The best accommodations Maputo & Area

The majestic Polana Hotel, of the luxury hotel chain Serena, is one of the most beautiful in Maputo. It has a bar, a restaurant, a café, a Hollywood pool, a gym, a spa, tennis courts... It's a real vacation resort. All the rooms are different, quite iconoclastic for a luxury hotel, with colonial Portuguese headboards in carved wood for the most part. The bar terrace with its view of the ocean and the sublime pool decorated with a white colonnade is dazzling.

Chamfuta Lodge overlooks the ocean from the top of its hill. Completely self-catering, the villa is rented as a vacation home with all the necessary supplies. Once you arrive, it's paradise: nestled in a lush garden, the sublime 180-degree view of the Indian Ocean and the beaches. Ideally suited for 8 people, the fully equipped chalet, with a barbecue, pool and dart board, can accommodate up to 14 guests. Chamfuta offers direct transfers from Maputo for up to 9 people per boat.

Facing the island of Inhaca, the Machangulo Beach is located in Santa Maria, with its feet in the sand. You can reach it directly by the beach, arriving from Maputo by boat. It is the most luxurious lodge of the area. Here, you can contemplate a wonderful and wild beach from the terrace of a bungalow perched on a luxuriant hill. A very nice café-restaurant overlooks the pool and the sea. To the right, the spa with ocean view; behind, the spacious and comfortable rooms where wood and bright colors of decorative capulanas blend. Diving center.

The international hotel chain has a beautiful new address in Maputo very bleisure, urban and contemporary, inaugurated in 2018. A real 4-star hotel with a good rating because the service is impeccable, everything is gleaming and designer. Its main asset: the view from the rooms and especially its rooftop restaurant and sky bar terrace on a high floor (hence its name): the horizon of the city and the bay of Maputo. The futuristic restaurant serves fusion, local and international cuisine. Its state-of-the-art spa with sauna is a must.

At Bemuji's, sleep in a pretty traditional hut, where handicrafts are used, with one, two or three bedrooms. They are very comfortable (air-conditioning, private bathroom) and affordable. The swimming pool is beautiful and pleasant. The shady campsite is well equipped with barbecues. The restaurant, under a huge makuti roof, is literally feet in the sand. During the day, we go on excursions to snorkel, canoe, fish or watch whales. In the evening, we gather around the fogeiras, by the fire under the stars.

Since 1992, this youth hostel opened by the charismatic Fatima is an institution in Maputo as well as in Tofo. We like the atmosphere of a cosmopolitan hub where we can get information about the city or the country from the super-professional staff. We like the inner courtyard, the terrace, the colored walls and the lively restaurant-bar, the starting point to go out in Maputo. If Fatima has a big heart by opening orphanages, we regret the dilapidation of the rooms, especially the dormitory without air-conditioning and overcrowded, the worn out mattresses and the approximate cleanliness. Camping, Wifi.

Just a stone's throw from Tunduru Garden, The Base is ideally placed for daytime strolls or evening outings. The hostel has a shared kitchen and a sumptuous rooftop terrace. The atmosphere is quiet, friendly and comfortable, as there is only one dormitory with 6 beds and a few double rooms with private bathrooms. The whole place is clean and air-conditioned, a very good point. The Base organizes transfers to Tofo on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. If you book a double room, avoid the one in the basement, which feels a bit like a cellar.

In the heart of Maputo, at the top of the hill in the center, the Cardoso Hotel is a true and beautiful 4 star hotel with a vast, white and elegant estate. It enjoys a breathtaking view of the bay. Designed for business travelers and tourists, the rooms are comfortable without being ultra-luxurious, but the choice and the service make it an address of standing. We like the reception in the lush gardens, the Fiamma restaurant with African and Mediterranean influences and the Pôr do Sol bar overlooking the garden and the pool.

In the residential and chic area of Sommerschield in the upper town, this hotel offers a dozen double rooms that were really low-priced before, a little more expensive now, but still interesting because they offer a good standard despite the lack of swimming pool at this price level. The rooms are large, air-conditioned, the bathroom with bathtub. The whole is charming with elegant wooden furniture and a sitting area with sofa. Breakfast is served on a small outdoor terrace with trees and shade. Wifi.

This is the perfect example of a small, modern, local business hotel, and therefore cheap for Europeans. Opt for the double rooms which are less like university rooms. They are all air-conditioned, with private bathroom, refrigerator, safe, satellite TV and Wifi. There is a restaurant, a café on the terrace and a small pool area. The service is a bit expensive compared to the overall quality of the hotel, which deserves to be better maintained and the service is not very attentive (breakfast almost non-existent, etc.).

They are brick chalets and thatched roofs, again refurbished in 2008. The large chalets have two bedrooms, a large living room/dining room and a small kitchen (kettle and refrigerator). Camping possible.

Welcome. Small swimming pool. Boat rental to climb the river, as well as canoe canoes. Important surrounding nature, allowing bird observation.

The Terminus is a 3-star hotel that does not lack comfort: spacious and elegant rooms, all in a local style. We appreciate the African decorations at the entrance, the naive paintings on the walls and a terrace with a swimming pool to enjoy warm days and a professional service. The hotel also has a restaurant known for the cuisine of its Mozambican chef, Virgílio Maxlhungo. Also a bar, rustic English pub style, where it is nice to have a last drink. The site is very quiet, yet in the heart of downtown.

The Santa Cruz hotel is located on the avenue of Julho, rather well placed in the central district of Polana Cimento, a few minutes from the botanical garden Tunduru in the center. The rooms are correct and comfortable and above all at a low price for a medium standard: air conditioning, as well as a private bathroom and Wifi. Some rooms have a superb view on the bay, don't hesitate to ask if they are available. A nice view makes all the difference! In the morning, breakfast is continental and a la carte.

In the Polana Cimento neighborhood, this hotel would be a good address if it were a little less expensive: simple, friendly, tastefully decorated. The twelve rooms of the Jacaranda Guesthouse are rather small, but welcoming, comfortable and air-conditioned. It's a pity that shampoo is missing and that the service is approximate. Transfer to the airport, and free parking. The restaurant offers good Portuguese cuisine, in an airy, unpretentious setting. And every morning, breakfast is served as a buffet.

In the past, the Devocean Diving was a diving center. Today, if the passion is still there, the Devocean is one of the best hotels in Ponta do Ouro in its range. In this Eco-Adventure Lodge, the pretty garden is dotted with small cottage-type chalets or safari tents for a natural and comfortable stay among the palm trees, but also simple tents with shared bathroom for the small budgets. In the evening, we meet by the fire to chat under the stars. The main activities: safari, snorkeling and other marine activities.