Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Welcome to a resort where the enchanting power of nature blends in with the exotic style of the Indo-Arab buildings to offer you a mesmerizing charm, which in Swahili, is called "bembeleza". Sit in the Balinese chaise lounges on your room terrace and listen to the sound of the wind rustling the palm trees, enjoy the music of the waves and let your heart dance in silence: your Dream of total relaxation has finally come true. Chose to dine on the open air terrace or inside the air conditioned restaurant, overlooking the swimming pool or at the a la carte restaurant serving a selection of seafood menus on the beach. Endowed with a centre of Thalassotherapy, a beauty centre and a gym with spectacular view on the ocean, the Dream Spa is the ideal place for the restoration and the maintenance of global prosperity
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Family Resort
Modern
Languages Spoken
English, German, Italian, Swahili
Location
Casuarina Road, Malindi 80200 Kenya
Diamonds Malindi
4.2 reviews
Getting there
Car recommended
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travelers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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Diamonds Malindi Hotel is often celebrated for its spacious, elegant rooms set in a tranquil environment that oscillates between relaxing and vibrant entertainment. While some guests feel the hotel falls short on value, noting high prices and extra costs, the service generally receives high marks for its friendly and attentive staff.
The hotel's amenities, including a clean private beach and a variety of activities, satisfy most guests, despite occasional maintenance and decor issues noted in rooms. Cleanliness across the hotel is consistently praised.
Atmosphere
Tranquil
Rooms
Spacious
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Immaculate
Service
Friendly
Amenities
Abundant
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Detailed Reviews
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The hotel is located near the town of Malindi and can be reached in a few minutes by car. The hotel itself is part of a hotel complex in which Diamonds is also involved. There is a swimming pool, volleyball court and extensive gardens. Since we booked all-inclusive, we always had food, which was also very plentiful and varied. The service and staff were very friendly and helpful and we were always able to express our wishes. The rooms are pleasant, large with huge beds. There are private bathrooms and a balcony. The entertainment was very pleasant and not intrusive. There is also a fitness room, which is probably not very well known because it is located right between the two hotel complexes. You could change towels every day and beds under palm trees were always available. We did not observe the bad habit of guests making reservations early in the morning. If it weren't for the issue of day guests, some of whom hold large meetings there, I would give it top marks. But a whole week with people who are not on holiday there feels a bit strange, but that is my personal opinion. If a hotel decides to host seminars, there will be a reason for it.
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Date of stay: February 2024
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Exceptional staff! I stay in a lot of nice hotels, as I frequently travel for work. So I am used to 5* service, but occasionally think it is worth remarking on exceptional service, when staff go above and beyond. A couple of people in particular were excellent during my 5 night stay here, and deserve to be recognized. The pasty chef Sammy is first on my list as I am gluten free, and he routinely brought me gluten free bread and prepared delicious gluten free desserts. The food overall at this resort was excellent, much better than similar standard resorts where I have stayed recently. So the entire kitchen team should be congratulated for doing an amazing job – glad I didn’t stay any longer or I would have put on a lot of weight! Several of the waiters were also exceptionally friendly (George, thank you) and the cleaning staff were wonderfully helpful. Overall an excellent stay. For those looking for the 5* experience at a more affordable price, Sandies is the sister hotel and chefs are the same. Locationwise, this hotel is comparable to other hotels in the area (they are all along the same beach, which is littered with eel grass/seaweed and full of touts/vendors). And the marine parks are ruined by overfishing and poor management (both Malindi and Watame further south) so I personally didn't find the location all that enticing - unless you have never snorkelled or seen a fish before, nothing here to recommend the location. I was travelling for work and just needed a break before onwards travel, but if I had paid for a holiday would have been very disappointed/bored with the location and activities. But many people seem to come here as I did for a relaxing weekend before or after work travel to Nairobi and/or safaris. It was all older clients at this time of year, but suspect during school holidays there are a lot of kids in the pool.
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Date of stay: October 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled solo
Room Tip:There are daily walks with hotel staff - definitely don't try to walk alone or you will be...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Web Malindi, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Dec 13, 2023
Dear AussieTravelers75, Greetings from Diamonds Dream of Africa! Thank you for staying with us and for sharing your experience with us and other travelers on Trip advisor. Our guests' satisfaction is of paramount importance to us; therefore, we are glad to read that you appreciated our excellent service and staff too. Looking forward to welcoming you back. Warm Regards, General Manager.
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Our trip started off very bumpy. We had 2 suite rooms in Diamonds Dream of Africa. Check-in was not smooth, there was no welcome drink. The fans in the reception were not turned on even though we had asked for them to be switched on. There was only one person working at the reception, who seemed overwhelmed with just having to check-us in. One of our suites had literally a few drops of water coming out of the shower and our jacuzzi had ants coming out of the drain and the toilet took extremly long to refill. If there are three people sharing a room, the third person has to sleep on a pull-out couch, because there is no actual bed for them. The TV had only a few channels and only 2 were actually working. For the amount of money we spent on the suites, overall the suite did not meet any of our standards. Overall they were old and run-down.It seemed like the suites were not used/cleaned/maintained or taken care off for a long time. For the amount of money we paid the suites themselves were very disappointing. On the other hand, ALL the staff at the Ondo Bar, poolside, Terrace Restaurant and Bar provided us with great service. At the Terrace bar Shaban the bartender made us great mocktails and made sure we were well taken care off. At the Terrace Restaurant Elinah, Raphael and Denaice provided us with great service and catered to our every need. Because we are strictly vegetarian we were concerned how the food would be, but Chef Mahinda and his team made us great food and made all the dishes to meet our needs. His veg risotto and lasagna were particularly delicious.
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Date of stay: November 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:The Animation Team has different activities going on throughout the day, in and around the hotel,...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Rainer Steinhilber, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Nov 23, 2024
Dear Pushpa S, Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback regarding your recent stay at Diamonds Malindi. We sincerely apologize for the inconveniences you experienced during your trip, particularly with the check-in process and the condition of your suite rooms. We understand that a smooth check-in experience is crucial, and we regret that our reception team was unable to provide the level of service you expected. We are currently reviewing our staffing levels to ensure that our guests receive prompt attention upon arrival. Regarding the maintenance issues you encountered in your suite, such as the shower and jacuzzi, we take these matters seriously. Your comments about the cleanliness and upkeep of the rooms will be addressed with our housekeeping and maintenance teams to ensure that all facilities meet our guests' standards, indeed renovation schedules are already in plan. We appreciate your positive remarks about our team at the Onda Bar and Terrace Restaurant. It is wonderful to hear that Shaban, Elinah, Raphael, Denaice, and Chef Mahinda provided you with excellent service and delicious vegetarian options. We will certainly pass on your compliments to them. Your feedback is invaluable as it helps us improve our services and facilities. We hope you will consider giving us another opportunity to provide you with a more enjoyable experience in the future. Thank you once again for your insights. Sunny greetings Rainer Steinhilber General Manager & Team
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The hotel is rated as a 5 star. Unfortunately, not sure how this rating is achieved. The hotel.amenities such as pool lounges, room and lobby furniture is tattered and dated. It requires a refurbishment or replacement.
The poolside service is not any better. You struggle to get any service for drinks at the pool which is included in the all inclusive package. At the peak period, on 19 December in the morning we were told that there are no towels for the pools and beach as the hotel laundry service could not deliver. For a five star hotel they should have a contingency plan as the problem cannot be passed onto paying guests.
The pool at the hotel was closed for maintenance from 18 December 2023 for a week due to maintenance. Guests of this hotel were forced to use the pool of the neighboring hotel at Sandies. If we wanted to do so, we would have booked at Sandies and we should have been informed of the maintenance issues at the time of booking. It is quite perplexing why the hotel would choose to do maintenance during the peak festive holiday period.
The Savanna restaurant at Sandies hotel offers a buffet selection but it has no concept of variety. Apart from changing one or two vegetarian dishes each day, all the dishes such as chicken, fish pasta and desserts are the same every day. The Ala Carte option at the Terrace does not offer much options for lunch or dinner either. However, the breakfast options are good at the Terrace and recommended. If you want something different you will have to patron the Onda Bar restaurant which is a cash bar that is not included in the all inclusive.
This hotel does endeavour to upkeep the general cleanliness around the property. The staff are very helpful and friendly. However, this does not account for the hotel's 5 star rating which is misleading. At best this hotel should be a 3 star, unless it undergoes a serious upgrade of it amenities and services.
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Date of stay: December 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Web Malindi, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Feb 28, 2024
Dear Guji-1978, Greetings from Diamonds Dream of Africa! Tank you so much for choosing us and for taking your time to share your experience on TripAdvisor. We apologize for any inconvenience caused during your stay. We’re committed to providing our guests with the best possible experience and will take steps to address the issues you’ve raised. Thank you again for your feedback. We value your opinion, and we hope that you will give us another chance to serve you better. Warm Regards, General Manager.
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This hotel complex is truly fantastically beautiful, and the staff are characterized by friendliness and helpfulness. There are a total of four pools available, three of which are accessible to all guests. The fourth pool is exclusive to guests in the wellness area. In addition to the buffets, there are two à la carte restaurants. One of these restaurants was included in the all-inclusive offer for us, and I highly recommend it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I would particularly like to thank some employees for their outstanding service: Hoser in the wellness area, Denaice as a waiter in the à la carte restaurant and the gardener Sahidi – they will always be remembered.
The sea in front of the hotel was always in motion due to the regular tides, especially when the moon was full. As a result, there was often no water directly in front of the hotel. The beachboys on the beach are very active, but you get used to it quickly, so you can ultimately move freely on the beach. Ultimately, they also only want to do some business, which I can understand.
The organization of the safari trip as well as the other excursions went smoothly, and the Kudu camp was an unforgettable experience. A note: It is advisable to take money for drinks as they will be charged on site, although our travel documents stated all-inclusive until 10pm.
The only negative detail we would like to mention is the multiple failure of the WiFi in our room. It was finally connected to the TV and only worked as long as the TV was on.
For an even more pleasant stay, we would like to see more beach chairs and towels provided to avoid longer waiting times.
Finally, I can recommend all travelers to withdraw the money (KES) at the airport, as there were occasional difficulties in changing at the reception.
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Automatically translated
Date of stay: February 2025
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Bitte die Roaming-Daten in DE ausschalten und kontrollieren ob die mobile Daten ausgeschaltet...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Overall, this hotel was great. The airport transfer was very smooth and reasonably priced at 2300 ksh. The room is very nice (great balcony, large bed, and large bathroom). Highly recommend dining at Onda Beach Grill (their tasting menu with the ocean treasure boat was some of the best food I’ve had in Africa). The staff was very nice and helpful. Highly recommend speaking to the concierge, John, when he is available. The visit to Hell’s Kitchen was safe, well-organized, and a lot of fun. Thank you for the hospitality.
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Date of stay: June 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Web Malindi, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Jul 4, 2024
Dear 399Afraazm, Greetings from Sandies Tropical Village! Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us! We are thrilled to hear that you had a great weekend trip and that your experience with us exceeded your expectations. We're delighted that you enjoyed the attentive service from our staff, the delicious food, and that your transfers were smooth. Your recommendation of Onda Restaurant means a lot to us, and we'll be sure to pass on your kind words to our staff. We look forward to welcoming you back for another wonderful stay! Warm Regards, General Manager.
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I have waited a long time to write a review about this hotel as it is necessary to actually keep in mind that we are in Africa and not a European country.
I will therefore start with everything that is excellent and far above expectations.
The food is to die for and there is variety. They think about hygiene and the service of the employees is excellent. They go out of their way for their guests and you truly feel like you have come "home" to your family.
The area is magical and the service team who will create shows and programs are fantastic with children. They play, smile and interact with the guests at the hotel.
The reception at the hotel is also absolutely fantastic. Especially one man in there, whose name I can't remember now, is unbelievably gorgeous. Oh, I mustn't forget the bar❤️they make extremely good drinks, they talk and laugh and you genuinely enjoy yourself while you sit and have a drink. On all these points I give them 10 out of 10.
It should also be said that I again and again booked overnight stays. From the fact that we had a plan to be there for 2 days turned into almost 3 weeks. Oh, I want to perform and say that if I go to Malindi again, it is a must to go back. However, I can see that it can be difficult. The prices for accommodation and all inclusive here change from day to day. It all depends on who you meet at the counter. Several times I had to stop right before paying and correct them with the quoted price. There was an occasional discussion until I showed them my account of what I had paid the other nights... strange.
Constant fuss about money that made wanting to tip for the wonderful work done on the above great points became a hassle and really just stress. Employees asked for sponsorship and long family stories that should give me a bad conscience? (I'm a single mother of 5 kids!!! Like wtf?) Security gate staff did anything to get a few shillings and on one occasion they raised a gun to my son's face behind the hotel. He laughed and told my son that I will accompany you to your mother so that she can give me a few small kroner... when I am on Hotels.com I can see that the prices per night have increased by over 2000 Norwegian kroner for one night. Despite the huge price increase, it's only half board and not full board... makes absolutely no sense. The prices are stated for enough residents and then they are of course based on foreign travelers with pockets full of money. Not ordinary people. Horrible I mean.
Lots of ants everywhere and you can forget to put food down for 2-3 minutes. By the time you get back there is an anthill of ants everywhere. It is possible to order food in between the stated times for food serving. But you risk waiting 1-2 hours to get that food, if you get the food at all. No WIFI and in the living area where there should be internet there is no internet either.
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Date of stay: June 2023Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Good cuisine with a wide choice of buffet or a la carte options, friendly restaurant staff. At the reception you have to be lucky to find competent staff, we checked out with three employees who competed over who was more rude, our questions looked at each other and then made a silent scene. There should be free transfer service to the airport but we were expressly told "take a tuk tuk". Moving on to the room, which has not even been cleaned, the double bed was formed by bringing together two single beds with different mattress heights!! Worst 5 star rating ever. Too bad because the location (with some touches here and there) deserves so much.
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Date of stay: September 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Hotel location is amazing, clean and brings an african feeling. The rooms are minimalistic designed and feel wide open. The tropical sandy beach is wonderful and has a beach bar with a variety of good cocktails. We were pleased with the kind and friendly staff. Especially with John, he is the best DJ and aquagym trainer and Paulina, who can answer all of your questions and a amazing companion at the trips. And Nick best dancer.
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Date of stay: February 2024
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Web Malindi, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Mar 14, 2024
Dear Elwiraj2024, Greetings from Sandies Tropical Village! Thank you so much for staying with us and for taking your time to share your experience with us. We're pleased to read that you like our location just as much as we do. We also thank you for your nice comments on our service and our staff too. Looking forward to welcoming you back soon. Warm Regards, General Manager.
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My family and I had a great and interesting stay at this hotel. We took up their premium all inclusive package to get a feel of what it offers. The one-stop-shop pay once and for all solution was most enticing (accommodation, spa, open bar which included most premium drinks, a la carte menu and we talking all you can eat seafood etc, excursion to the marine park). All this topped up with butler service. Most appreciative of butler Sammy who did a great job to get us changed to a comfortable suite to accommodate the needs of my family as well as Raphael who was such a joy to chat with and for a great job with ensuring our meals were on time and delightful! It was refreshing to enjoy handcrafted a la carte 3-4 course meals from the Chef (I forget his name) quite different from the buffet menus we were used to. Afew teething issues though with the entire staff being aligned to this new package and the housekeeping team can do better. I enjoyed my birthday celebration here! Sad to leave, back to freezing Nairobi.
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Date of stay: July 2023Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip:Look out for fun activities to do at Sandies the sister hotel next door.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Web Malindi, General Manager at Diamonds Malindi
Responded Aug 9, 2023
Dear DayTrip752069, Greetings from Diamonds Dream of Africa! Thank you so much for choosing us to celebrate your special occasion with us. We appreciate your positive feedback on our premium all inclusive package and our staff too. We do take pride in catering to our guests’ needs the best way we can. Looking forward to have you back in our resorts. Warm Regards, General Manager.
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There are more places to choose from in the Malindi area.
PRICE RANGE
$154 - $190 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
diamonds dream of africa hotel malindi, dream of africa malindi, dream of africa hotel
LOCATION
KenyaCoast ProvinceMalindi
NUMBER OF ROOMS
134
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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