Chapwani Private Island

A small private island just off Stone Town with 10 bungalows, a restaurant and a sandy beach

Stone Town is a colourful African town full of hustle and bustle. The only problem is that it doesn’t always stop hustling and bustling when you decide to go to bed. In fact people invariably bustle just outside your bedroom window till late in the night. And when they stop, a screeching owl or gobbling turkey gleefully takes up the refrain. Occasionally ‘bustle’ turns to ‘hustle’, when a papaasi (tout) decides that you want to buy some dope / go to the disco / be accompanied to your hotel...

But don’t let that put you off. Instead, book a bungalow on Chapwani island, a tiny strip of woodland and sandbank lying a mile offshore. Spend your day sightseeing in town, or shopping for fabrics, wooden crafts and spices; then jump on the shuttle boat and, 15 minutes later, you can be enjoying a sunset cocktail on your beach lounger while the kids splash in the shallows. If you’ve only got a few days on Zanzibar, it’s a great way of fitting in Stone Town and a beach holiday.

Highs

• Safe, family-friendly accommodation
• Sandy beach on your doorstep
• Fruit bats and antelopes in the woods
• Warm welcome from Maura and great food from Nicole
• Sense of privilege: it’s ‘your island’

Lows

• Too shallow to swim at low tide
• The rooms are simple
• Shuttle-boats need preplanning and (usually) cost extra: not so easy to nip into town
• Don’t be put off by armed guards at night: they are invited by the hotel as a deterrent