Leo's Beach Hotel & Restaurant Adults Only

Leo’s Beach Hotel is a beautiful oasis near Banjul, owned by Austrian couple Nina and Alois. They fell in love with The Gambia and made it their home in 2009. Leaving behind careers in publishing, they built this intimate six-room resort, which opened in 2013. Each pristine room—a testament to Alois’ meticulous attention to detail—overlooks the swimming pool and lush garden. A short stroll through the greenery leads to the beach, but the pool area is a great spot for sipping cocktails and reading books. With an on-site restaurant and bar serving delicious meals and refreshing drinks, it’s easy to unwind and soak in a touch of Swiss hospitality in West Africa.

A wonderful place. Just spent a week here on our first visit to The Gambia and everything was perfect. Room well equipped. Garden was amazing especially as a birder it was full of birds for me. Food delicious and service friendly and efficient. Totally recommend this place.

A Place of Peace and Tranquility My wife and I spent a lovely two weeks at Leo’s beach hotel and restaurant in The Gambia, the peace and tranquility was only broken, as we laid in the glorious 32 degree sunshine, by the gentle lapping of waves on the beach and the sound of birds in their beautifully manicured garden. The Austrian owners, Nina and Alois, live at the hotel and so are always available to help and assist in any way they can. In addition were the wonderful team of Gambian locals who were always on hand whenever a drink was needed or to assist in the lovely restaurant. Our accommodation was everything you could wish for, a place of coolness when time away from the heat was needed, with air conditioning and ceiling fans. The two bedrooms have large double beds, which could also be used as two singles. There was a lounge with TV, fridge/mini bar, HiFi system with speakers, a safe, plenty of wardrobe and drawer space, hairdryer, table and chairs, and a large comfortable sofa. The room ceilings were higher than standard rooms, the bedroom and lounge have large, full-height patio doors, with mosquito netting if you would like to keep them open. There was a well appointed bathroom, double sinks, toilet and large shower area. There was free WiFi throughout the hotel which was pretty good, although it did occasionally drop out. I am a wheelchair user, they put us in the ground-floor suite, they improved the access to the room with the installation of a small ramp, as there was a slight step at the door. The room is large enough to handle a wheelchair, the shower wet room is also large enough to be accessible in a wheelchair, if this is needed. I was provided with a plastic shower chair which was very helpful for me. The only issue is that access to the pool and gardens is down one step, we managed to carry the wheelchair down this, if staff members were around they always assisted. The room also benefits from its own patio area with a table and chairs and two sun beds. We elected to have half board, the restaurant was very good, breakfast was continental, although hot food like eggs were available to purchase. The evening meal was a starter, main course and dessert taken from the restaurant’s menu. The food was very good, it was a mix of Mediterranean and Gambian cuisine, no buffets at this restaurant! Whilst the restaurant is open to non-residents, it was never busy and the staff were very attentive. To keep the small boutique feel of the hotel non-residents are not allowed in the pool and garden area, children are also not allowed which, together with the small number of rooms, makes this a very peaceful location. There were plenty of sun beds and deck chairs, with towels provided. The hotel has lots of African art work which are fascinating, much thought has obviously been given to the way in which the hotel looks, the geometry of the lines that the modern hotel buildings have, followed through to the lines of the pool, patio areas and garden are stunning. Even the chairs and bar stalls have been sourced with an eye for excellent design, the whole hotel has a real specialist boutique-feel. We booked the hotel direct and the flight through the Gambia Experience, the hotel arranged the airport transfers. Overall a lovely holiday if you want to escape the British autumn/winter for some beautiful Gambian sunshine, provided by some wonderful Gambian locals, under the management of Austrian owners Nina and Alois. We have already booked two weeks for next year!!