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When visiting a place as culturally rich as Zanzibar’s Stone Town, it’s tempting to go full-tourist and opt to stay at one of the Tanzanian island’s many “heritage” hotels. This alley-packed city was once home to Omani and Yemeni traders who swapped spices, silks and slaves with their Swahili counterparts on the Tanzanian mainland just 22km away. Stone Town is brimful of Islamic, Persian and African influences which means it’s a fabulous place for food, furniture and fabric, but it can also be a bit too overstimulating for an enthusiastic hotel interior designer.

In a place such as Stone Town, hotels which try to cover every ethnic design base can feel suffocating to the hot and harried traveller, especially in a place where the average temperature is in the mid-thirties. In many hotels, walls are bright and bold, there are porticos aplenty and rooms have been stuffed with a range of heavy, ornate furniture. After a day treading the hot alleyways bartering for Maasai material and Tanzanite gems one can feel a bit less “hakuna matata” and a bit more “please can I lie down in a cool, quiet room?”

Enter, then, the Neela Boutique Hotel which opened its beautifully carved doors in late 2023. Set a couple of alleyways back from the main road that leads to the famous Old Fort, the Neela offers a refreshing, welcoming break from the streets outside. The four-storey building, once home to a prolific spice trader, has been lovingly restored by Steve and Raju Shaulis and furnished by renowned interior designer Nelly Levin. Walls are white, the décor a gentle mix of old and new. There are soft furnishings sourced from France sitting side by side with tribal fabrics; local wood and stone have been crafted into modern pieces that provide form and function. In an age when hotel rooms are packed with gadgets and gizmos and far too many light switches, the Neela is a study in less is more: nothing in its 14 hotel rooms is without purpose, and they look fabulous, too.

The Neela’s rooms provide a tranquil haven from Stone Town’s bustle, but if you’re looking for something a bit more lively there’s also its Views rooftop restaurant and bar; it’s the ideal place to enjoy the fresh evening breeze and take in the sounds of the call to prayer and coconut-sellers announcing their wares on the streets below. With a view out to sea over the city’s white limestone buildings with their terracotta-tiled roofs, this is also a great place to eat. The hotel’s excellent Breadfruit restaurant services the rooftop dining, and here you can sample fresh seafood and delicious desserts: a simple steamed nduaro fish with shiro dashi is the perfect precursor to a cardamon-spiced crème caramel.

In line with its “there is beauty in simplicity” USP, the Neela’s walls have not been overcomplicated by challenging artwork. Instead, huge canvasses made from upcycled dhow sailcloths take their place quietly along the corridors and courtyards. Although unobtrusive, the paintings – made by Kenyan art collective Ali Lamu – do deserve a second glance. One canvas particularly caught our attention: “When you start to feel claustrophobic from the stress of human company, the barbaric wire fence, the concrete jungle,” it says, “close your eyes and see this... An elephant walking across the wide open plain of Africa... And you will feel better, lighter, stronger.”
Better, lighter, stronger – exactly how you feel after a stay at the Neela.

Rooms from $340 per night. The Neela Boutique Hotel, House No. 67 Shangani, Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania.
Call: +255 777 603 559.
Email: res@neelacollection.com
IG: @theneelacollection

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