African Princess Beach Hotel

The rooms are spacious, clean, and tastefully decorated with large comfortable beds. The staff is exceptionally friendly and professional. The location is central, providing easy access to local attractions.

First time in the Gambia and we will definitely be back. The hotel is very modern and the swim up rooms are great but the hotel does lack a bit of African charm. Rooms are large and the bed very comfortable but they are a bit bland and soulless and there is no decor to make you feel you are in Africa. The staff are fantastic and very friendly and the location on the Kololi ***** is great with several good cheap bars and restaurants nearby and the main Senegambia ***** only a short taxi ride away. The grounds are nice but again a bit corporate and sterile - more colour and flowering plants would be an improvement. The spa is good, brand new and competitively priced compared to other local places. The breakfast buffet is good and quite extensive but on the downside we had one evening meal at the restaurant (again lacking any African charm) which was very poor and tasteless (hence the 4 not 5 stars)., as well as quite a bit more expensive than the local places. Gambia itself is amazing, very interesting, full of life noise and vibrancy and the people are lovely - just learn to brush off the beach hustlers.

I’ve just come back from a 7-night stay at the African Princess. I didn’t have any expectations prior to going, but I really enjoyed my stay here and agree that the rating is correct. It’s not a party hotel (and there isn’t much entertainment). If your needs are business or relaxing then this is the hotel for you. We had a swim up room, which was lovely. There were a lot of insects swimming alongside me, despite the pool attendant constantly cleaning the pools and decking (he never stopped), which made me wonder if the chlorine levels were correct; but aside from that, no complaints. Our room was spacious and well furnished and the bed was comfortable. The bathroom was also a good size with a large shower area. The rooms have other amenities such as a safe, a fridge and a kettle (with mugs, tea, coffee, sugar etc.) The hotel grounds are immaculate - not a blade of grass out of place. The hotel backs onto the beach and there is a dedicated section for hotel guests with sun beds and umbrellas, as well as security and an attendant. You will get people trying to sell you things like juice, coconut water and other bits and bobs but if you’re not interested, once you’re firm, they will leave you alone. I particularly enjoyed seeing all the locals enjoying the beach on the Sunday - playing football, fishing, hanging out. Our board was bed and breakfast, though we did have dinner at the restaurant twice. Breakfast offered multiple hot counter and buffet style options with lots of international influence (e.g. a spin on a full English, American style pancakes and waffles, continental pastries etc.) and also Gambian options, which I loved. Even the fussiest of eaters would struggle not to find something to eat. Dinner is expensive but the food is really good and the portions are plentiful so you really do get what you pay for. There are also lots of other restaurants within 2/3 minutes walk of the hotel, all with lots of options and good food. Some of our favourites were Solomon’s, Sambas and Luigi’s. There are also small local shops and a larger supermarket within a 5-minute walk, the ***** (with multiple bars and restaurants and the craft market etc.) is 5 minutes away in a taxi (which are outside in abundance) and there is also a small craft market opposite the hotel, so the hotel is well situated (monkey and crocodile parks are also nearby). We used the spa, which is tucked away at the side of the hotel and the massages were excellent. I didn’t manage to get to the gym, but I was told by another guest that it wasn’t in operation in any case, which if true, isn’t great. The other added bonus was currency exchange in reception if you can’t or don’t want to go out; and you exchange directly using your bank card if you don’t want to withdraw from the cash machine first. With regard to currency, the hotel needs to ensure that smaller notes (specifically 50D and 100D) are available in sufficient quantity so that guests can be g