Villas do Indico Eco - Resort & Spa Lodge

This is my 6th stay at Villas do Indico. As always, exceptional from start to finish. The beachfront setting is stunning, the rooms are comfortable and well-appointed, and the entire property exudes a sense of calm and rustic charm. The cuisine is outstanding — fresh, beautifully prepared, and consistently delicious. Most impressive of all was the service: every member of staff was attentive, courteous, and went above and beyond to ensure a perfect experience.

This hotel is now semi derelict. We arrived and walked around freely unchallenged. There is one member of staff on site. The gates are closed with a sign 'Beware of the Dogs' and we had to push the gates open. IN the parking lot is the broken down, written off airport transfer car with a wheel that has fallen off; there are heaps of rubbish all around and fire debris; the first villas you see are burnt out shells; other villas are rundown and locked up; the infinity pool which is the centre of this boutique hotel is derelict, a large puddle of algae green water at the bottom; the reception was unmanned and we saw just one forlorn group who like us had been misled by the web. There is one employee on site. The hotel has taken down its website. Given that the hotel owner (based in Portugal) refused refunds, and maintains that the hotel is open - I would term this 'fraudulent misrepresentation' by the owner. He or she knows the state of their hotel and continues to take customers' money and refuse refunds. The criticism by the way is squarely of the owner, and I am not implying any criticism of Expedia It porbably once was a good boutique hotel - maybe back in 2018 when the hotel's own photos date from Last winter's economic travails of Mozambique have clearly taken a toll although I suspect the rot set in much earlier with this hotel.

Great place to be

Villas do Indico was everything I hoped: quiet, relaxed, good food, in a beautiful location. However, you should note that the hotel is 8km from town. I was happy to run/walk along deserted beaches most days to get to town/kite surfing. I then took a ride back. If you are taking rides both ways -- which are charged at around US$20 -- you will run up a substantial transport bill. You have to travel in a 4*4 as the last 3km are unpaved/sand. You can do this cheaper on the back of a motorbike but everyone says it is seriously dangerous.| I also had a small issue with the Internet connection having to be renewed each day. Nonetheless, it is a great location if you want peace. Walking north from the hotel is even quieter and more beautiful than going south. Final tip: I took some 'barefoot' running shoes and they were great on the beach. Take up almost no room in your bag but provide enough protection for running and against razor clams when in the sea -- these are fairly common and can give a bare foot a bad cut when dragged across one.

A good place for the ones who need a cool and quiet place