Kholle House Boutique Hotel — Hotel in Malindi

Why people are happy about this hotel is a mystery to me!

The beds are really bad and small, guaranteed back pain. The rooms are super dark. And the lights are not working properly. When told they "fix" it, which means they don't do anything. There is no place to store your belonings and/our suitcase in the hotel room. So you have to just open your suitcase on the floor and make a big mess.

The shower is at bellybutton hight and sprays all over the batroom. The faucets are super dirty. Breakfast has very little choice, not to even mention dinner which is worse.

They charge $5 extra per person for anything on the roof, not unreasonable considering the extra stairs the staff has to take, but the roof is a mess so it's not a good experience.

Also a lot of ship horns every morning.

There is no nice comfy chairs in the garden to sit back and relax on. The swimming pool is more of a dipping pool.

The manager is inpolite, she does not slove any problems and she takes forever with everything.

When you check out and want to store your luggage for a little while this can only be done in an unguarded hallway anybody can enter easily and unseen from the street.

All prices are in shilling, but when you pay (by card) you can only pay in dollars. Not only do they have very bad exchange rates, they also charge you 3% extra to pay by card.

The only good thing about this hotel is Albert (one of the staff members) he is a lovely guy who is excellent at his job. He gets a 10 out of 10.

But the rest of the hotel I would not...

3 nights in September 2025. We arrived in Zanzibar late and were picked up by the hotel, after a short ride to the hotel we were shown to our room which was stunning. The next morning we enjoyed a beautiful breakfast and had a swim before heading into Stone Town. As we left our hotel we were approached by Eddie who offered to show us around the town as a verified guide. He was absolutely fantastic and took us all through the town to the local market where we saw incredible spices etc. Eddie bought us some red bananas to try which were delicious! We also went to the Slave Market Museum which was very harrowing but super educational and definitely a must visit. Eddie told us about the history of the town and showed us the beautiful architecture and doors throughout the town. Whilst walking through the town Eddie also bought a peanut brittle bar to share from a local woman selling on the street, this was delicious also! He recommended some restaurants 2 of which we ate at and were fantastic. Eddie also arranged a private boat trip to Prison Island and Nakupenda with a BBQ on the beach! He also arranged our taxi on to Kendwa. He really sorted us out!

Our stay at Kholle House was topped off with a proposal on the rooftop terrace… Of course, I said YES! It was a beautiful setting and I couldn’t have imagined...

Our stay at Kholle House was absolutely lovely!

Centrally located in a great area of Stone Town where you can easily step outside and walk to anywhere you need to get to.

The staff were so welcoming and friendly from the moment we checked in, to the moment I checked out and needed help bringing my bags to my parking (in the rain!). Service at the restaurant was always on point and given with a smile - and the food was delicious!

Lots of breakfast options, and Swahili style meals for lunch and dinner that are prepared really well, so you get a taste of local flavour but made with high standards.

We stayed in the French Suite, which had so much unique charm due to the history and traditional architecture of Kholle House! I loved the colours and traditional style furniture. We had a small balcony that overlooked the courtyard and had views of old Stone Town, the port and the ocean.

Everything was clean and comfortable, we had a safe in the room, air conditioning and high-speed wifi.

I definitely recommend a stay at Kholle House due its location, amazing staff and service, clean and comfortable rooms and just the unique charm. You’ll feel immersed in history and get the true Stone...