Quirimbas Archipelago, Mozambique

Quilalea - Reviews

The island is beautiful and we had a fantastic time.  The helicopter transfer makes it a lot of fun.  The room was great and the snorkelling was fantastic fun.  The reef was less than 5m from the shore!  The food was excellent but the included wine was poor compared to the safaris.  The main criticism here would be the cost of the extras.  The activities and spa treatments were very expensive.  For example, kayaking is free but guided kayaking was $25ppph.  For us that was $75ph for not very much in return. There is no way that reflects the real cost.    The Spa treatments were also hugely expensive (it would be cheaper in a 5 start London hotel).  Finally, we wanted to visit Ibo.  It was a 40 minute boat trip but we had to go by helicopter at $220 pp. for a 3 hour trip.  Whilst Ibo is interesting it is not really worth that sort of money.  Tipping was also a bit rich.  There was suggested tipping at $10-20 pppd for our “butler". Whilst the guy was charming he didn’t do very much.  He served breakfast, lunch and dinner and brought us pre-dinner drinks.  It seemed a bit excessive given what guides on safari do.  The suggested tipping for the remainder of the staff was also $10-20 pppd which looked pricey for a beach resort.  I accept that tips are important to supplement salary but I did wonder if the owners were upping the tipping guidance in order that they could get away with lower salaries.  It just felt a little bit more exploitative that the other hotels.

Vamizi - Reviews

Vamizi, impossible to leave. Absolutely incredible. recommend it highly enough. Staff, diving, food, accommodation all fantastic. We just want to go back.