Le Mersenne Zanzibar, Autograph Collection

Let me start by saying this review is not a reflection of the staff — they were consistently kind, helpful, and welcoming. This review is strictly about the property itself.

Le Mersenne is, unfortunately, overpriced for what it offers. At around $600 per night, the experience and quality do not match the cost.
-Water leaks into the rooms, which is unacceptable at this price point.
-The private pool and loungers overlook a bush, offering no view and very little sense of luxury.
-When we asked for towels to take on an excursion, we were told no. For a property charging this much per night, that kind of restriction feels unreasonable.
-We were also charged an additional fee for a third guest. While I understand this is common practice in East Africa, it still feels unfair given that breakfast isn’t included, and the third person spent additional money at the hotel on food, drinks, and spa services.

Overall, Le Mersenne simply doesn’t deliver the experience or value you’d expect for the price. The staff do their best, but the property itself needs serious improvement before it can justify its luxury rates.

Le Mersenne is truly a 5 star experience. The rooms are beautiful and comfortable. We stayed at a 1 bedroom villa, which exceeded our expectations. The staff were extremely friendly, and customer service was above and beyond. Best place for a relaxing vacation or a retreat.

Longtime Marriott Bonvoy members, we had our worst Autograph stay here. Both villas we booked weren’t ready by the 2:00 pm check-in, so we waited around. The “upgrade” to the presidential suite came with leaking bathrooms; while maintenance fixed the leak, the dirty water sat there until multiple calls finally brought housekeeping. This is far below Marriott standards. Our experience mirrors many reviews: maintenance/cleanliness issues, inconsistent service, overpriced mediocre food, and a rocky shoreline with limited beach access. For the price, there are far better properties in Zanzibar. We won’t return, and we don’t recommend it—simply not worth it.

Cada apartamento vila tem sua varando com piscina e visual para mar, além disso, dentro tem uma banheira com vista para a piscina. O quarto é muito confortável, a equipe mantém tudo bem limpo e organizado. A equipe é simpática e educada, sao maravilhosos. Agora, você nao consegue "pegar praia" na frente, pq tem as pedras e muitos ouriços. Então praticamente o nosso acesso ao mar era nos passeios, então isso limita muita quem gosta de praia. Mas tem uma linda piscina com visual para o mar lindo.

Beautiful looking resort. Best massage I’ve ever had. The ladies are very well trained masseuse! Worth every penny.
Every meal is served COLD!
The staff is very nice though.

Wonderful Experience at the hotel. Staff were great and pro-active, my room was perfect, spacious, clean and wonderful view. Ashley Christensen hotel manager very profissional, I saw him everywhere at the hotel area looking for all details to be perfect. Food was great

Quality resort with great pool area, bar, and activities available. We enjoyed our time here and there we have few complaints. The food amd drinks in the restaurant was average for the price tbh, but other than that everyone was happy to help out. The staff helped me organise a private dinner, and it was lovely. We'd stay again for sure.

I stayed at Le Mersenne with my wife for two nights. Our fondest memory was Chef Aggrey, he doted over us and made sure we were taken care of. Thank you Chef!

My husband and I stayed here for 4 days at the tail end of a 2-week trip. This was our final stop for rest and relaxation to contrast the long exciting days of safari early in the trip. I cannot stress enough how absolutely wonderful our stay was.

We had the full board package and stayed in an ocean view villa. The room was pretty, spacious, airy and appeared newly renovated. The website photos did not do it justice. We had a private terrace with outdoor pool and shower. Ocean view has beautiful sunrise views and morning sun. The terrace had shade in the afternoon which was perfect for a quiet nap or wind-down time.

The staff were all extremely friendly and helpful. They went out of their way to make our experience very enjoyable, comfortable and special. I’d particularly like to praise Florence, Betha, Grace, Cosmas, Olivo and Juma for their kindness, thoughtfulness and service. They’re each part of the food and beverage team, and having been on the full board package we had a lot of interaction with them at meal time and poolside. I’ve never met such a friendly and attentive team - thank you for playing a huge role in the enjoyment of our stay!

The main restaurant was buffet at breakfast (with an à la carte egg chef) and à la carte for lunch and dinner. The menu had plenty of options and enough variety to cater to every taste. Whether we wanted a burger and fries, a healthy wrap or salad, or an authentic Swahili plate, we were thoroughly impressed with everything we ordered. The fruit was always fresh and the bread was baked in-house daily. We also enjoyed the cocktail of the day specials, that had a unique Zanzibar twist to them.

The pool area was great for Lou hung, with plenty of options for full sun or shade. We never struggled to find a spot that suited our preference.

The beach is very impacted by high and low tides. Low tides exposes the coral - so these times were more suitable for nice walks. Medium tide was a better option for shallow swimming. The water was clear, warm and calm.

The water villas were under renovation during our stay but the construction was not disruptive.

The hotel offers a complimentary boat ride to a nearby sand bar daily. I highly recommend taking advantage of that. For a small fee, they will also take you snorkelling nearby (which we did) and it was a great opportunity to see lots of pretty fish.

Thanks again to the entire staff for making our stay magical - Asante sana! We definitely recommend this hotel for a luxury quiet couples stay!

Tranquility!

Thats it,that's all I can say😊
The staff were excellent, the facilities premium and the views unmatched.Waking up to such beauty every day for 4 days felt magical.

Fell ill on my 1st night (a stomach bug I'd picked before check-in, not hotel's fault) & the hotel had a driver rush me to the hospital,he had no obligation to stay yet he spent the entire night going back n forth the hotel to pick documents,and even checked in on me in the morning.Mr.Ali, we remain deeply grateful ☺️

My fave part,food! I specifically requested for local food and boy was i impressed. Olivo's recommendation was spot on,I still dream about the fish.Best local food I have had in a five star setting!Thank you to smiley Ruth, cosmic and Juma for your service as well.

Special gratitude & recognition to Mr.Godlisten and Mr.Emmanuel who went above and beyond! Thank you for your constant care,surprise cakes(I cried on one of these surprises) and checking in every other hour ensuring I was comfortable. You lived up to your given names 🙏.

To the reception lady (C? I forgot her name) thank to you and your dancing team for spreading the joy.

I found love at Le Mersenne, I will always be back to celebrate that anniversary.🙈

As a frequent traveler, this is probably the best vacation I've had in my entire life. The staff went above and beyond to make sure we were comfortable. We had a medical emergency and every member of the staff showed so much love and care that we felt at home.

A special thank you to Emmanuel, Ali, God Listen, and the entire kitchen and bar team; they made sure we were extra comfortable throughout our stay. They deserve a raise!

The rooms were also clean and beautiful. The room service was top-notch.

What I loved the most about my stay here is the hospitality. It didn't feel like a vacation; it felt like I was home away from home.

Every staff member cared so much about our well-being.

This place is magical, but the hospitality is on a level I've never experienced before.

I can't wait to return in January.

Truly a 5-star experience!!!

Great service

Negatives:

Music from a DJ blasting out all afternoon and evening stopping you hear the waves breaking over the reefs.

Sharp pool tiles that cause cuts.

Dreadful late night reception staff.

Dry cleaning service ruined clothes and didn't clean properly.

Some bedrooms smelt of mould.

Positives

Lovely staff.

Great views of the ocean.

Well equipped gym.

Modern hotel.

Useful $5 taxi service to local town in the evening arranged by hotel.

Most romantic place. Quiet,secluded and very well run resort . The staff catered to your every request -efficiently and promptly. Rooms tastefully decorated and maintained.
Dinners at the restaurant were well priced and nicely served
I would definitely come back here

The hotel is set on a cliff with a beautiful ocean view. The staff makes you feel right at home. They have villas with private pools and spacious rooms with ocean views (2nd floor) as first floor has a hedge that partially blocks it if sitting on patio chairs. One restaurant with breakfast buffet (only included if you get the rate that includes it). The rest of the day a la carte menu, night time they add a BBQ option in the upstairs. The bar is in a nice outdoor area overlooking the water. They also offer a daily trip to a sandbar (complimentary) and to a snorkeling area (Blue Lagoon) minutes away for a small fee with snorkeling gear included. There isn’t really a beach area with beach chairs, unless tide is low but still no beach chairs. When tide is low you can walk to other beach areas or get the hotel to take you for a small fee by car. Pool area is comfortable with beds and chairs with a nice view. There is a long dock leading to the jetty with an ocean view bar that only opens during high season. I totally recommend this hotel for a comfortable calm stay.

Decent resort for holiday break with good restaurants and food services ruled by a wise and well expert manager / Emanuel special regards and thanx for making orders more flexible and well tasted

We were really looking forward to our stay, but sadly the experience didn’t meet the expectations of a five-star resort.

First impressions weren’t great—the reception bathroom was unclean, had water all over the floor, and smelled unpleasant. The hand towels were worn out and ragged. On the positive side, we were offered a welcome drink during checking in. Communication with staff was a consistent issue throughout our stay, as most did not speak English well, leading to several misunderstandings and incorrect orders. Only one or two team members were able to assist us properly and give a five star experience.

Our room wasn’t much better. The bedding was old with some small tears, and some towels had even more glaring tears which was disappointing. The spa experience was also below par—spa beds malfunctioned during our session, and the equipment used for our pedicures appeared dirty and even rusty. The massages felt rushed and lacked the quality you'd expect from a 5-star facility.

Food-wise, the options were limited. There are only two restaurants on the property, and the selection was mediocre at best. We requested a packed breakfast for an excursion and received two slices of plain white bread, a boiled egg, and some fruit—definitely not five-star fare.

The resort markets itself as a beach property, but the beach is a small, man-made area. For a real beach experience, we had to leave the resort.

Another strange moment was receiving a phone call in our room after 9 PM just to ask what time we were checking out the next day—something that could’ve easily been handled earlier or the next morning. The staff interaction would range from exceptional to below par too often depending on who you came into contact with.

On a more positive note, there were some standout staff members. Peter provided exceptional service throughout our stay—always cheerful, helpful, and genuinely caring. June was also very kind and accommodating, and our driver, Suleiman, who took us to and from Shanga was wonderful.

In summary, while we appreciated the efforts of a few excellent staff members, the overall experience did not reflect a true five-star standard. There’s a lot of room for improvement.

We had a wonderful stay at Le Mersenne! Special thanks to Keiza, Cephine, and Said for making everything smooth and memorable. We were upgraded to a stunning waterfront view, and the room was beautiful. Big thanks to Omar, Vanessa, and Olivo at the bar and restaurant—great service all around. The whole team was warm and welcoming. The views were breathtaking! Can’t wait to come back.

The hotel offered beautiful views and amenities. Due to high tides while we were there, we were unable to access the beach directly, so the hotel offered us a complimentary boat trip to a sandbar location. I will say the hotel staff were top tier! They were exceptionally kind and accommodating. From the front desk staff, to the event coordinator (and I was not even there for an event), to room service, the drivers, to the chefs, to the bartender. They truly went above and beyond to make my requests happen. I really enjoyed the live music that was offered each night that we were there. There were daily drink specials, and they had a chicken kabob and rice dish that I ordered twice! There is a swing in the sand near the bar that allows for nice photo ops. We were welcomed with hibiscus drinks and singing (depending on your time of arrival/departure). Do note: the location is not walkable outside of the resort, the resort offers many amenities, but going to activities outside of the resort requires a taxi or shuttle, which were not too expensive.

This place is AMAZING! If you want a luxurious stay with good food and kind people go! I enjoyed every minute of my stay here and I would gladly stay here again and again. I went for my birthday and it was the best experience of my life.