind is full of garbage and seaweed. The service is very good, whether it is the front desk or the restaurant staff. The eggs for breakfast are not bad, and there are a few kittens.