Name: Sunbird Ku Chawe Hotel
Address: P. O. Box 71, Zomba 71, Zomba, Zomba, Zomba, 66826, Malawi
Rating: 8

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Chileka Airport

Sunbird Ku Chawe Hotel

Sunbird Ku Chawe is situated high up on the Zomba Plateau - one definitely needs a car to get there.  It has perfectly manicured beautiful gardens.  Even though it was very hot the time that I was there, there is always a cool breeze as it is so high up!I loved my room with the views of the Zomba town & far off mountains such as Chiradzulu and Mulanje.  Had a wet room and modern fixtures in the bathroom.There was a good selection of dishes for breakfast and varied menu for dinner.  Although the menus seem to be the same in all the hotels I stayed in:  Chigumula, Zomba & Blantyre.  The food, however, is tasty and fresh.Again the staff were very nice and welcoming:  Dumisani, who is so knowledgeable of the history of the Ngoni people (my roots), Miss Loveness, the restaurant supervisor, Gobery the manager and Mr Yason the big boss were all very attentive to ensure a comfortable stay.Second day in Zomba, we hiked about 12 km with my guide.  We did William's Falls, Emperor's & Queen's Views, Chagwa lake and Mulunguzi Dam.  That was exhilarating!  There is so much more to do... but that is for another time.I loved my stay on the plateau.  The town of Zomba itself could benefit from regeneration - it is so rundown!

Without a doubt this is the best place to stay in the Zomba area. If I returned to Zomba, this is the only place to stay even if it meant driving up and down the mountain everyday because, otherwise, Zomba does not have any other truly nice places to stay. The Ku Chawe is excellent in every respect...food, service, friendly staff, and well-maintained gorgeous grounds and views of the valley. Beware the baboons as they are out of hand and the WIFI is not reliable unless you are in one of the main areas.  Doesn't work well in the rooms.  But this is a great place to stay!

I have visited or stayed at several Sunbirds, including Senga Bay and Mangochi, but this is clearly the best. The grounds and location are exceptional, the staff absolutely wonderful and the food was great too. It had the best Breakfast buffet I have had in years, both in range and quality. I would love to stay again and its worth another trip to Malawi just to stay there.

This is one of my best stay in any Sunbird hotel in Malawi. A stunning location with great food and friendly staff. The facility is very clean and the services are remarkable. This is really a value for money. Perfect holiday spot.

We had a very great time,the view is just so magical.visited with my friends from Cape Town and they loved it.so impressive.hope to come back soon.proud to call it home.Again thanks sunbird Malawi ..👌🏾🙏❤️❤️❤️❤️

Up the slope of Zomba mountain Kuchawe offers a tranquil setting for relaxation and reflection. The staff are polite always eager to help...sometimes too eager but surely made my stay worthwhile. My new favourite place to relax and refresh. The views are amazing

A perfect place to experience nature in Malawi's former capital city

A stunning location and friendly helpful staff. The restaurant was excellent.

Really lovely stay. The log fire in the bedroom real bonus

Zomba

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We visited 3 times on our recent visit to Malawi. 
The pool , and attendant were great, food was good & generally very good experience. 
Why 4 stars and not 5… well, goes back to service. 
Ordered fri is and took ages to come, waitress forgot bottle opener, the dirty glass, all just meant took ages to just have my beer. 
Lack of towels at some point, so had to wait. 
All small but significant and really no excuse for any of it. Be better sunbird. Really could be the best spot in zomba!!!!

Pool is great addition

We had an amazing visit. Our booking and Check in was handled so well. Just want to thank Joel and the  Kuchawe Inn team for a wonderful experience. They have done great updates on the rooms and just to say the food was great service was wonderful. Thank you to the Kuchawe Sunbird Team. Patrick you were great with the family and took care of us. The Bez family😊❤️

Wonderful family time  😊

We spent 2 nights in Sunbird Ku Chawa on a short birding trip, the staff were friendly and helpful, the room was nice and neat and the grounds as well, breakfast was very good and dinner as well.

The surrounding area is beautiful but unfortunately most of the indigenous forest has been cut down, the weather was not great for birding, rainy and wet but we did manage to find Malawis only Endemic bird at Zomba, the Yellow Throated Apalis.

We walked to William falls that was fun as well as a number of other trails around the area.

Good base for Birding in Zomba

Overall, a great experience. A few points:

1. The pictures included in the listing are inaccurate. It makes it look like all the rooms are suites (separate seating area with an overlooking patio). While the room was renovated and nice, it was smaller than expected. The patio opened into the back garden but it wasn’t an overlooking patio. My friends had this room and switched into a suite, which apparently was a little more worn down than the room I stayed in

2. Our view was obscured with fog most of the time. The beds were very comfortable. The location was excellent and close to the main hiking options on the plateau

3. The breakfast buffet was excellent and accommodated people of all kinds of dietary needs. It has an omelet bar, oatmeal, fresh fruit, and standard Western-style hot food offerings

4. The Mulunguzi restaurant was good as well with a good mix of Western, Indian, and local Malawian offerings. Great value for the price and good, timely service

5. The maintenance came quickly and accommodated minor needs from our group

6. Wifi speeds were good, not great. Usable

7. A multitude of tour offerings. My group went with Isaac, a local guide, that wasn’t listed through the hotel, but found through online means. He was AMAZING and we loved him and his prices were very competitive

8. There are a few small shops on the road leading up to the hotel. Prices are pretty reasonable. One shop, a little further down the road from the hotel had really interesting furniture/art

I would stay here again if I found myself in the area

Great stay but not perfect

wonderful holiday stay

It is a nice place. Surrounded by beautiful trees which makes it a  natural environment with an amazing 20th century architecture that matches the surrounding perfectly.

The food is nice especially the Malawian cuisine. The rooms are neat, spacious and standard. However, you may find some furniture (chairs) to be so basic particularly in the meeting rooms for those on business trips.

It's altogether a wonderful place and one that will always come to mind when you think of a break from the bustle of town life to a relaxing and natural environment.

A wonderful place with 20th century architecture and a natural surrounding.

Really good room and reception service, super comfortable rooms, good to have a desk for work. Fantastic buffet lunches. A few downsides: patchy WiFi (but buy a local sim and data); expensive imported SA wine (but bring your own); restaurant service can be very slow (but always courteous and the food is good).

An excellent place for a work trip

I’ve stayed here many times for work over the years and have always enjoyed the atmosphere. But this year my husband and I took a weekend and booked the Deluxe Hillside room with a balcony. It was a clean, spacious room with outstanding views. We enjoyed the TV, mini fridge with complimentary water, warm showers and a very comfortable bed. The newly renovated pool was heated so we managed to swim even with cool weather and loved it! The only thing keeping us from a 5 star is the food. The prices are very high for small portions and not always well done. While the breakfast buffet (included in the cost) is satisfying, the menu for lunch and dinner leave you wanting. Ku Chawe is a special, historical place in Malawi. The ambiance, architecture, views and fantastic, professional staff are what draw us back. Thank you Sunbird Ku Chawe!

Tip: We live in Malawi but actually booked through Expedia for a fraction of the cost quoted on the Sunbird website. And it worked out perfectly with no issues! Check-in and check-out was extremely smooth. Again, thanks to the wonderful Sunbird Ku Chawe staff! We will be back. 

Sunbird Ku Chawe Hotel

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