On Location Feb 07 – Mozambique
Author: Kieran Murphy
I was lucky enough to visit Northern Mozambique in January for the third time in three years. This area is really beginning to open up to tourism and now is certainly the time to go, as it is a rapidly changing area, although luckily the building of hotels and lodges is being done in quite a contolled way. The Quirimbas have approximately 27 islands, of which 5 have accommodation on them. There is also one safari lodge in Northern Mozambique in the Niassa Reserve, called Lugenda Bush Camp, but this is only open from May to November, so I was unable to visit it.
The weather in January was boiling hot and sunny for the 10 days that I was there and I had two short rain showers. It was also incredibly windy but to be honest without the wind it would almost have been too hot. Interestingly though it did cool down once the sun had gone down in the evenings.
Quilalea
I returned to Quilalea Island for my third visit. Quilalea was one of the first islands to build a luxury lodge in the Quirimbas. It is owned by John and Marjolaine who live nearby in Pemba and visit the island on a regular basis. To get there it is a 15 minute helicopter ride from Pemba, which is a fantastic way to arrive as you are flown over turquiose waters studded with pristine islands with white sandy beaches, with local fishermen out in their dhows. The island has 9 villas. My favourite room is no 9 as it offers the most amount of privacy. The manager Ernst is from South Africa (Ex Aman Bhutan) and is young but charming, professional and friendly. Quilalea offers various activities including snorkelling, canoeing, fly fishing, dhow trips, deep sea fishing, island walks, historical tours to Ibo Island also has a new boat called Kiraku, which is a catamaran, which sleeps 2 comfortably or can be used for ½ day and day charters. For people wishing to sleep on it I would advise experienced sailors.
The dive centre is extremely well run with good equipment although sadly the visibility was poor on the dive that I went on due to the winds but I have had some great diving on previous visits.
Quilalea has its own time and is an hour ahead of the mainland
Medjumbe
To get to Medjumbe is a 40 minute flight from Pemba in the big plane (12 seater) or 45-60 minutes in a small plane.
There are 13 rooms, 1-8 on one side of the main area and 9-14 (there is no room 13) on the other side by the runway. The rooms are all exactly the same. The rooms are wooden with thatch roofs and are exactly the same as the rooms at Matemo apart from the fact that they will have plunge pools at Medjumbe. The rooms have air-con, fans tv's minibars, telephones, hairdryers, so more for guests who need all the mod cons.
The manager Tony who is a South African was very friendly.
Lindy is the dive instructor and is excellent. The dive school is a small shack, although the diving was superb with unbelievably beautiful coral. The food was more European with a wide choice, such as lasagnes, burgers, lobster, steak, piri piri chicken etc.
Ibo Island
To get there is a 30 minute flight from Pemba.
There are currently 9 rooms with 5 more opening next year.. The new rooms can also be rented as a separate villa. Out of the 9 rooms there is 1 room in the main building, 4 rooms in the main building next door and then 4 garden rooms.
The main staff are all Zimbabweans and are charming, although the locals were being taught English and trained.
I was taken on the most fascinating historical tour of Ibo which lasted about 1 ½ - 2 hours. We were also taken to see the silver smith who makes very intricate jewellery.
I also went on a boat trip through the mangrove swamps (looking for crocodiles and saw lots of lovely birds) and we stopped off at a local fishing village. Another great activity was going kayaking through the Mangroves and then back along the edge of Ibo and the historical buildings. I was also taken out to the sand bank with drinks, an umbrella and snorkelling kit, where I snorkelled and saw stunning star fish.
Other activities on offer are nature and bird walks, snorkelling excursions, sunset dhow cruise (when the dhow is finished), trips to Quirimbas Island, (which is next door to Quilalea), private lunch on Mogundula Island (owned by Ibo Lodge) diving and fly fishing will be on offer later on in the year.
The food was fairly good, with fresh seafood and this was either served in the garden for lunch and then on the rood terrace for dinner, which has wonderful views.
Guludo
I popped into Guludo for lunch and a quick site inspection. I was taken by boat from Ibo which took around 45 minutes and then a long walk up the beach as the tide was out. For guests, they can fly to Matemo and then go by boat, which is 15 minutes or go by road from Pemba which is 3 hours and not a great road.
Unfortunately Amy one of the owners was unwell with Malaria, Neil her partner showed me around. They have 9 rooms which are all the same and face the beach. There are 3 guest rooms on one side of the main area and 6 on the other side. The tents are actually made of mosquito netting with a thatch roof.
They are also putting in a Lamu tower with a bar and library.
Londo
This is owned and run by a Dutch couple, PJ and Eveline and their 2 little girls. It is a 15 minute boat ride away from Pemba and they can take you there in the dark if necessary. Londo is situated almost opposite Pemba but tucked away around a corner, so it is very private. It is on the mainland but as you get there by boat and as it is in a remote area, you almost feel like you are on an island.
Londo currently has six rooms but are planning on building more. The first will be the bush room which will be built around a baobab tree.
The rooms are beautifully decorated and spacious with lovely views.
Activities include:
Mangrove boat tour, village visit-you can walk there from Londo, dhow cruise, diving, they are Padi registered, water-skiing, doughnuting, massage, facials, fishing, snorkelling, dolphin watching, whale watching (Aug, Sept, Oct), bush walk with a surprise breakfast on the beach.
Mobiles work and there is internet access on request.
The food is fantastic. Eveline who worked as a chef in a restaurant in Spain for 5 years currently does the cooking. One day for lunch we had amazing Sushi. There are also various different areas to eat.
Vamizi
To get to Vamizi is a 50 minute flight in the extremely smart and brand new Vamizi plane, which seats about 10/12. Alternatively you can charter from Dar, at quite an expense.
The rooms are well spaced out which means privacy but quite a long walk if you are at the end. All the rooms are the same apart from the family room which is interconnecting. The beach is long, white and sandy with clear turquoise waters.
There is a dining room, small sunset bar, big main lounge, office and dive hut.
There is no shop and no spa. The waiters mostly from Maputo are all charming.
Activities include:
Snorkelling, diving which is incredible with amazing fish life and I dived with grey reef sharks. I was also lucky enough to watch a turtle lay her eggs and went fishing and caught several barracuda.
I also popped into Matemo and Pemba Beach Hotel very briefly. They are very resorty but would be perfect for families.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/destinations-articles/on-location-feb-07-mozambique-1205632.html
About the Author:
Discovery Initiatives are experienced providers of tiger safari holidays and antarctic cruises. Visit http://www.discoveryinitiatives.co.uk to find out more.
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Matemo Island Resort Off Mozambique Could Become One Of The Most Popular African Island Vacations
Author: Peter R Stewart
Elegant small beach hotels are a rarity in Mozambique, but the Matemo Island Resort which is situated off the Northern Mozambique coast is set to become one of the most popular African island vacations.
Getting there isn't difficult, you fly into Pemba, and then take a light aircraft to Matemo.
You really do feel you are off the beaten track here, especially as this is a new resort, with absolutely pristine beaches, and a place to really do nothing but recover from a safari.
In terms of what it's like, there are 24 rooms, on an island that is 8km long, and 3km wide, and whilst it doesn't have the sophistication of the Maldives[yet], it does have the huge advantage that you can stay for a week, and not walk round it easily!!
Matemo is one of the great romantic affordable honeymoon ideas, it's unspoilt, unexplored, a paradise with miles of beautiful white sand beaches.
In fact my first view of Matemo resort was at the end of a fascinating drive through genuine villages of mud huts, of people carrying on their lives as their ancestors had done for generations, when suddenly we saw the sweeping arch of the entrance my eyes were drawn to a crescent shaped beach with water the color of which made the photographs look ordinary. The colors never go away with Zanzibari day beds piled high with brightly colored cushions, and although I had experienced them before on Zanzibar, somehow they seemed more vivid here.
The 24 villas are all on a private beach with Persian Rugs and four poster beds, opening onto a private porch with its own hammock.It's the colors that dominate, the blues, turquoises, white sand, it's almost too much. To be able to shower in the outdoor shower with this kind of a view is unsurpassable.
If you want to fish, then you can't go wrong, if you want to scuba dive or snorkel you can do it virtually from the beach. If you like seafood, then you are going to love the restaurant.
There are only two drawbacks, and the first is that you are going to have to totally relax and unwind because the pleasures of 21st century mainland resorts are not for here, and secondly at some point you are going to have to leave!!
Go now before Matemo inevitably becomes one of the most popular Africa island vacations spots.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/matemo-island-resort-off-mozambique-could-become-one-of-the-most-popular-african-island-vacations-116717.html
About the Author:
Peter Stewart writes for http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com, where you will find lots of articles about vacation destinations you knew nothing about before
Dream Fishing Vacation Packages At Vamizi Lodge Maluane Island Quirimba Mozambique
Dream Fishing Vacation Packages At Vamizi Lodge Maluane Island Quirimba Mozambique
Author: Peter R Stewart
Almost by accident I found one of my dream fishing vacation packages at Vamizi Island Lodge, on Maluane Island in the Quirimba Archipeligo Mozambique. I also found out this is an Eco Lodge adventure vacation, but it is my idea of a romantic affordable honeymoon idea, as many of the other guests were honeymooners.
One or two of them just love the idea of remote island vacations, and in fact this is almost one of the ideal honeymoon destinations for warm weather during the winter.
So how did I come to get there in the first place?
I never take the Guardian newspaper, but because my normal paper was unavailable one Saturday last year I bought the Guardian, and I read about this Eco Lodge adventure vacation, went online, looked at some photos, read the descriptions, and just thought that Vamizi Island resort would be perfect as a remote island vacations.
This was how I came to discover Vamizi, and then some months later, landing in Dar es Salaam, going round the corner to the 'local' airport, and finding ourselves in a totally different world, the world of Africa. We flew to Pemba, and then on in a smaller plane to Vamizi. My wife who is terrified of flying, found small local African airlines almost too much, but the views did a little to compensate for over two hours flight time.
All was quickly forgotten the moment we entered the lodge, and we knew that this was somewhere very special.
Everybody turned out to greet us, all immaculately dressed in white jackets.
Our very private lodge, one of I believe 10, but the maximum number of guests is 24. Everything has be designed not to damage the environment, plus the fact that all the materials used are sourced locally which is good for the economy.
If you think that means in any way shape or form that the lodges are cheap, then I can tell you, they are luxurious with a large living room, spectacular bathroom, and cool verandah. The walls in the sower are a huge slab of marble, the beds are 4 poster king size, with muslin mosquito nets.
The living room and the verandah have huge chairs and sofas with masses of brightly coloured cushions.
We had a totally private and direct access to the beach of talcum powder white sand.
Anyway I went deep sea fishing, and caught a big fish, don't ask me what it was, but it was so exciting, I'm hooked!!
This is why it became my dream fishing package, because whenever I go on vacation again, there just has to be deep sea fishing.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/dream-fishing-vacation-packages-at-vamizi-lodge-maluane-island-quirimba-mozambique-116729.html
About the Author:
Peter Stewart writes for http://www.worldwidevacationspots.com, where you will find lots of articles about vacation destinations you knew nothing about before
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