The Sands Beach Resort — Hotel in Unguja

Summary: The Sands is a terrific resort, located on a beautiful beach, with incredible facilities, terrific food, and an amazing staff. Highly recommended.

Go Deeper: The Sands Zanzibar Beach Resort is amazing. We stayed here with our two daughters in July 2023 and had an incredible time. This followed a safari on the mainland and then two nights in Stone Town at which point we were ready to relax and enjoy the beach. The Sands was exactly what we needed

Where to begin?

The property is immaculate. As you enter from the main road you’re overwhelmed by a sea of bougainvillea and other tropical flora. And the beach is a blinding shade of white, which descends into the Indian Ocean’s many shades of blue. Depending on the tide, you’ll wander on the bottom of the ocean and see crabs and other wildlife or spend hours swiming in the ocean’s warm waters.

The facilities are terrific. We stayed in a two-bedroom villa with our own private pool. The rooms were comfortable, well-decorated, and well equipped (hot water, AC, fans, etc.). While we visited during the busy season, there were no crowds and at times we felt we had the property to ourselves, whether we were at the beach or at the main pool, which was also very nice.

The food is excellent. Breakfast is a buffet-style setup with an omelet/egg station, some of the best crepes we’ve ever had, fresh fruit, great coffee, and a number of other options. For lunch we ate at the beach bar, which was also very good. French fries at the beach are one of my favorite guilty pleasures. Dinner is also buffet style, which changes every night. Depending on the catch of the day, there is a whole fish that is grilled onsite. They are also really nice salads and main courses that reflect Zanzibar’s diverse culinary heritage (Swahili, Bantu, Arab, Portuguese, Indian, British and even Chinese cuisine). You will not be hungry here.

But what truly sets The Sands apart is its staff, which is led by the general manager Mr. Amos and his assistant Mr. Ally. Both gentlemen took the time to introduce themselves to us and — on many occasions – followed up and asked us how we were doing. From the minute we checked in we were met with smiles and kindness. This continued throughout our stay, whether it was at the front desk (including Ms. Yesenti and Mr. Yasintia), the beach bar and restaurant (including Ms. Hameda), with the gardeners and housekeepers, or the Massai security staff. This also includes the amazing masseuse Debora, who provided my wife and I two excellent treatments (Tip: go for the deep tissue first and then follow up with the Swedish) before you check out). And because we had a very late departing flight, we were given a late checkout – which may not always be the case given the busy season, but which we really appreciated.

Bottom line: this was the perfect end to an amazing trip and I would not hesitate to stay here again. I’d like to thank the entire team at The Sands for a truly wonderful stay....

We stayed at The Sands Beach Resort in August 2020 and it was such an unforgettable stay.

The team is amazing: the GM, Shadya, David, Alfred, Mtatiro, Cassius, the chefs, housekeeping staff, caretakers, gardeners, Maasai’s, everyone. They are so friendly and welcoming. We felt welcome and at home from day 1. We really felt like we are part of the family. It really touched me that amid the ongoing pandemic and all the uncertainties that come with it, you still welcome us and greet us with a big smile.

We stayed in villa 121, the best villa at the resort. The beach is right in front of the door step and the view from the bedroom and the living room is absolutely picturesque. The villa is so spacious and massive. The villa is filled with great decorative ornaments and paintings. The bed is spacious and really comfortable. The bathroom is massive and there is an outdoor shower.

It would be an in justice not to mention the food. The chefs prepare the meals with so much love. The food is really delicious, flavorful and filled with so many rich spices that are found in Zanzibar. We got to experience Swahili night on the last day night of our stay. The team prepped the restaurant with beautiful and romantic decorations. The chef prepared different types of Swahili dishes (delicious) and we enjoyed live performances by a local band. Such an unforgettable experience.

The resort has a beautifully landscaped garden and walk paths. This is Instagram galore: the palm trees are so beautiful. The beach has white sand and turquoise water. Of course there are tides in Eastern Zanzibar but the low tide only lasted in the morning during our stay.

Overall, this is an amazing 4 star resort and great...

Me and my wife spent 7 days for our honeymoon here at The Sand Beach Resort and has been an amazing experience. We came here to chill out and the staff really helped us to achieve this goal.

The resort is on the east coast of Zanzibar which is quieter comparing with other areas of the island, the structure has all the comforts you need to relax. In front of the resort there is an amazing sea where you can experience the high and low tide during the day but, if you don’t like the sea, you can benefit of a huge swimming pool.

The restaurant is very good, you can have huge plates of fresh fruits, excellent grilled fishes and tasty soups. Every time you’ll have a different menu also if the recipes are more or less the same. The breakfast is also really good, you can order any kind of food, from pancakes to eggs with bacon, to fresh fruit plate, etc.

The staff is very nice and always available just with a WhatsApp message, they help you to be more relaxed bringing you whatever you want at any time and always being very kind.

Two times per day (morning and evening) the cleaning ladies will provide you new blanket, towels, and water in the fridge in the morning, instead in the evening they pass by to turn on the lights, to prepare the bed, close the windows and spray solutions against mosquitos.

What else…there is the beach bar next to the beach beds which is open morning to evening (10pm) where you can get everyday new beach towels, amazing juices and launch.

The resort also offers different trips like the spicy tour, the Safari blue, diving and snorkelling excursions, sunset watching by boat, etc.

For us was a great experience, we highly recommend it and remember HAKUNA MATATA...