Pearl Beach By Sansi — Hotel in Unguja

Location is great, setting is great, people are friendly, but the hotel itself is an absolute mess.

The location, having a private beach really makes this location worth considering. However, at this price point you really have multiple other options that you can consider.

DO NOT BOOK HERE.

Beds are terrible. When speaking to other guests, all agree. The nights are a mess. No Wi-Fi in rooms really bad for a place marketed as 5 star...net even mentioning the constant power outages. Also, the bathrooms are mess and I would rate them nothing more than 3 star based on the standard we accept in South Africa. Other examples include lack of proper coffee/drinks stations and not even the cups provided for coffee in the rooms are the same size. Also, do not be fooled by the online pictures - The deluxe rooms do not have seating inside the rooms and the wooden seats outside is not very private at all. Also, do not come here for honeymoon - you can hear the guests in the neighbouring rooms clearly and you might end up red faced..... ..... .....

*Update - after my review was read, our room was supplied with a better mattress. Unfortunately, until the alleged revamp later this year, and until other can confirm, it is difficult to really tell if the beds throughout the hotel has been improved.

Upon arrival, our room was not available. We were asked to wait for almost 2 hours and we were not told what was going on. Then, when taken to a much cheaper room than booked for an alleged evening, I demanded my money back, and then all of a sudden had a room available. This same argument and story told to at least two other guests with the same modus operandi....

*Update - Do not rely on travel agents or their online booking system. Reach out directly to the hotel a week in advance to ensure that your room will be ready.

If you consider traveling to various activities across the island, consider NOT taking the all inclusive packages. Of the 7 nights, 1 nights the food was really bad, and you could only eat the bread (The Africa theme night specifically was horrible). There was only one evening that I really enjoyed all of the food, the rest of the evenings included picky eating and albeit a different theme, it was the same - curry and fish..... MY recommendation would be to take the package in which the breakfast is included. Breakfasts were good. Then, every morning ask what that evenings menu would be like and consider eating elsewhere. You can walk up the beach during low tide and have a proper burger or pizza or something edible - the local food is way better. We went on two day-trips where we were served lunch (spice tour and safari blue) and both times, the food on these trips were much tastier that the food served at the hotel.

Its a shame, this could be a great location if the bookings and accommodation were sorted out.

Until then, avoid this location.

For the lodge: Consider the following: Revamp your rooms Revamp your bathrooms. Consider tiles to the ceiling to avoid the mildew buildup everywhere. Install extraction fans in the bathroom to extract moisture as quickly as possible from the air. Update your website regularly with actual pictures of the rooms as they are at that stage to manage expectations. You have beautiful infinity pools - fill them and use the functionality. You have a bar that is closed at the swimming pool - Why have the facility and not make it easy for your guests to enjoy themselves Add snack options to the bar areas - other 5-star hotels in Zanzibar offers this as part of their all inclusive option and it is really expected. Snacks such as chips, pizza slices, sweet treats etc would be recommended. Consider adding a swimming pool to the Boa Bar area - During low tide, this is a heat pit and no one can really enjoy that area. However, the Boa Bar area is well protected from the wind and when it is not enjoyable to be at the top pool, this would be a great alternative. Consider a walking path to cross the rocky road from the top to the...

After weeks of searching for the perfect resort we come across the 5 star Pearl Beach Resort and Spa. The videos and photos online looked amazing, beautiful beaches and pools, the most amazing spread of mouthwatering foods, fancy cocktails.... this was it, our dream holiday.

From the time we arrived we were disappointed! After being greeted at our bus by the security guard, we carried our own luggage, in the rain to the reception or lack thereof... An old desk in a corner of the dining area with a laptop. Not welcoming by any means….. The surrounding furniture was falling apart at the seams, holes in the floor boards, were “disguised" by placing tables over. The balustrades were falling apart and unsafe, the infinity pool was half empty and grey! Other than the view which could not been seen in the dark, the overall feel was depressing, grimy, basic, and seriously lacking maintenance – definitely NOT 5 STAR (3 star with a push).

When checking in we noticed that the rooms being allocated were not what we had booked ie: "Luxury Sea View".We were told that it was to late to do anything about it then and that it would be sorted out in the morning. When we arrived at the rooms things were not looking up. A bar fridge standing randomly in the corner of the room with a kettle on top. Mosquito net missing on one bed and the others old and grimy looking, full of holes, some stitched closed and others open. The sheets didn't fit, had holes and were full of stains. Mattresses were torn. Massive cracks in floor tiles. Insufficient cupboard space for a family room. Aircons not working, air-con, roofs leaking, terrible water pressure and the list goes on... again all seriously lacking maintenance of any kind.

The next morning we made our way to the dining area to try get some answers. The breakfast left much to be desired. A buffet would imply that there was variety which there was none……no cheese for the omelettes, no sausage, bacon, cold meats or cheeses of any sort. When we asked for butter they brought a tiny blob on a plate to the table, I asked for more as we were a table of 8 people, and it never arrived. The bar at the pool was closed and the bar at the dining area was... well... sad. We wanted a luxurious, special holiday to celebrate my mother's 60th birthday (as well as my daughter's 8th Birthday) and Pearl Beach was definitely none of those things! Words like average and mediocre come to mind. Under no circumstances were we prepared to spend the remainder of our holiday here!

After some back and forth between ourselves, Africa Stay and the Pearl Beach Resort manager, we were told that they had secured accommodation at their "sister resort" 10 minutes down the road. Karafuu - a 4 star resort but they were only able to move us the following morning. We tried to make the best of what was left of my daughter's birthday and asked the manager if they could maybe do something special for her at dinner. What came next was a pleasant surprise, a beautiful, freshly baked birthday cake and lovely birthday wishes in the form of a song, sung by a large number of staff. Aahhh sigh, redeemed in the eyes of my 8 year old daughter at least. This and the fact that the staff were friendly and tried to accommodate us where they could (within their means of course) was the only positive experiences that came out of the whole stressful ordeal at Pearl Beach.

We spent that night in our same rooms, so much for we will sort it out in the morning... all the while still living out of our suitcases. We essentially lost a full day of our holiday! The resort that we were moved to, Karafuu, was a definite upgrade and believably a 4 Star as advertised, unlike their "sister resort" Pearl Beach which is advertised as a 5 star, haha. We were warmly welcomed and had a lovely stay. Still however, a 4 Star, not the 5 Star which...

What potential this place has. The location is stunning. The private beach by the bar is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen. The views from the restaurant are breathtaking. The staff were lovely. We saw monkeys, shrews, parakeets, bush babies...It could have been idyllic. |All of which makes me so sad to give it a low rating. I went in after reading a few less than positive reviews and thought since we'd booked last minute I'd just relax and enjoy it and wouldn't sweat the small stuff. But it wasn't small. We arrived to be swept upstairs with a welcome drink to the fabulous view and it all went down hill from there. After about 10 minutes of explaining the property they informed us that unfortunately they had overbooked and were moving me and my 3 kids to a 'sister' hotel. This sister hotel was inferior in all aspects and they refused to answer when I asked how the half board price I'd paid in advance for Pearl Beach compared to the price of the property they wanted to send me to. They just expected me to move with no questions. They offered no explanation or compensation and after about a half hour when they realised I was refusing to move they 'found' rooms for us. To be fair, they provided us a free lunch whilst they 'looked' and one of the 2 rooms was ultimately upgraded. But what hotel overbooks? It's not like an airline where there's another flight an hour later. And this is not the first time this has happened....I read about the first 15 reviews on Google and 2 had the same experience.|If that had only been the end of it. The food was awful; it was bland, beige and limited. There is no a la carte menu so no choice at meals or out of hours. Twice I paid $20 for a cab to take my kids 10 minutes to a nearby hotel so they could have a decent lunch. Electricity went out twice...not for a few minutes like we experienced on the same trip in Kendwa and Stonetown but for several hours. We expected some outages but not 2 out of 4 days for hours not minutes. And then there was the water. When I arrived at my bungalow they were already working on the hot water heater so I knew there was a problem. When I went to shower it was so hot it was scalding. It would literally burn you. I asked them twice more to fix this and finally gave up and took cold showers....when there was water. One evening I came back to shower before dinner and had no water. When I informed management they said it was resort wide and would be fixed in 5 minutes. It wasn't fixed until mid day the next day. |Water, electricity and decent food? These just aren't small things you can overlook no matter how chill you are. I'm not adverse to simple accommodation when that's what you book. My family camps all the time with bare essentials. But that's not the case here. So despite the location being gorgeous and the staff being lovely, I'd never return or recommend unless you're happy to pay for but chance having basic...