Why we Love Hotel Escondidinho

A simple and inexpensive yet comfy boutique hotel with air conditioning in an atmospheric restored mansion in a quiet part of the island. The restaurant is consistently good, and the courtyard and pool offers a great place to relax and swim during heat of day when you not out and about exploring. Friendly staff, good service with French flare and well established having been open at least 11 years now. For those looking for something a little different on the island it’s a great option.

Hotel Escondidinho is one of the more established boutique hotels on atmospheric and historical Ilha de Mozambique. Keeping things intimate and bespoke just 10 individually designed rooms are housed in this renovated 19th century mansion.

As with many of these historical buildings, the building was once a trading house where slaves were accommodated. These days this charming Mozambique Hotel is the perfect base from which to explore the fascinating island of Ilha de Mozambique with its hundreds of stories, legends and heritage and steeped in cultural history. Ilha de Mozambique is a UNESCO Cultural and Historical World Heritage Site boasting amazing architecture and a heady mix of African, Arab, Portuguese origins.

Hotel Escondidinho can be found on a quiet street in the Stone City, with a shady back courtyard and a great restaurant and sparkling blue pool. Rooms boast large windows, high ceilings with their original beams and chunky carved wooden furniture.  The rooms are either pool facing or overlook the street below from where you can watch a slice of authentic Mozambican life.

There is lots to do on the island and surrounds and these include dhow trips and sunset cruises to the neighbouring Mozambique Islands and beaches. Don’t forget to visit the charismatic churches and mosques and hundreds of beautiful colonial buildings and small traditional houses, all which have been maintained and some restored beautifully to house restaurants, guest houses and little places to shop and browse.

Visit the Chapel of Nossa Senhora de Baluarte, and the incredible imposing Fortaleza São Sebastião which stands guard over the sea – two of the oldest buildings in the southern hemisphere! Photographic opportunities abound on this stunning little island – both people and buildings, dhows and sunsets. The lifestyle is typically island style slow and tropical and there is no hurry.

As the outside world discovers Ilha de Mozambique more and more guest houses and small hotels are being opened in restored colonial buildings, offering authentic and atmospheric accommodation, and contributing to the slow restoration of this unique island’s former splendours.

Facilities

  • 9 X Double rooms
  • 1 X Family room
  • En- suite bathrooms
  • Mosquito nets
  • Fans
  • Air conditioning
  • Wi-fi
  • Restaurant
  • Swimming pool

Getting There

From Nampula: take the EN-8 from Nampula towards Nacala and then turn off on road 105 to Ilha. The 3 kilometer bridge from the mainland to the island is one lane and traffic is regulated manually. Ilha de Moçambique is over two days’ drive from Maputo.

Flights and transfers from Maputo to Ilha de Moçambique

GPS coordinates for Hotel Escondidinho
-15.036089,40.733560