Chapwani is a small hotel on a private island surrounded by white sandy beaches only ten minutes away by boat from the capital Stone Town.

NUMBER OF ROOMS & DESCRIPTION:
There are five bandas (thatched bungalows) each with two en-suite rooms, making a total of ten rooms.  Inside you’ll find a large double bed – the traditional Zanzibari four-poster with a mosquito net draped over it – whose plump pillows are adorned with a freshly-plucked hibiscus flower. There’s a small table and chair, a ceiling fan, a picture or two, and not much else. There’s just enough space for a cot or an extra bed. At the back is a bathroom with basin, shelves and an open-plan shower; and a separate toilet.  All in all it’s a simple, practical, comfy beach room. Outside is a wooden terrace with deckchairs, and just beyond that a thatch parasol with your own sunloungers. The sea is so close that at very high tides it practically laps at your terrace.

RESTAURANTS & BAR:
Also has a restaurant and a bar. 

OTHER FACILITIES & SERVICES:
Swim and sunbathe on the beach.  Borrow a canoe and paddle around the island.  Spot dik-dik (miniature antelopes) and, hanging from the trees while they sleep, a colony of fruit bats.  Look out for birds, including a pair of fish eagles and frequently-passing waders.  Visit the graveyard of the English sailors who were killed on HMS Pegasus at the start of WW1.  Take the hotel’s boat into Stone Town (there’s a free outward shuttle in the morning and return in the afternoon) to go sightseeing, shopping, or visiting the spice gardens.  Go diving with One Ocean dive center in Stone Town - $80 for a day trip with double dive and lunch.  Take a boat trip to the adjacent islands of Bat and Changuu (Prison); you’ll probably be alone on these wooded, rocky islands unless some day trippers from Stone Town arrive.