Sunshine Marine Lodge

Sunshine Marine Lodge is made for divers, couples, families and anyone who prefers a quieter base away from the busier parts of the island. You stay above the coast, with nature around you and the choice of three different settings within the Sunshine Group: the lodge itself, Sunshine Azure Zanzibar Beach Hotel and Sunshine Bay Zanzibar – Adults Only.

A complimentary shuttle links the three properties in about 7 to 10 minutes, so you can change the scenery without changing your base. One day may call for the elevated calm of the lodge, another for the beach, and another for the adults-only atmosphere at Sunshine Bay. It is a useful arrangement when one person wants to slow down and the other still has some exploring to do.

English is spoken by the hotel team, alongside French, German, Italian, Polish, Dutch and Swahili. That makes the first practical conversation—arrival time, dinner, a trip or a massage—mercifully straightforward.

You are in Matemwe, in the Muyuni area of Zanzibar, on the island’s north-east coast. The lodge sits by the sea in an elevated position rather than directly on a broad sweep of sand, which is where the complimentary shuttle earns its keep.

Sunshine Bay’s white-sand beach is reached by minibus, with blue water and tropical vegetation along the coast. Muyuni Beach is about 1.5 miles away on foot, while Matemwe Beach is roughly 2.4 miles away on foot. Several restaurants around Matemwe are about 3.8 to 4 miles away on foot, so the lodge works best when you are happy to eat and spend most evenings on site.

Abeid Amani Karume International Airport is about 34 miles away by road, with a journey of roughly 1 hour and 9 minutes by car. An airport shuttle is available on request.

The room choice is chiefly about what you want to see when you open the door. The Ocean Front Suite is the obvious couple’s pick if the sea matters more than garden greenery, while a garden-view suite gives you a more sheltered outlook. For a family group, the Family Suite with Garden View gives everyone a little more room to spread out without turning the stay into a logistical exercise.

Air conditioning and a fan cover the practical side of tropical nights. A mosquito net is there for the moments when you would rather hear the night than run the cooling all evening, and the refrigerator is useful for keeping water cold when you return warm, salty and ready for very little conversation. A kettle, tea and coffee facilities, a seating area and a desk make the room workable for both a slow morning and a brief bit of admin.

Private entrances, terraces or patios and outdoor furniture give you somewhere to sit beyond the bed. Daily housekeeping keeps the room in order, while a wardrobe, clothes rack and private bathroom with shower or bath deal with the less glamorous but necessary parts of a diving holiday.

The restaurant works with fusion cooking, local ingredients and international dishes, but the useful detail is what reaches the plate: tuna, marlin, lobster, calamari and octopus from the ocean, together with fruit and vegetables sourced from the village. Zanzibar’s spices do the heavy lifting, with cloves, ginger, cumin, cardamom and cinnamon giving the food a clear Swahili direction.

Breakfast is included and served as a buffet, with continental, vegetarian, vegan, halal and gluten-free choices. That gives you a decent range before a morning on the water, particularly if the table needs to work for more than one appetite.

There is one bar for the drink after dinner or the pause between meals. Packed lunches are available, and special-diet menus can be arranged on request. The dine-around arrangement also lets you use the sister properties, with the complimentary shuttle making a change of table less of a production than it might sound.

Three outdoor swimming pools give you an easy way to spend an hour without committing to another excursion. Add a sun terrace, garden, patio and shared lounge, and you have several places to settle with a book, a drink or the sort of conversation that only starts once the dive log is closed.

The spa offers massage, including full-body, back, neck and foot treatments, as well as body scrubs, manicures, pedicures, waxing and other beauty services. Yoga sessions take place in the tropical surroundings, which should appeal if your idea of exercise after diving involves stretching rather than anything involving a stopwatch.

For a little more movement, you can hire bicycles, join bike tours, take part in a local-culture tour or book a walking tour. Snorkelling and boat excursions are also available, including trips towards Mnemba Atoll. The Curio Shop, board games and puzzles cover the gaps when the weather, the tide or your legs have other ideas.

Check-in runs from 12:00 to 22:00 and check-out from 09:00 to 10:00. You need to give the lodge your expected arrival time in advance, and a photo ID and credit card are required at check-in. The minimum age for check-in is 18, while children of all ages are welcome when staying with a parent or official guardian.

The complimentary shuttle to the sister properties takes around 7 to 10 minutes and is useful for reaching Sunshine Bay or changing the atmosphere for dinner. An airport shuttle is available on request. Free Wi-Fi covers the hotel, although the room is the more sensible place to keep your phone once the day’s plans are settled.

Free private parking is available on site, with reservation required. Luggage storage, a tour desk, daily housekeeping, laundry and ironing services are available, and the lodge also provides a safe. Early check-in and late check-out can be requested.