The two-storey thatched villa and pool at first light, warm glow behind the palms, lit doorways.

JUA BOUTIQUE HOTEL · JAMBIANI · ZANZIBAR

One day in the sun.

Jua means sun in Swahili. Here it rises out of the sea, right in front of your room. A beachfront hotel on the sand in Jambiani, Zanzibar. Rooms from $90 a night, breakfast included.

WhatsApp us See the rooms

First light over the pool garden

07:00THE TERRACE

The morning arrives by sea.

Wake above the sand, carry your coffee out to the terrace, and let the first warm hour happen to you. All the rooms look straight at the water; the black steel spiral winds up to the floor above.

Breakfast included, every room, every day

The room block in morning light: black steel spiral staircase, balcony doors open to a bed. — The room block and the spiral stair

12:00THE POOL

Jua at its highest.

Noon offers you two waters. The pool sits in its own private garden, loungers under the thatch umbrellas; the ocean runs the whole length of the sand. Pick by the hour, swap when you like.

The pool at noon under full sun, the villa behind it, hard shadows and a clear sky.

POOL
BEACHFRONT
A/C
WIFI
GUEST KITCHEN
AIRPORT TRANSFER
SNORKELLING TRIPS

Noon in the pool garden

Three rattan swings hanging from the thatch of the beach bar, sand below, a clear afternoon sky. — The swings at the beach bar

15:30THE BEACH

Sand first, village second, reef third.

The beach starts where the garden ends, and Jambiani keeps it company. Walk the village one way, the open sand the other. The reef stands offshore; the hotel arranges the trip out.

Jambiani, southeast coast of Zanzibar
Directly on the sand
Reef trips by arrangement
Village walks

The tide here is big. It walks the sea out across the flats in the morning and brings it back in the afternoon, so the beach changes shape twice a day. The pool is always full.

THE WIND

The afternoon belongs to the kites.

Starfish Kite School stands on the sand a short walk from the hotel, and by early afternoon the trade wind is up and the sky above the beach fills with colour. Lessons for people who have never flown a kite, gear and storage for people who arrive with their own.

Kite lessons for beginners
Board and kite hire
Best wind from midday
Steps from the hotel

The Starfish Kite School hut on stilts, thatched and two storeys high, its painted sign over the steps and two bicycles parked in the white sand below. — Starfish Kite School on Jambiani beach

A Starfish Kite School feather flag standing in the wind, the hut and the board rack behind it, bamboo sunbeds on the open sand. — Starfish Kite School on Jambiani beach

By late afternoon the whole coast is working in Jua's colours.

18:28THE BAR

Down behind the palms, right on time.

The beach bar in service: the chef carrying a pizza past the lit domed oven, drinks and plates along the counter, string lights above.

The bar

The bar sits down on the sand, and sundown is its hour. Order something cold, let the domed oven send out warm bread, and give the sky your full attention.

The bar at sundown

19:30THE TABLE

Lanterns take over from the sky.

The open-sided restaurant at dusk: pyramid thatch roof, tables set, hanging lanterns lit, sand in front.

Dinner is served under the tall thatch pavilion, open on every side, lanterns doing the light, the water close enough to hear. The evenings will run their own programme: