Xanadu Luxury Villas Zanzibar: Exquisite Tales from Zanzibar's Villa Haven – The Private Traveller's Guide
Welcome to my review of The Xanadu Luxury Villa Resort; a stunning small resort located in Dongwe on the East coast of Zanzibar. The location was just exceptional on an incredible beach where it felt you could walk for miles in either direction and just marvel at the Indian Ocean. With only 9 villas, all with private pools, and it being very quiet when we were there just before Christmas, this really was just such a magical find and a really good two-centre with Stone Town.
We decided to visit Xanadu after our first choice (And Beyond at Mnemba) was full, and at first I had some reservations about Xanadu. I now don’t really know why, and it was such an incredible find that I would so highly recommend it to anyone.
In this review of the Xanadu Luxury Villas Zanzibar, I’ll detail our experience of the location, local activities, the accommodation and facilities at the hotel itself. Read below to find out everything you need to know before your next trip to Zanzibar.
Aerial shot of villas at Xanadu, Zanzibar
Why Book with Classic Travel and The Private Traveller
I would normally book through Classic Travel to take advantage of extra VIP benefits, and although Xanadu wasn’t available our other hotel on Zanzibar in Stone Town was, the Park Hyatt Zanzibar. I’ve already posted a full review of that, which was a great stay, but this was nothing like as good as Xanadu would turn out to be.
The beach at Xanadu Villas Zanzibar
Fast Facts for Xanadu Villas Zanzibar:
Address - Dongwe, Zanzibar Tanzania
Website - https://xanadu-villas.com/
TripAdvisor ranking - #7 of 44 villas on Zanzibar Island
Contact - info@xanadu-villas.com
Instagram - @xanadu-villas
Nearest airport - Zanzibar’s Abeid Amani Karume International Airport (ZNZ) - 57 km or 35 miles (about a 1 hr 20 min drive, traffic dependent)
Opened - 2016
Number of luxury villas - 9, all with private pools
Number of floors - 1 or 2 per villa (one or two bedroom)
Bars - 1
Restaurants - 1
Wellbeing - Spa (couple’s treatment room, changing room & facilities) or private deck for treatments with ocean breeze, main pool
Visited - December 2023
Nearby Maalum Natural Swimming Pool
Hotel Accommodation: Luxurious and individual villas set on a tropical beach
There are only a total of 9 villas at Xanadu, these are made up of 7 one-bedroom and 2 two-bedrooms. I had originally booked Kimwondo villa, described as the architect’s favourite, which was a one-bedroom with downstairs combined bedroom/lounge area with full bathroom off, with an external staircase to an upstairs pool deck and sun terrace. I did wonder why this particular villa was still available for booking for our dates, as I’d checked a day or so before our arrival how busy the resort would be. There were quite a few available, and for the bulk of our stay it felt like we were there alone, which we actually weren’t.
On arrival though, there was a lot of maintenance being carried out on a number of the villas, Kimwondo being one of them, so we had been changed to Mawingu, which was a very, very pleasant upgrade. Although still just a one-bedroom, and didn’t have the rooftop pool, this was in a prime spot right on the beach, was much bigger and actually one of their newest villas. The ongoing work however did not interrupt our stay in any way.
“It exceeds tranquility, luxury and expectation. Nine uncompromising villas on a stretch of pristine white sandy beach. Unmatched in Zanzibar, Xanadu has been crafted holistically out of a desire to breathe.”
Facilities & Service at Xanadu Luxury Villas
The main focus here is on excellent service from your private butler (ours was Lissu) who would attend every meal during our stay and anything we could possibly want. With all the villas being private with their own pool, especially the incredible villa we had with extensive private grounds, this was a resort not focussing on lots of facilities, but more about intimacy and privacy in a stunning setting.
I’ve broken down the key facilities and services and shared my opinion on them below:
Private Villas
Mawingu (meaning ‘clouds’ in Swahili) is apparently the newest and largest one-bedroom villa at Xanadu, and it certainly was impressive. There was a long private entrance to the villa, past a large sectioned-off private beach area with both natural parasol and sun loungers, and a perfect area for us to have either breakfast, lunch, or dinner all of which were included in the daily rate.
In terms of outside space, as well as the extensive beach area, raised up a set of steps was the villa itself. The building itself consisted of a large circular dome as the extensive bedroom and living space, adjoined by another circular pod containing the super-large bathroom. Outside there was a decent sized open deck area with sun loungers, as well as a very large thatched roofed canopy where there were two large beautifully upholstered patterned sofas, large coffee table and a small dining table, again with African design upholstery. From here, the balcony seemed to extend out onto the beach with stunning views to the ocean. While Kimwondo villa was lovely (we would later have a tour around it), it was very clear to see why a premium price was charged for Mawingu being much bigger, more extensive space, and a better location; albeit the rooftop pool in the smaller villa is its incredible asset.
What I hadn’t appreciated from the Xanadu website, but I did from meeting the Director/Owner Eileen who introduced herself one day, as to how much of a focus Xanadu had on sustainability, recycling, and upcycling. So much of the villas were using reclaimed wood, which was really good to see. Our main bedroom and living space was huge - this had (yes!) three large sofas, again all with varying African designs, a massive bed, a wardrobe made from recycled wood, a SMEG fridge for complimentary drinks (wine, fizz, beer, juices, water etc.) which were replenished daily, or on demand, and a separate tea/coffee station.
Levels of Comfort
The villa was serviced every morning, usually as we were having breakfast, and this was an extensive service. This isn’t a complaint, but the two cleaning staff would take a long time as the villa was given a very thorough clean every day, including changing the bed. The air conditioning in the villa was super-efficient, so it was always wonderful to come back into the villa into the cool, and to find it had always been restored to its perfect condition. We did find on our first night that the pillows were exceptionally hard, and not what we liked. All we had to do was to mention to Lissu, our private butler, and by night they had been changed to a set of super-fluffy feather ones, which were amazing.
Bathroom
The bathroom, wow! This was indeed a bathroom, well more like a studio suite rather than just an en-suite bathroom, it really was huge. Circular, like the bedroom/living space with a massive ceiling height, there were two sinks (which regular readers will know I love) on a vast semi-circular recycled wood vanity unit, two massive mirrors, lots of domed alcoves with interesting African art (the Director Eileen, a designer from Zambia) clearly had an eye for design and aesthetics, as well as using materials found on the island, including traditional dhow boats and coral rocks, to bring her dream hotel to life.
The central focus of the bathroom was the overhead rain shower, set in the ceiling so high up that it gave the most impressive cascade of water. There was a set of toiletries inset into a large semi-circular tiled seating area, so you could have a seat while showering. What was a bit odd though was the location of these, to access easily the best way was to sit down to dispense the shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, or body lotion. Also a slightly odd location to keep the body lotion, in the shower area itself.
Breakfast
Lissu would ask us the night before when we would like breakfast, or if you didn’t want to be specific, you could always contact him at any time from the in-villa walkie talkie, for immediate contact. The table would either be set up on the shaded terrace or down on our private beach area. We would choose a tea or coffee, and this would come first with a fresh juice of the day, along with a wooden platter of breads (there was lots of sourdough which I love), muffins, etc. and homemade jams and butter. There would always be a fresh fruit platter too, and then we could choose whatever we wanted from an extensive selection of hot foods. My favourites were avocado toast or pancakes with caramelized banana and honey.
Restaurant & Bars
There was no restaurant or bar as such, instead you could have your meals and drinks at any time and any place in the resort. It was on a full basis and this included breakfast, lunch, dinner and any snacks at any time.
Spa & Wellness
There was no gym here but Xanadu did have an amazing spa (more on this later), a main pool, each villa having their own private pools, and of course the amazing Indian Ocean on your doorstep.
Design & Architecture
While the focus here is on amazing service and the location, not to mention again the sustainability and recycling etc., you can’t fail to be impressed by the architecture and design; it’s such a wonderful mix and it lent itself incredibly well for some amazing drone footage and photography during our stay. The use of arched and curved walls carefully give privacy and shading between villas, but these don’t make any of the resort (or villas) feel overly enclosed or shut off. While we were very lucky having the openness of Mawingu villa, do check out locations of villas as some would be permanently quite shaded for where they are sited.
What about the Dongwe Zanzibar location?
This is quite a remote location, so don’t be expecting lots of things around and about (albeit there are a few hotels on the beach, either side, which you could go to if you wanted). For us though it was perfect, not too far from Stone Town and from the airport, but felt like a different world. It was exactly what we wanted, and with such an amazing choice of gourmet food, drinks etc. on site there was absolutely no need to go anywhere, other than to walk on the beach to try and burn off the calories!
Some of the top activities I’d recommend doing at Xanadu Villas are:
Xanadu Spa
From our arrival in the villa when there was a spa therapist on hand (excuse the pun) to give us both a hand massage; think reflexology but for your hands. This was so relaxing, sitting on one of the outside upholstered sofas in the heat, having our hands massaged and stressed with a massage oil. The therapist was so good at this, I knew I had to book a reflexology session for a longer treatment in the spa.
There was such a good selection of various treatments, from traditional massage, body scrubs, manicures and pedicures to traditional African massage treatments. As much as I was tempted by the Mwendo Wa Tembo experience, a medium to deep pressure with ‘implements’ including calabashes, hammer and chisel (!) I went for Itonga Amasatchi instead. This was a blend of deep tissue and stress relieving massage, with both hands and wooden sticks. Such a relaxing treatment, starting with the back of legs, then a lot of the 90 minute treatment time focussing on the back. There was also a hand and foot massage too; just excellent.
Right on the beach, you had the option of a double treatment inside suite, or double massage beds in the open-sided spa terrace, when you could hear the sound of the ocean. I opted for the reflexology outside, and the deep tissue massage inside.
Maalum Natural Swimming Pool
There were various tour options available to us from Xanadu Villas, but having done quite a few things when in Stone Town, we were opting just for a really relaxing time in the stunning villa or on the beach, as well as partaking of their excellent spa treatments.
The one thing we did want to do was to visit the nearby Maalum Caves, a natural swimming pool. We’ve been to Mexico a few times and never actually visited a Cenote there, so felt it was time to do it in Zanzibar. It was all organised for us by the hotel, and we were taken by hotel minivan (and our butler Lissu came along too), with towels and mineral water. The journey was only about 15 minutes from Xanadu, and we went direct to Maalum. Once checked in, we were taken to an area to change, with lockers provided for personal belongings. We then were escorted to a shoe change area, where we had to put on reef shoes provided as the entrance into the pool itself was incredibly slippery with algae. Knowing this, both of us still slipped on the way in, you really do need to be extremely careful. Once we had our shoes on, there was an area to shower and then we walked along the path to the pool.
Thankfully it wasn’t busy, and there were a maximum of another maybe 6 guests there at any one time, and at some point we were the only ones there which was great for photography. You can use a drone here, but it has to be pre-arranged. A good visit, then it was back to Xanadu for cocktails and snacks before dinner. Highly recommended and a very efficient set up at Maalum.
$20 for adults and $10 for children, can book online with various slots throughout each day of the week with 90 minute slots.
More Things To Do
Although we didn’t do anything more than the Spa and Natural Swimming Pool, walk on the beach, read and relax; there were a lot more activities that could be organised from the resort. We had already done the Spice Farm, Sandbank and Prison Island tours from our time in Stone Town, staying at the Park Hyatt Zanzibar, but if you were staying at Xanadu these would all be things that were perfectly possible, albeit you would be adding on a couple of hours at least extra journey time.
Food and Drink at Xanadu Villas
Meals at Xanadu were amazing and would be served in different locations, for us having the private beach area and extensive villa terrace, we would either have the table moved to one of those, or have another table set up under the large pavilion just slightly further along the beach nearer to the spa. This was a perfect spot for lunch, to gaze at the ocean whether the tide was in or out, shaded by palm trees. Lunch could be a full three-course affair, or what we found was we would have to start cutting back and would maybe just have either a main course and dessert, or a starter and dessert. The choice was excellent, and you would choose your lunch after breakfast (always at least three choices for each course, and a separate vegetarian menu for me). Similarly, after lunch you would choose the dinner menu and a location.
Dinner was similar, as in a three course selection with always a daily selection of breads and accompaniments to begin with, but on our last night there was a seven-course Swahili special dinner. As much as it all looked delicious from the menu (again two versions, one for me and one for ‘Mrs’) we knew after having had both a very large breakfast and lunch, we couldn’t have all seven courses. It was easy though for us to discuss with Lissu about leaving some of the courses out, and we still had the most amazing dinner on the beach.
All drinks were included, unless you opted for a premium wine. Neither of us are really wine drinkers, so we would mainly have a G&T at lunch or dinner (or two) and occasionally some lovely South African sparkling wine. As well as the unlimited choice during meals, and the constantly refreshed great SMEG mini-bar, if you ever wanted just a drink and a snack this would be served wherever you wanted. The only time we did really was on returning from the Maalum Cave, and actually the only time we went to where the main pool was with seating surrounding it. Lissu served us a post-swim cocktail and some delicious snacks of freshly made popcorn, potato chips, arancini balls, and mixed nuts.
If you want to check out some of our favourite restaurants and cafés we encountered over the course of our stay in Zanzibar, you can find out more in a Travel Diaries post here.
Highlights of our stay
There were so many highlights of the stay at the but here are just a few of the key points, which I hope you find a useful summary.
Location - about an hour and a half from Stone Town, Xanadu is a world away. Amazing.
The beach - felt like you could walk for miles in either direction, and just enjoy the sun and the Indian Ocean.
Meals - were way beyond expectation, the food, variety, and service was world-class standards (the Bao Buns for lunch get the highest recommendation)
Our Butler Lissu was on hand for everything, from morning through night and even accompanied us on the Maalum Swimming Pool/Cave tour
The full board service - included all drinks, meals, laundry, and transfers. The only thing we had to pay for was two massages.
People - Lissu was excellent, but so was everyone else who interacted with us, from the driver Karlos meeting us at the Park Hyatt, to the welcome on arriving at Xanadu (with cocktails and cold towels) by the Manager Pieter and Burhan Guest Relations.
Laundry - excellent service, and included. We would leave anything we needed washed in the morning, and by evening it would be returned perfectly washed and pressed.
Areas for improvement
Wherever we stay, I do always like to look at the positives on any property we stay in, and airlines we fly with etc. but sometimes you can’t help but notice things that (for me, but I realise this is always personal) might have made for a better stay.
I don’t normally get much input from ‘Mrs’ The Private Traveller, but this you could say is a ‘guest’ contribution from him! Loungers at both the pool and beach were comfortable, but they were a fixed position and no way to adjust the headrest for a different reading position.
I think they already knew this was an issue, as after nearly slipping a second time (the first was in the bathroom after the cleaning service and it was left wet/slippy) but the slippers provided (though lovely African patterns, but small for men’s feet) had no grip whatsoever. When the receptionist came to check us out on the final night (because we had an early start the next morning) I nearly slipped again (same slippers, and small water puddle left next to the tea/coffee station). She said that they had already told the housekeepers not to use these slippers anymore because of that very problem, and new ones had been supplied with more of a grip on the sole.
I like hot water, but the temperature that came out of the bathroom taps could be literally scalding hot. Presumably the water is solar heated, I’d suggest though there should be a way of limiting the temperature as if the taps were turned to hot, the water was a dangerous temperature.
Would I stay here again?
Yes definitely, it more than lived up to expectations (well, massively surpassed them to be honest) and I cannot recommend this resort highly enough. It was a perfect stay, being there for 5 nights and while there was an amazing selection of a variety of food, I think this was just about the right time. I’m sure some guests will return time after time, for me I wouldn’t just want to repeat the same experience, but try out a new villa. Only problem is that Mawingu set the bar very high!
Delicious lunch overlooking the incredible beach at Xanadu Luxury Villas
My final thoughts on Xanadu Luxury Villas
Every so often somewhere we stay is so magical and exceptional, that doing a hotel review like this just doesn’t seem enough. I always seem to be trying to catch up on posts, keep Instagram going, developing the website etc. as well as actually taking trips and planning future ones, but I certainly plan to come back and write a more conversational article about Xanadu, what a day in the wonderful resort can entail.
Have you stayed at Xanadu Luxury Villas before, or ever been to Zanzibar? I’d love to hear your own thoughts and opinions on it as well as your impression of Zanzibar as a holiday destination.
Comment below to share your thoughts and opinions.
Let me know which hotel I should review next!
