Boutique Hotel · Retreat leaders
Whole-hotel retreats at Matlai
Quick answer
The whole hotel is yours. The retreat is yours too.
Retreat leaders can book all of Boutique Hotel Matlai at Michamvi Pingwe, Zanzibar: six rooms in two villas for 12 guests, up to 18 with extra beds. You bring your own teacher and your own programme. We provide the rooms, half board, a spa and a butler team. There is no purpose-built yoga shala. We do not run, teach or organise your retreat. The table below shows the six spaces groups use instead, and what each one suits.
| The whole hotel | Six rooms · two villas · both pools |
| Guests | 12 standard · up to 18 with extra beds |
| Yoga space | No purpose-built shala · six spaces, below |
| Teacher | Your own · we can recommend island teachers |
| Included | Half board · butler team |
| Windows | March to May · early June · 1 Nov to 22 Dec |
| Closed | 15 April to 21 May 2027 |
| Prices | Not published · ask when you enquire |
| Last verified | 6 November 2026 |
How it works
Simple by design
- The whole hotel is yours alone: all six rooms and both pools.
- You bring your own teacher and your own programme. You lead the retreat.
- Half board is included for every guest: breakfast and a three-course dinner.
- We run the rooms, the kitchens, the spa and the butler team around your timetable.
Your teacher
Bring your own teacher. If you would like a local one, we can recommend independent yoga teachers who live on the island; they are not hotel staff. You agree terms with them directly.
The spaces
There is no shala. Here are the six spaces we use.
A purpose-built yoga shala does not exist at Matlai, and we would rather say so now than on arrival. Groups use these six spaces instead.
| Space | What it is | What it suits |
|---|---|---|
| Our sandy area at the beach entrance | A big, flat, levelled area of sand overlooking the ocean, directly at the beach. It is ours for hotel use, and we hold weddings there. | Practice for the whole group facing the ocean, circles and ceremonies. The hotel faces east, so the sun rises over the water. |
| The restaurant, in the morning | When the whole hotel is booked, we move the tables out for your morning session. Breakfast is served wherever guests like. | A morning session in a space we clear and reset for you. |
| Bustani Spa | The spa in the hotel garden, with two massage beds and two wooden bath tubs. Its therapists run it as their own business, so treatments are paid for at the spa. | Treatments, bath rituals, quiet time between sessions and, by arrangement, practice. |
| Terraces | Every room has its own balcony or terrace facing the ocean, and Villa Kidosho has a shared lounge with a terrace by the pool. | Individual practice, journaling and one-to-one work. |
| The lounge of Villa Kidosho | A big space with fans. It works very well for practice. It is also one of the places your group uses in rain. | Practice for a group, in any weather, and workshops. |
| Around the Kidosho pool area | The open area around the infinity pool of Villa Kidosho, set above the beach, with sunloungers on several levels. | Small-group practice, breathwork and rest between sessions. |
The exact size of each space, and how many mats fit in it, are given for your group when you enquire. The beach itself is open to everyone, as every beach in Zanzibar is: the sandy area is ours.
Rooms and sleeping
Six rooms, 12 guests as standard, 18 at most
Asili House has four rooms facing the ocean: Moto and Hewa upstairs, Maji and Dunia on the ground floor. They share an elevated oceanfront pool and sleep eight. Villa Kidosho has two suites, Jua and Mwezi, around one infinity pool, and sleeps four.
Every room has a king-size bed, except Dunia, whose two joined mattresses can be separated into a twin. Every room can take an extra bed, a proper 90 × 200 cm mattress with a mosquito net, which brings the hotel to a maximum of 18 guests. The pools are shared with other guests unless the whole hotel is booked. On a whole-hotel booking they are used only by your group. More in exclusive use of the whole hotel and group stays.
Food
Half board, from two kitchens
Half board is included for every guest: breakfast, served from 07:00 until 12:00 wherever you like, and a three-course dinner from 18:30 with last orders at 21:30. Lunch and drinks are extra. Zatiny cooks from two kitchens and three menus: Indian Ocean fusion, Duyên's Vietnamese home cooking and a daily chef's menu. The daily main course always includes a fish or seafood dish, a meat or chicken dish and a vegetarian one, and many vegan dishes are possible.
Tell us dietary needs and allergies when you enquire, and we agree them with the kitchen before you arrive. If a participant has a serious allergy, ask us what the kitchen can and cannot do before you sell places.
What is provided
What is already here
- Two yoga mats and two small dumbbells in every room.
- A team of five butlers on morning and evening shifts, serving both villas.
- Bustani Spa in the hotel garden, open every day from 09:00 to 18:00. Treatments are paid for separately, at the spa.
- Two kayaks and two bicycles for guests, and a tide table for every guest at check-in.
- Wi-Fi vouchers for every guest and device, enough for video calls. Power or cable cuts on the island can interrupt it for a few hours.
Bring any other props or sound equipment yourself, or tell us what you need when you enquire.
A sample week
One way a week can run (an example only)
This is an example, not a programme we run. Your teacher designs the days. The table shows how a week can fit around half board, the tide and our spaces. Times are illustrative.
| Day | Morning | Midday | Afternoon and evening |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrival | Arrivals. Check-in is from 14:00. | Rooms and lunch (extra). | A welcome circle on a terrace, dinner at Zatiny. |
| Days 2 to 5 | Practice on the sandy area, or in the restaurant. Breakfast any time from 07:00 to 12:00. | Free time: the spa, kayaks, a swim in the hours around high tide. | A second, shorter session or a workshop, then dinner. |
| A free day | The leader's choice. | An excursion with a local operator, set up through the butler team. | Rest. |
| Departure | A short practice, then breakfast. | Check-out by 10:30. | — |
Season and weather
When retreats can happen, and what the weather does
We plan retreats in March, April, May, early June, and from November to 22 December. In 2027 that means 1 March to 14 April, 22 May to mid-June, and 1 November to 22 December. The hotel is closed from 15 April to 21 May 2027. For 2028, dates are confirmed when you enquire.
March to May includes the long rains. November and December can bring short showers. We cannot promise dry mornings. In rain, your group can use the restaurant, the spa or the lounge of Villa Kidosho, so a wet morning does not cancel a session.
The sea here is tidal. Swimming is best in the two to four hours around high tide. The beach is long and open, not a bay, so tides tend to carry seaweed back out within days, but seaweed can wash up, mostly around the new and full moon, and somewhat more often from December to March. We cannot promise a beach without it.
How the booking works
From first message to booking
- Send us your dates, your headcount, whether you bring your own teacher, and what kind of retreat it is.
- We check the dates against the windows above and our calendar, and tell you how the six rooms would be laid out for your group.
- We agree dietary needs and which space you use at which time, including where sessions move in rain.
- You book the whole hotel directly with us.
We have not published retreat prices; ask when you enquire. A whole-hotel booking is priced slightly below booking the same rooms one by one.
What we do not do
The limits, stated plainly
- We run no retreat programme. We have no yoga teacher and no yoga programme of our own, and we never present a retreat as ours.
- We have no conference rooms or conference facilities.
- The hotel is not fully wheelchair accessible. Villa Kidosho is step-free from the entrance into the rooms, but the way to the restaurant is partly sandy and the restaurant is not wheelchair-friendly. Tell us about access needs before you sell places, and read our accessibility page.
- We do not handle your permits or insurance. As the leader, you are responsible for your own permits and insurance.
- The beach is open to everyone, and we cannot promise a beach without seaweed.
Enquiry
Tell us about your retreat
Send us four things:
- your dates (see the windows above)
- your headcount
- whether you bring your own teacher, or would like a recommendation
- the type of retreat
WhatsApp: +255 772 628 833 · Email: info@hotelmatlai.com · or the enquiry form on the contact page.
Good to know
Questions travellers ask
The questions retreat leaders ask us first, answered from the facts.
Does Matlai have a yoga shala?
No. There is no purpose-built yoga shala and no conference room. Groups use six spaces instead: our sandy area at the beach entrance, the restaurant in the morning when the whole hotel is booked, Bustani Spa, the terraces, the lounge of Villa Kidosho and the area around the Kidosho pool. The table above says what each one suits. The exact size of each space and how many mats fit are given for your group when you enquire.
Can we bring our own teacher, and does the hotel run the retreat?
You bring your own teacher and your own programme, and you run the retreat. The hotel does not run, teach or organise it. We provide the rooms, half board, a spa and the butler team.
Can you recommend a teacher?
We can recommend independent yoga teachers who live on the island; they are not hotel staff. You agree terms with them directly.
How many people can the hotel host?
Six rooms hold 12 guests as standard: eight at Asili House and four at Villa Kidosho. With an extra bed in every room, up to 18.
What happens if it rains?
In rain, your group can use the restaurant, the spa or the lounge of Villa Kidosho. March to May includes the long rains, and November and December can bring short showers.
Is the beach private, and what about seaweed?
No, the beach is open to everyone, like every beach in Zanzibar. Our sandy area at the beach entrance is ours for hotel use. The beach is long and open, not a bay, but seaweed can wash up, mostly around the new and full moon, and we cannot promise a beach without it.
Is the hotel accessible?
Not fully. Villa Kidosho is step-free from the entrance into the rooms, but the way to the restaurant is partly sandy and the restaurant is not wheelchair-friendly. Tell us about access needs before you sell places.
What about food and dietary needs?
Half board is included: breakfast and a three-course dinner. Lunch and drinks are extra. Vegetarian dishes are always on the menu and many vegan dishes are possible. Tell us dietary needs and allergies when you enquire, and we agree them with the kitchen before you arrive.
What do we need to arrange about permits and insurance?
The leader is responsible for their own permits and insurance. We cannot give legal advice, so check the rules with the relevant authorities and your insurer before you sell places.
Which months can we book?
March, April, May, early June, and November to 22 December. In 2027 that is 1 March to 14 April, 22 May to mid-June, and 1 November to 22 December. The hotel is closed from 15 April to 21 May 2027. For 2028, dates are confirmed when you enquire.
What does a retreat cost?
We have not published retreat prices; ask when you enquire. A whole-hotel booking is priced slightly below booking the same rooms one by one.
How do we enquire?
Send us your dates, headcount, whether you bring your own teacher and what kind of retreat it is, by WhatsApp or email, or through the enquiry form on the contact page.