Vamizi Island

Exclusivity is one of Vamizi Island's greatest assets and, as the only lodge on the island, it has the space to spread wide, so each villa amply commands its own part of the beach.

Thirteen villas - one or two bedroomed - are right on the shoreline, all with to-die-for views of the ocean.

Both airy and generous - with over 170 square metres of timbered floor to pad about on, they have plenty of space for spreading beds, sofas, a marble shower and vanity area and outside, a sun deck.

Vamizi Island is not about the ordinary five star stuff, so don't expect TVs or air conditioning - it's all about barefoot relaxation and rooms as open as they can be, to catch the natural breezes.

That said, if you can't drag yourself away from your villa, there's a mini-bar and the means for a deluxe cup of tea or coffee – as well as private dinners in the room on request.

Beyond that, Vamizi just leave you alone, in the peace of your own private paradise.

Dining

During the day, there’s the relative formality of their thatched open dining room in the main lodge, or choose to retreat to Muntu Nkulu, Vamizi's new castaway restaurant open during the winter season on the south side of the island, for a buffet and total relaxation.

You can also take the total desert island approach - alone with a shipwrecked picnic on some deserted beach.

Evenings are a more glamorous affair, with a castaway twist, fuelled by grills on the beach, or more elaborate dishes under lantern light in the dining room.

With cocktails and fine wines at the bar - and acres of cushions and sofas for sitting very soft at any point - you might just feel that heaven can wait.

Spa

You couldn't want for a better place for healing: Vamizi Island is basically one big spa - with nurture for the entire self, both above and below the water. They have also added the luxuries of some of the best energy and body treatments available –such as shiatsu, reiki and cranio-sacral therapy.

Meanwhile their Ashtanga yoga teacher can help you look at yourself and your surroundings from a whole new – and much more relaxed - angle.

They have also introduced beauty therapies that are uniquely Vamizi, using natural recipes borrowed from the local ladies as well as creating a few oceanic inventions of their own - minerals ground from Vamizi rocks, local seaweed masks and sea salt scrubs - to prepare your pelt for that perfect tan.

Also, naturally, a full range of massage therapies are offered - Indian head massage, deep tissue, Swedish and aromatherapy massage.

For all those who love to flop, there's another bunch who need to flip. On the surface, Vamizi Island is utterly mellow. Go a few feet below and everything changes, as the Vamizi seas - which lodge residents share with no other tourists at all - are bristling with big ocean action.

Some of the dives here are said to be the best in the world and the deep sea fishing better than the whole East African coast. Fortunately, Vamizi have PADI dive instructors, professional fisherfolk, and all the toys and kit you’d want to make the most of this extraordinary marine world.

For the less committed thrill seekers, there are snorkelling trips, castaway picnics, whale watching expeditions and lots of messing about in boats, from kayaks to traditional dhows. Landlubbers may of course prefer to wander the miles of sugar sand untouched beaches, or delve into the bush for a spot of monkey - or bird-watching.

First and foremost, Vamizi Island is a conservation project. It is directed by the Maluane Project and supported by a group of idealists, to make a dream come true and have tourism work for the planet. Over a decade ago, the original visionaries of the project visited the Quirimbas Archipelago, where Vamizi Island lies.

Vamizi, as well as neighbouring Rongui Island, are set either side of an ocean basin that is extraordinary - with its vast fish stocks, abundant marine life and whale, dolphin and turtle populations. They believed this undeveloped - and unprotected - area to be of huge natural significance as a marine nursery and sanctuary for the whole Mozambican coast. Thus the Maluane Project began, combining tourism with wildlife conservation and community development to protect this unspoilt area.

In 2005, the 24-bed Vamizi Island Lodge was opened. To succour the world's most demanding clientele on such an island, given the lack of infrastructure and remoteness, was madness. Only a wild determination to preserve Vamizi and its seas would be enough to make it happen. Through continued donations and a conservation fee charged to every guest, the Maluane Project continues to support marine research, community outreach and direct conservation initiatives.

It's just a small drop in the ocean, but an altogether bigger thing for eco-tourism.

We think the blend of luxury rustic chic and strong ecological credentials is spot on at Vamizi and it will be loved by everyone. We particularly like the duality of the simple beach life and the excitement of exploring the surrounding ocean.

Vamizi Island is now even easier to get to than ever with the addition of the ‘Vamizi Jet’, making it the perfect place to escape to post safari or indeed as a luxury destination in itself.