Chumbe Island is the cradle of ecotourism in Zanzibar, offering seven eco-bungalows in a private nature reserve with diversity of activities to enjoy.
Chumbe Island Coral Park
This accommodation requires a 3-night minimum stay during the period from december 24th until january 2nd.
Chumbe Island is a fully protected private nature reserve which started its development in 1991, and includes a forest reserve, a coral reef sanctuary, historical monuments and a visitor and education centre. The award-winning Chumbe Island Coral Park Ltd. follows the ecotourism idea in its purest form – using the revenues created by guests to fund conservation, research and education programs for school children and villagers. Therefore the company objectives are non-commercial but the operational part pursues commercial principles.
You will be welcomed in one of their seven eco-bungalows which blend in naturally with the island’s surroundings. They are fully self-contained, offering a large living area and providing stunning sea views. The shape of the roof guarantees a constant ventilation by the sea breeze and allows you to relax and take in the beautiful view from the second deck of the bungalow. Dining can be enjoyed on open-air terraces and the cuisine is a composition of Zanzibarian, Indian, African and Arabic influences.
Location
Chumbe Island is situated 12km south-west of Zanzibar’s capital Stone Town and became the first financially self-sustainable Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the world officially declared in 1994. It is reachable via the Chumbe Island boat shuttle which goes to the island in the morning and back from the island in the afternoon each time to and from the peer of Protea Mbweni Ruins Hotel.
The rates include:
- Room as booked
- Full board (breakfast, lunch, tea, dinner), drinks and snacks
- Boat transfer to and from the island on the morning transfers.
- Boat transfer for the reef for snorkeling, equipment is also privided
- Guided tours through the coral rag forest, and to view the endangered coconut crabs in the evening
- Boat transfer to and from the island on the morning transfers.
- Fees and taxes
Included and paid Amenities
- Safe
- Library / book exchange
- Direct beach access
- Gift shop
- Free WiFi
- Non-smoking rooms
- Restaurant
- Laundry Service
Are you travelling with children?
We love children and are happy about welcoming children at the hotel. Unfortunately our online reservation system is not yet fully ready to calculate child rates correctly. We are working on this.
So when you proceed with the reservation, you will currently only see adult rates displayed and calculated.
But don’t worry! We will manually review any reservation and will adjust the rate. You will hear from us shortly after your reservation. You will only pay the hotel’s child rate for your children.
Child policy of this hotel:
Children aged 0-2 years are free of charge.
Children aged 3-12 years pay 50% of full adult rate per night.
Children aged 13 years and more pay full adult rate. Please choose “adult” in the online reservation in case of a child aged 13 or older.
The policy of this hotel in case of cancellation or no show is:
● More than one week before arrival: 50% of the rate charged
● Between 48 hours – one week before arrival: 75% of rate charged
● Less than 48 hours before arrival: 100% of the rate charged
● Bookings starting or during 24th december – 2nd january: 100% of the rate charged, at any date
Additionally, zanzibar.eco as a platform provider charges 30 USD processing fee for each cancellation.
Ecological & Social footprint
The eco-bungalows were designed to follow sustainable and environmentally friendly principles aiming at a close to zero impact on the island’s environment. Traditional building techniques have been combined with locally sourced natural construction material such as wood and palm thatched roofs. All buildings are powered by 100% solar energy providing electricity and warm water for each unit. Rain water is collected during the rainy seasons and stored in underground cisterns where it undergoes a filtration process and is used as the single water source for showers and kitchen operations. The water cycle is complete with the vegetative filtration of the greywater which is then directly let out to reed beds. The composting toilets provide good soil fertilizers and a state-of-the-art ventilation system assures an odor-free use.
Bio-degradable waste is composted on the island whereas any residual waste is brought back to the main island of Zanzibar where Chumbe Island Coral Park works together with a privately owned waste management company. Over 90% of their staff are Zanzibaris and they are trained on a regular basis in natural resource utilization, ecotourism principles and English. As environmental conservation is one of the main objectives of the park many practices such as the pursuit of a sustainable seafood purchasing policy, reducing the illumination at night to protect breeding patterns and the availability of park rangers, are followed.
Chumbe Island created a comprehensive Environmental Education Program which is a free of charge large-scale initiative aimed at school children, villagers, teachers, fishers, government officials and tourists to experience the environmental value through field excursions and many more. Chumbe Island Coral Park counts with numerous certification and awards such as the Global Ecosphere Retreat Standard (GER)® certified as Long Run Destination, SKAL Sustainable Tourism Award 2015, World Responsible Tourism Award 2013, Energy Globe National Award 2012, Responsible Tourism Award 2004 just to name a few.
Things To Do
On Chumbe Island you can enjoy several nature trails be it during a guided tour or whether you want to explore the forest on your own. The coral reef sanctuary is home to more than 470 species which you can get a glimpse of during a guided snorkeling tour. Make sure to also visit the historical monuments such as the lighthouse and the mosque and pay a visit to the education and visitors centre to learn more about conservation.
Chumbe Island is situated 12km south-west of Zanzibar’s capital Stone Town and became the first financially self-sustainable Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the world officially declared in 1994. It is reachable via the Chumbe Island boat shuttle which goes to the island in the morning and back from the island in the afternoon each time to and from the peer of Protea Mbweni Ruins Hotel.