Reef & Beach Resort + Safari

If you are looking for peace and quiet, and the luxury island escape that was advertised to you, this is definitely NOT the place to stay. This was, without question, the worst hotel experience I have ever had. Where do I even begin? The food was incredibly disappointing and nowhere near the standard I would expect from an all-inclusive resort. Most meals were repetitive, bland and often cold, consisting of the same things night after night – rice, plain pasta, French fries and pizza. To make matters worse, there was little to no seafood available. At an island resort, this is something guests reasonably expect. The desserts were equally disappointing, with dry, flavourless cakes being the norm, and the cocktails were so watered down that they were barely drinkable. Unfortunately, the accommodation and overall experience only went downhill from there. The noise in our original room was terrible, and to top it off, our bed broke during our stay. While I appreciate the effort to move us to another room, the new room was somehow even worse. What was most unacceptable, however, was the constant construction taking place throughout the resort. There was absolutely no escaping it. The bar on the jetty was being reconstructed, meaning we had to listen to construction noise while trying to relax. We then moved to the pool area in search of some peace and quiet, only to find new shade structures being built there too. Finally, on our last day, we were subjected to loud drilling directly outside our room. We raised our concerns three days into our stay and complained multiple times thereafter. Yet nothing meaningful was done. Then, at 9pm on the evening before our departure, after my third complaint, we were finally contacted to discuss the issues. We were then told that had management known sooner, something could have been done. This response was frankly insulting. We had already raised our concerns days earlier. The reality is that nothing was done until it was far too late. After making virtually no effort to rectify our experience during our stay and offering very little in the way of an apology, and to add insult to injury, we were offered “$28 compensation” in bar credit. This amounted to four drinks. We had already paid for an all-inclusive package, meaning we could have had those drinks for free anyway. When we then went to order the drinks, some of the drinks we wanted weren’t even available. To make matters worse, this compensation was offered at 9pm when we were leaving the resort at 7am the following morning. It was a token gesture that felt less like compensation and more like an attempt to tick a box. While I appreciate Maggie’s efforts, the overall handling of this situation was poor from start to finish. The attempts to rectify our experience were simply too little, too late. This hotel falls far short of a four-star standard. The food, accommodation, service and overall guest experience leave A LOT to be desired. I cannot recommend this hotel and I will certainly not be returning. Save your money and stay elsewhere.

After trouble with our airline this was the most perfect hotel to end up at. The room was absolutely stunning, we paid extra for a sea view suite and it was definitely worth it! Housekeeping every day to turn down the room and help with bugs. The location was nice, on the sea, but it became awkward for some excursions due to activities being mostly at the top of the island, transfers were not included so this rendered slightly more expensive. Although taxi drivers were especially friendly so the drives were comfortable. The food and drinks were amazing, great options accommodating for all. The staff were also so helpful, everyone very friendly, we spoke to multiple members who offered services such as the spa manager and a lady who organises a trip to the local school every wednesday. As a couple we also want to thank Abuu, who worked on the bar as he really lightened our stay and was friendly and enthusiastic. Overall this hotel was brilliant and we would love to stay again.

Upon arrival I noticed so many cats, mostly kittens, who are malnourished, thin and no feeding stations. Many of them, especially kittens are sick. The first night the lady at the restaurant forcefully kicked 2 kittens who were at the entrance. For 2 days they locked a mommy cat in room 385 and both mornings I let the cat out. That room is not suitable for guests and I am appalled that they lock cats away. I spoke to Reception and the guy said I could take food from the restaurant - which I did. Besides having to worry about the cats, we had a good holiday. The venue is Beautiful, Accommodation is spacious, clean and comfortable. We were on all inclusive package (Breakfast, Lunch and Supper) and the food was good with a lot of variety. We didn't do any activities as our goal was to relax and see the resident Red Columbus Monkey troop. The monkeys were the highlight of our stay and I even had the experience of an adult female jump into my arms and groom my hair. They were busy with renovations, so there were times of constant drilling, hammering and NOISE. We booked 6 nights and every day they were working. If I didn't have to worry about feeding the cats 3x daily and the continuous drilling and hammering, I would've rated 5 star. I would suggest that they put out some feeding stations away from restaurant and look after them. If you are a cat lover, this place is not for you.

The are good and average feelings about the resort. The staff are great, especially Grace in Guest Services and Mustapha in F&B! Our arrival & check in was terrible. The barman are average and I suppose that is because they have to make these terrible cocktails all day long, using brands I really did not recognise....they also at one point were using Coconut powder mixed with water to substitute Coconut milk in some of the cocktails....yeah I know, horrible! And you get a glass of wine served in a glass that you would use to taste wine!! The food was average at best with one or two nights being quite good in the speciality restaurants - I do supose though, to be fair, that they do over 300 guests at times, so things are not as refined as a smaller resort can be and possibly food supplies not as easily availble. We had a well postioned villa at the waters edge (they call it Honeymoon Suite, strange that it has a double bunk in the entrance room - haha! ) unfortunately its pretty old and needs an upgrade, we couldn't open the patio door in the bedroom and the safe was too small for a laptop - although they did fix the door for us. There were room renovations going at the time at the pool so the noise was not great but I guess really necessary to get this place up to standard Would I go back, probably not rush back, although I am known to be a bit fussy. Its not bad but its not great so a 3.5 score - staff 5/5

An atmospheric hotel with incredible tides allowing you to see the ocean's flora and fauna up close. Friendly Maasai selling souvenirs and delicious Zanzibari delicacies served by the hotel kitchen. I was a bit skeptical because I enjoy wide, long beaches but the incredible ocean tides were something I'll always remember. The entire complex has the character of a local village and it is beautifully landscaped. I stayed in a bungalow with the ocean view located right at the entrance to the jetty. It has a veranda and a small garden with its own table, chairs and deck chairs. I was there only for a week and it was definitely too short. I already miss it just writing these words.