Elewana Kilindi Zanzibar

Nestled in colourful tropical gardens are Kilindi’s 15 gorgeous Pavilion Suites, the ideal tranquil retreat to make home during your stay. With included features like extraordinary ‘rainfall’ showers and glassless windows to let in the sea breeze, these suites have been designed to help you feel at one with nature. Each Pavilion Suite is furnished with a large double bed, a lounge area, desk, minibar and safe, and is adjoined by an en suite bathroom, entered by an Arabic-style arch. Outside are shaded seating areas, terrace and a private waterfall plunge pool.

With such an experienced chef’s team, the food at Kilindi is of an outstandingly high quality. They grow as much of their own food as possible and otherwise source locally. Chefs will also go that extra mile to personalise your dining experience by tailoring their menus to match your preferences. At breakfast there is a continental spread including pastries, fruit platters and cold meats, and a selection of hot cooked dishes available such as a full English breakfast and coconut French toast with honey-glazed bacon. Lunches are often in a meze style with a variety of lighter tapas dishes to choose from. The menus for dinner change every day so there is always something new and exciting to try. Dinners are also more formal and served in three courses.

With the shimmering waters of the Indian Ocean at your fingertips you need look no further to dive right in to some aqua activities! Paddleboards and kayaks are available to explore the waters around the island, feeling the breeze on your face and the waves beneath you. Diving and snorkelling excursions can be arranged so you can experience the colourful shallow reefs around Tumbatu island up close. Then of course you’ll have your very own plunge pool as well as the shallow shoreline waters for lots of swimming or simply cooling off.

In a secluded corner of Kilindi’s gardens is their luxury spa. This beautiful serene setting is the perfect place to enjoy their range of natural treatments. Their skincare products have been developed to heal and rejuvenate your skin and to protect it against further damage. A great range of spa treatments are available as well as entirely custom made treatments to ensure you get exactly what you need from your well-earned bit of pampering.

Embark on a cultural tour to the historic Stone Town, where you can learn about the rich cultural heritage of Zanzibar. Highlights of the tour include – the city market, the Sultan’s Palace Museum, the old fortifications built to defend against the Portuguese and the old Anglican church.

Cruise on a traditional Zanzibari dhow to the beautiful Minai Bay Conservation Area. You’ll have a great chance to see the dolphins and go snorkelling around one of the coral reefs. The trip also includes a seafood barbecue served right on deck!

Step aboard a wooden dhow for a romantic cruise along the coast of north-west Zanzibar. In the golden glaze of the late afternoon you can take a swim in the ocean alongside the marine life of the Kendwa reef then relax and watch the sunset.

This tour offers the unique chance to visit a Zanzibari spice farm and see why travellers came from across the world to sample the spice the island had to offer.

Being in the north of Zanzibar means you’ll be close to some of the best deep sea fishing waters in all Africa. Choose from one of the 3 deep sea fishing boats, equipped with the latest technology and to the highest standards of safety. It’s encouraged that fish are released back into the ocean after they’ve been caught.

Elewana is a steadfast partner and supporter of the Land and Life Foundation, a charity committed to supporting local people and preserving wildlife and their habitats. Because Elewana covers 100% of their operational costs, all donations can go straight towards their amazing projects. The Foundation focuses on 4 types of programs to achieve its goals: the Wildlife Warrior Program, nature conservation, medical support and education support.

The Wildlife Warriors Program was designed for the purposes of sharing conservational knowledge between generations, encouraging innovative thinking and proactivity in wildlife conservation. It’s the ultimate aim to take the most talented children through to tertiary levels of education so they can become the top conservationists of the next generation. Across Tanzania and Kenya there are already over 2000 children as part of this program, and around 40 have been awarded scholarships that will take them all the way through their primary and secondary education.

Elewana is committed to its responsibility of nature conservation, with focus on protecting areas that fall outside of national parks and reserves. The Land and Life Foundation is working on a large scale project to mitigate conflict between human and elephant populations – elephants will often leave protected reserves and raid the crops of nearby villages, which in turn causes retaliation from the farmers who are losing their livelihoods. For this reason there are programs designed to negate these hostilities by protecting farming lands and providing safe deterrents to ward away the elephants without harming them before they can damage crops.

The Land and Life Foundation works to ensure local communities, such as in Laikipia and the Maasai Mara, have access to quality healthcare. They have been supporting the Aitong Health Centre in the Maasai Mara for 8 years through providing medical supplies and hold free clinics, and in 2018 they partnered with Ewaso Dispensary in Laikipia. So far, 4,520 patients have been treated free of charge and donated vast sums of medical treatments/equipment including:

• Antibiotics, antihistamines and multivitamins
• Hormonal contraceptives and pregnancy tests
• Blood pressure machines and cuffs
• Syringes and needles
• Oxygen pumps and gauges
• First-aid kits

Land and Life Foundation supports a number of schools in key conservation areas across Tanzania and Kenya as they understand the need of ensuring that communities in these areas can actively benefit from tourism. For example, Elsa’s Kopje Meru is nearby to Ura Gate Primary School, one of the schools supported by Elewana and the Foundation. Currently there are 385 children and 15 teachers. Fundraising has helped the school’s infrastructure to support this student population through developing 12 permanent classrooms, a dining hall and kitchen, a toilet block, a computer room and 3 houses for teachers.

Elewana has banned plastic bottles at their camps and lodges and provides each new guest with a reusable aluminium bottle that can be filled up at the properties.

‘Historically, when reusable bottles were introduced to six of Elewana’s camps in Kenya, this was shown to prevent over 160’000 non-biodegradable plastic bottles a year from ending up in landfills. At the beginning of 2019, we were the first in East Africa to eliminate the use of plastic straws. We now offer biodegradable paper straws and encourage guests to go to ‘War with the straw’.’

Elewana’s camps and lodges also employ recycling systems to reduce waste. For instance, glass is sent to the Shanga workshop in Arusha, where disadvantaged Tanzanians are able to use the glass for creating artwork and jewellery.