Search
Navigate here :Home > Accommodation > Resorts, ZN > Manta Resort - Pemba, Zanzibar
Search Accommodation
To search the database for the type of accommodation that exactly matches your requirements, use the boxes below.
Select Destination
Accommodation Category
Accommodation Activity
advanced search
Manta Resort - Pemba, Zanzibar

Manta Reef Lodge is an Indian Island retreat on the island of Pemba, Zanzibar. Overlooking a beautiful beach, home to birds, monkeys and bushbabies, the lodge appeals to sea safari fans, divers, honeymooners, fisherman, and beach lovers alike. Relaxed and friendly, the lodge overlooks the Manta Reef, which is in East Africa’s famous Pemba Channel, one of the world’s premiere dive sites. The hotel is also immediately adjacent to the Ngezi Forest, home to numerous species that are endemic to Pemba. Ideally situated, the lodge lies between the island’s best beaches, Ras Kigomasa and Vumawimbi.Offering 14 beach bungalows, (maximum 30 guests) the lodge provides an intimate family atmosphere. Manta Reef Lodge offers its own restaurant, bar, TV lounge and water sports centre.

Location

The Manta Reef Lodge is located on Pemba, which is the second largest island in the Zanzibar archipelago. The ‘spice isles’, which are part of Tanzania, are one of East Africa’s most famous Indian Ocean beach resort destinations. The Manta Reef Lodge is situated on the Ras Kigomasha peninsula, just north of the Ngezi forest, and reached from either Chake Chake airport or Mkoani Port by taxi.
The island is also accessible via the mainland by boats from Tanga in Tanzania and Shimoni in Kenya through the port of Wete.The best way to visit Pemba is with the scheduled charter flights. They are available daily mornings and afternoons. Pemba is accessed via most airports in East Africa via Zanzibar or Dar es Salaam. The island can also be accessed with direct local flights with several charter airlines that operate smaller aircrafts.
It is also possible to reach the islands by ferry, which operates three times a week between Zanzibar and Pemba (departing 10pm and arriving 6am).

There are daily air connections between Zanzibar (Stone Town) and Dar es Salaam, Pemba and Arusha as well as to the Selous Game Reserve and the northern parks of Tanzania, East Africa.

There are also regular Tanzania flights to Mombasa and Nairobi; and a ferry service, which links Zanzibar (Stone Town), Dar es Salaam and Pemba. Dhows also link the beach resort with Dar es Salaam, Tanga, Bagamoyou and Mombasa

Accommodation at Manta Reef Lodge

There are 14 bungalows, all of which overlook the ocean. The sea front bungalows are perched on timber platforms, directly open to the ocean. Each 50sqm bungalow has traditional Zanzibar beds with mosquito net drapes, a verandah couch and an ensuite bathroom. There are 10 sea front bungalows, two honeymoon bungalows and two family cottages (two bedrooms).

Dining and bars

The Manta Reef Lodge offers its own dining room and lounge bar, which is accommodated in a thatched building overlooking the Pemba channel. The Manta Reef Lodge menu will typically include a wide selection of East Africa, Tanzania and Swahili dishes as well as numerous international choices.

Conference and event facilities

The hotel does not offer specific conference facilities but will be happy to quote for small meetings and social gatherings. Tanzania incentives can also be arranged in Stone Town or the surrounding Tanzania beach resort venues.

Weddings and honeymoons

This ideal combination of hotel and beach resort makes an ideal Tanzania wedding destination. The hotel also offers two honeymoon suites.

Child-friendly facilities

The hotel welcomes children and will be pleased to supply additional beds.

Activities and recreation

Games include badminton, table tennis, football (with the local teams on certain days), beach volleyball, boule (bocce), bao, backgammon, chess, drafts, scrabble, trivial pursuit, plays and cards
- Video, television and an extensive music collection
- Make use of our excellent library of technical books on marine life, birds, butterflies, animals, plants, references on all aspects of Africa, as well as novels and a range of sports and fashion magazines
A unique diving spot in the world ...Pemba Island and its reefs are known as the best diving in Eastern Africa. The fortunate few divers who visit confirm that Pemba has some of the richest reefs in the World, with an unparalleled variety of hard and soft corals and diversity of tropical fish. The hotel also offers canoes and hand-line fishing equipment.

Bird-watching on foot (especially on the Ngezi Forest nature trail and Makangale swamp, early mornings and late afternoons at dusk). Bird-watching is excellent and there are certain species that are only endemic to Pemba. Amongst residents at the lodge are falcons, hornbills, green parrots and the famous flying fox which feast at night on a large fig tree in front of the bungalows.

Nature walks from Ngezi Forest through the farms and ending at the lighthouse north of the lodge. The Ngezi forest, a 15 minute drive, is home to several endemic birds, unique world wide to just Pemba including the Scops Owl, which can be visited at night and day.

Road safaris to tour the island and visit beaches, villages, rubber tree and clove plantations

Mountain bikes (for seeing some of the island in an energetic manner!)
The Fugoni sand banks, just north of the lodge is a paradise for beach walks on Sand dunes that disappear and reappear with the tides every day, full of birds, crabs and shells.

Diving
There are a large variety of dive sites for beginners and experienced divers, from drift dives, to wall dives, shallow reefs to deep trenches.
The blue waters of the Pemba channel run from 2000meters to the beaches in a few hundred meters ensuring a year round supply of clean blue water for excellent visability. One Earth Diving offers great diving for advanced and novice divers in safety under professional instruction. We offer daily 2 tank dives and regular 3 tank days, with picnic lunches eaten on private remote beaches in between dives.
Clients are encouraged to bring their own dive computers if they plan to make multiple dives. Snorkeling is available at some of the dive sites as well, however this is tidally dependant. The best snorkeling trip is just north of the lodge near the sand banks on light house reef, and in the njao or Fundu gaps.
Adventure dives (night, wall, reef and drift dives) are regular features of an active diving programme. For groups we can also offer dive trips to the east coast of Pemba , diving from Kojani village in the kojani gap.  These dives are recommended for experienced divers as they often have strong currents, and diving is in large schools of pelagic fish.Trained diving assistants handle all equipment, help divers and check their equipment, carry tanks.

Deep sea fishing
We offer fishing safaris up and down the entire island. we can customize a fishing safari for you. Minimum 3 day charters are required to secure a big Game fishing boat from Manta reef Lodge. The boats are comfortably fitted out for cruising, and can accommodate between 4 and 6 four guests on different boats, depending on availability. All boats are equipped with toilet, galley, a fridge/freezer and shower. Most people have dreamed of cruising off tropical islands, at some point in their lives, and the calm waters of Pemba’s western coast offer just this chance. to catch all the game fish.
As the prime fishing grounds are on the Pemba side of the channel one can benefit considerably by basing oneself at the Lodge. We can be in the best water in a matter of minutes rather than hours, which translates into about 4 hours more fishing time in the best spots. Marlin have often been encountered within 1 mile of the shore with dog-tooth tuna, giant trevalley, kingfish, barracuda and wahoo all along the steep drop-offs. During the yellow fin tuna season the best fishing is almost always within a couple of miles of the Pemba coastline, making it an ideal base at this time of year.
The best fishing for giant trevalley, large wahoo, barracuda and narrow barred mackerels is along the Pemba drop-offs. Even in the billfish season of December through March the fishing is often best in close proximity to Pemba.

Sailing with local ngalawas, 1 - 2 hours island tours including beach picnics snorkelling
and diving

Boat excursions to villages to see traditional living and boat building (Mjia was ngombe village in Njao gap, Tumbe village)

Fishing boat charter (on request, minimum 3 days)

Reef fishing with small boats, half day and other options are available

Other Activies

Choices include water sports (swimming, snorkelling, sea kayaking, diving, kite-surfing, wind-surfing, sailing and more), and dhow trips (out of Stone Town and the Eastern Indian Ocean beach resort destinations). The hotel can also arrange cultural visits to fishing villages, dhow workshops and Tanzania artisans markets.

Cultural activities

The heart of Zanzibar, Stone Town is the only functioning historical city in East Africa and is much the same today as it was 200 years ago. A city within a city, Stone Town is the oldest section of Zanzibar Town, and is made up of winding lanes and unique stone houses, many of which feature magnificent carved doors and overhanging fretwork balconies. Places of cultural interest in Stone Town and around include: the Portuguese Fort, Sultan’s Palace, old Dhow Port, Old Slave Market, Zanzibar House of Wonders, Stone Town Old Dispensary, Livingstone’s House, slave caves/slave market, The Hamamni Bath, The National Museum of Zanzibar, The Chukwani Palace, Jozani Forest (the last sanctuary of the red colobus monkey in East Africa), Mtoni Palace and Maruhubi Palace ruins, and the Persian Baths of Kidichi.

The Spice Tour

Most hotels offer access to the Spice Tour, a tour of the spice-growing fields and orchards of East Africa’s most famous spice exporter, which lie just outside Stone Town. Typically lasting half a day, the tours usually end up with shopping for spices and oils, or a visit to the slave caves and beach resort options.

Jozani Forest Tour

The Jozani Forest Reserve is the last sanctuary in the world for the rare red colobus monkey, which is endemic to this East African island. 35 kms from Stone Town, the reserve is also home to other key East Africa species including Syke's monkeys, bush pigs and nocturnal Zanzibar leopards. Jozani has an excellent nature trail and the guides are well trained and informative.

Zanzibar
Region
Tours

Home|Contacts|Site Map|Links|Privacy Statement