Jumeirah Thanda Island
Nine bedrooms on an island inside a Tanzanian marine reserve, let to one party and to nothing else.
Thanda sits in the Shungi Mbili Island Marine Reserve off the Tanzanian coast, between Mafia Island and the mainland, reached by helicopter or boat. The island is a small one, ringed by sand and reef, and it holds a single villa with two bandas set apart from it. There is no village and no second property. The reserve status around it restricts fishing and traffic, so the water is protected as well as empty.
The island is let whole, never by the room, to a party of up to eighteen across nine bedrooms. It is all-inclusive: chef, butlers, dive and water-sports team, boats and the spa are part of the island rather than extras. Jumeirah took over management from the previous independent operation, and the island now trades under the Jumeirah name — the earlier entry is held separately in this register.
Whale sharks off Mafia. From roughly October to March the aggregation off Mafia Island is one of the most reliable in the Indian Ocean, and the island's own boats reach it.
A house, run as a hotel. Nine bedrooms is a family-reunion scale, and the island is staffed and provisioned to hotel standard rather than as a villa rental — a rare combination on the East African coast.
Who it is not for
Eighteen guests fill this island, so it is the wrong choice for a couple, who will be paying for eight empty bedrooms. It is wrong for travellers who want to come and go — the island is genuinely remote and each excursion is a boat or helicopter movement. And it is wrong for guests expecting a resort's range of restaurants and bars; there is one kitchen. Couples wanting Indian Ocean water at their own scale should look at Mnemba or Cousine.
Sources
- jumeirah.com — Thanda Island, five suites and two bandas, up to 18 guests
- Predecessor entry: Thanda Island (Historic). Relationship: Former Name.
Booking
Private Island Resorts arranges each stay on request, quoting the rates available for the island and dates. No benefit should be assumed unless it is confirmed in writing for the individual reservation.
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