Boutique Hotel · Sustainability
Sustainability at Matlai
Quick answer
Small things done every day, and nothing we cannot stand behind.
As of October 2026, Matlai does eight specific things: free drinking water instead of plastic bottles, a beach clean by our staff every day, cards in the rooms that explain why starfish stay in the sea, recycling, a kitchen that buys fish from local fishermen and produce from Zanzibar farms, welcome soaps from the Mwani women’s cooperative, toiletries from Inaya in Stone Town, and two solar water heaters on Villa Kidosho. Beyond those eight, we support the village around us, we have planted and look after a large garden, and we make candles, chandeliers and plates from things that would otherwise be thrown away. We hold no eco-certificate, and we do not claim to be solar-powered.
| Drinking water | Free, from dispensers in both villas and the restaurant |
| Beach | Cleaned by our staff every day; guests can join |
| Starfish | Cards in the rooms and a sign at the beach entrance |
| Kitchen | Fish from local fishermen, produce from Zanzibar farms |
| Soap and toiletries | Mwani and Inaya, both made by women on Zanzibar |
| Village | Donations on request, often the primary school; many long-term staff come from the village |
| Garden | Planted by us; gardeners trained in permaculture; compost from kitchen waste |
| Dorf | Spenden auf Anfrage, oft für die Grundschule; viele langjährige Mitarbeiter stammen aus dem Dorf |
| Garten | Von uns gepflanzt; Gärtner mit Permakultur-Kurs; Kompost aus Küchenabfällen |
| Solar | Two water heaters at Villa Kidosho, nothing more |
| Certificate | None |
| Last verified | 21 October 2026 |
What we do
What does Matlai do about water, plastic and waste?
Matlai is a small hotel, and what we do is correspondingly small and concrete. Everything below is something a guest can see or use during a stay, and everything on the list is in daily operation.
Drinking water, without plastic bottles
Water is free at Matlai, always. There are dispensers in both villas and in the restaurant, so you can fill a glass or your own bottle whenever you like, and guests do refill their own aluminium bottles. We do not sell water in plastic bottles, and where soft drinks come in glass, we buy the glass. We are working to cut single-use plastic in the rest of the operation as well. That work is not finished, and we say so.
The beach is cleaned every day
Our staff collect plastic from the beach every day. At the beach entrance there is a sign and a basket. Guests who want to help can take the basket and collect what they find on their walk; nobody has to.
Starfish stay in the sea
Starfish are easy to see in the shallows at low tide. Taking a starfish out of the water kills it. The rooms have an information card that explains this, and a sign at the beach entrance says the same, so that no starfish ends up in a suitcase because nobody told the guest.
Recycling
The hotel recycles its waste.
A kitchen that buys locally
The kitchen buys its fish from local fishermen and its produce from farms on Zanzibar. The menu changes daily with what is available. Our services page lists what a stay includes, and meals are part of it.
Welcome soap from the Mwani cooperative
Each room gets a handmade seaweed soap from Mwani Zanzibar on arrival. Mwani is a women’s cooperative, and what we pay them supports the income of the women who make it.
Toiletries from Inaya, made in Stone Town
The rooms are stocked with Inaya Zanzibar products. They are made in small batches by an all-women team in Stone Town, and they are biodegradable and cruelty-free.
Two solar water heaters, and what they are not
Villa Kidosho has two solar water heaters, backed by three electric heaters for days with little sun. Each room at Asili House has its own electric water heater. That is all the solar we have. The rest of our electricity comes from the Zanzibar grid.
Village and community
What does Matlai do for the village?
We take care of the environment and of the village. We try to make donations to the village, and to find out what is needed we talk to the people who live here. We often support the primary school, and sometimes a religious or other event in the village.
Villagers also come to us and ask. We never turn a request down; we always give something. We live here, and we want to be respected by the people around us.
Many of our long-term employees come from the village. They have been part of the team for the last 14 years. Matlai opened in 2012.
The garden
What is the garden at Matlai like?
Behind the beach there is a large “jungle”, and we planted every tree in it ourselves. When we started, the ground was sand. Over the years it became a garden that is unique in this area.
Many small birds live here or pass through, and so do bush babies, squirrels and geckos. Over the years the shade of the trees has lowered the temperature, and the climate on the large plot has become much better.
All of our gardeners have been on a permaculture course. We make compost and fertiliser from the kitchen’s organic waste, from office paper and from the leaves of the trees.
Making and building
What do you make and build from what you already have?
Our maintenance and garden teams make things from what would otherwise be thrown away:
- candles from used cooking oil
- candle holders from old bottles
- the chandeliers in the restaurant, from old champagne bottles
- wooden plates, made by the hotel’s own carpenter
We use a lot of local material, from the island and from the mainland. The architecture follows the old Zanzibar way, African and Arabic, and it is meant to show the beauty and the nature of the island.
What we do not claim
What does Matlai not claim?
No certificate. Matlai holds no eco-certification, and nothing on this page is meant to sound like one.
No solar power. The hotel is not solar-powered. Solar panels for electricity are an idea for the future, not a decision, and we will say so here when that changes.
No numbers. This page has no litres, kilograms or percentages in it, and no statement about carbon. We print only what we can stand behind today, and a figure we cannot back is worse than none.
If a line on this page ever stops being true, tell us. We would rather correct it than defend it.
For guests
How can a guest help during a stay?
Three small things, all optional, all easy:
- Bring a bottle you can refill, and use the dispensers in the villas and the restaurant.
- Take the basket at the beach entrance on one of your walks and pick up what the tide has left.
- Leave the starfish where it is. Look, photograph, walk on.
The rest of what a stay at Matlai includes, from half board to the butler, is on the services page, and the beach and the village are described in the Michamvi guide.
Why a short list
Why is this list so short?
A long sustainability page is easy to write and hard to check. We would rather print a short list that is true, in which each line is something you can see, ask about and test during your stay, than a long one that asks you to take our word. The list will grow when the hotel does more, not when the page needs to be longer. The sections on the village, the garden and what we make are in the same spirit: they say what we do and leave out figures we have not measured.
Good to know
Questions travellers ask
The questions guests ask us about this, answered with what is true today.
Does Matlai have an eco-certificate?
No. Matlai holds no eco-certification and makes no claim to one. What this page lists is what we do, not a label we have earned.
Does Matlai run on solar power?
No. Our electricity comes from the Zanzibar grid. The only solar on the property is two water heaters on Villa Kidosho, backed by three electric heaters for days with little sun. Solar panels for electricity are an idea for the future, not a decision, so we do not describe the hotel as solar-powered.
Can I refill my own water bottle?
Yes. Drinking water is free, always, from dispensers in both villas and in the restaurant. Guests refill their own bottles, and we do not sell water in plastic bottles.
Can I take part in the beach clean?
Yes, if you like. Our staff collect plastic from the beach every day. At the beach entrance there is a sign and a basket, and guests who want to help can take the basket and collect what they find.
Why must starfish stay in the sea?
Taking a starfish out of the water kills it. The cards in the rooms and the sign at the beach entrance explain this, so that nobody takes one home by accident. Look, photograph, and leave it where it is.
Where does the food come from?
The kitchen buys fish from local fishermen and produce from farms on Zanzibar. The menu changes daily with what is available.
Who makes the soap and the toiletries?
The welcome soap is handmade by Mwani Zanzibar, a women’s cooperative. The toiletries in the rooms are from Inaya Zanzibar, made in small batches by an all-women team in Stone Town.
Does Matlai support the local village?
Yes. We try to make donations to the village and talk to the people here to find out what is needed. We often support the primary school, and sometimes a religious or other village event. When villagers ask us, we never turn the request down. Many of our long-term employees come from the village and have been part of the team for 14 years.
What does Matlai do with its garden waste and kitchen scraps?
We make compost and fertiliser from the kitchen’s organic waste, office paper and the leaves of the trees. All of our gardeners have been on a permaculture course.
Are the candles and chandeliers at Matlai made from recycled material?
Many are. Our maintenance and garden teams make candles from used cooking oil and candle holders from old bottles, the chandeliers in the restaurant are made from old champagne bottles, and the hotel’s own carpenter makes wooden plates.
Your stay at Matlai
Choose your dates and the booking page opens with them, showing live availability.
Bookings with children go by enquiry: the booking page books adults only, so send us your dates on WhatsApp and we reply with the options. Children under 14 stay with a whole villa. WhatsApp →
Indicative public rates — the engine shows live availability for your dates.
Welcome drink, kayaks, bicycles and snorkelling gear, free of charge.
Booking with the hotel itself? Ask us what we can offer for your dates.
Why guests book Matlai
- A team of butlers on call, 07:00 to 22:00. One message and it is arranged.
- Half board with a chef’s menu that changes daily: three courses, plus two à la carte kitchens at every table, Zatiny (Indian Ocean fusion) and Duyên (Vietnamese).
- Dine where you like: in the restaurant, in the garden or on your own balcony. A private table by the beach or a candlelight dinner can be arranged at an extra charge.
- Six rooms in two villas, a pool for each villa, shared by its rooms, and every room facing the sunrise over the ocean.
- Bustani, the garden spa; the sandbank in front of the hotel at low tide; a quiet beach lined with small, family-owned hotels.
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