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Zanzibar Palace Hotel – reviews, photos

Kiponda Street | 831, Stone Town 3392, Tanzania
Hotel amenities
Offers & Announcements
$175 per night
Zanzibar Palace Hotel
Ranked #4 of 29 hotels in Stone Town
4.5 of 5 stars 256 Reviews
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256 reviews from our community

What travellers say about this hotel
  • Very nice(7)
  • Narrow streets(4)
  • Dunia suite(3)
  • DVD players(3)
  • Great Place(3)
Traveller rating
    180
    48
    15
    9
    4
Only show reviews for Family (31) | Couples (166) | Business (5)
Date Rating
Zurich, Switzerland
Senior Reviewer
6 reviews 6 reviews
Reviews in 6 cities Reviews in 6 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
“For people who like to stay in hotel with a lot of local touch in the middle of the old town”
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 5 February 2012

The Zanzibar Palace Hotel is located in a historic hotel building in the middle of the old town of Stonetown. It has been partly refurbished recently, conserving a lot of its local touch. Compared to international standard the hotel’s official four stars (or even four and a half) are rather exaggerated.
We were first offered a suite with the toilet and the shower not having its own closed room, which was unacceptable to us, because – although knowing each other’s for twenty years - there are moments where we prefer to have the necessary privacy. The not overly motivated Dutch manager first said that he has no other room available but later offered an alternative nevertheless. This room was better but – as probably most other rooms as well – was very noisy (frequent motorbikes and some cars during the night), which was partly due to the fact that the windows were very old and didn’t protect against noise at all. The restaurant was a positive surprise and is highly recommendable.
People looking for a lot of local touch and being flexible will like this hotel, others looking for a real four star hotel with international standard should look for another hotel.

  • Stayed December 2011, travelled as a couple
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 3 of 5 stars Location
    • 1 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 1 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 2 of 5 stars Service
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Ask ZurichTraveller61 about Zanzibar Palace Hotel
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Stockholm, Sweden
Contributor
14 reviews 14 reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
6 helpful votes 6 helpful votes
“Perfect place to stay in Stone Town”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 30 January 2012
1
person found this review helpful

This is a marvelous hotel choice in Stone Town. The staff was friendly and helpful, the room was so comfortable (we had the suite with the outdoor bathroom on the third floor!), and the food was delicious! The location is perfect for exploring Stone Town and everything of interest is within a 15 minute walk. We couldn't ask for a better place to stay!

Room Tip: Chose the Dunia Suite on the third floor. It has an outdoor bathroom with views that are to die for...
See more room tips
  • Stayed January 2012, travelled as a couple
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 5 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
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Ask DaisyJ61 about Zanzibar Palace Hotel
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Senior Reviewer
7 reviews 7 reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
14 helpful votes 14 helpful votes
“Very Unique Hotel in Stone Town”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 23 January 2012

Spent the night at the palace on our first night in Zanzibar. The room was very big and had excellent North African Style furnishings. The owner at the front desk was very friendly and was able to set up a city tour with a guide for us in just a few minutes which was a great intro to the town. She was also helpful that evening to give us directions to dinner. We enjoyed some drinks at the hotel bar on our way back in that night and the service was great. Overall it’s a very personal hotel with very unique accommodations. I would definitely recommend it.

  • Stayed January 2012, travelled as a couple
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 5 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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Ask Four30 about Zanzibar Palace Hotel
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Kigali, Rwanda
2 reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
“Charming place”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 23 January 2012
1
person found this review helpful

When I arrived at Zanzibar Palace Hotel, I had an issue with wanting to have more people stay at the hotel. The staff was very accomodating and helped us into a larger room and didn't charge us full rate for it. There is a free breakfast that was quite good and the help staff was nice. They have a turn down service at night which is great when walking around Zanzibar in the hot humid sun all day to return to a place where the air conditioner has been turned on and windows closed to have a nice cool place to relax. A Dutch couple owns the hotel, and they are very nice. They will ask you how you are doing, if you need anything, and can arrange taxis and give advice with maps on things to do in Stone Town.

The hotel is expensive but quite nice. It's an authentic Zanzibar experience, and the staff is great. If you have the money, I'd recommend this place.

Stayed January 2012, travelled with family
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Ask sanderson04 about Zanzibar Palace Hotel
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Budapest, Hungary
Reviewer
5 reviews 5 reviews
Reviews in 5 cities Reviews in 5 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
“Zanzibar palace Hotel”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 22 January 2012

Very nice, friendly staff, clean rooms/ Sultana suite. Good food also in the restaurant.

  • Stayed January 2012, travelled with family
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 4 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
Was this review helpful? Yes
Ask dk12345678 about Zanzibar Palace Hotel
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Additional Information about Zanzibar Palace Hotel

  • Zanzibar Palace Stone Town
  • Hotel Zanzibar Palace
Address: Kiponda Street | 831, Stone Town 3392, Tanzania
Price range (per night):* INR6,553 - 19,884

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