Waiting for your visit
SDZ Chá Sarl Tea Plantation is a great place to unwind with a delicious cup of tea while taking in the picturesque scenery of a magical green garden that will surround you.
Gurué is one of the principle towns located in the middle of the Zambezia Province of Mozambique. Central to accessing regions north of the Zambezi River, including into Zimbabwe, Malawi and Tanzania.
Accommodation
Casa Junqueiro
This Bungalow was the home of tea tycoon Manuel Saraiva Junqueiro. It is a great place to bring the whole family for a week, with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a kitchen and dining room.
The kitchen is equipped with an oven, cooker, and fridge. There is also an expansive dining table that can seat up to 10 people, great for weekend parties.
Palame Chalé
We have 5 self-contained, simply furnished, rustic, traditionally round cottages, located right by a stream, where guests are encouraged to go for a quick dip in the cool waters. A perfect getaway for singles or couples staying over the weekend.
Guests have the option of utilising the outdoor dining and barbeque area adjoining these huts, or the kitchen and dining area adjoining the bungalow, which is a short walk from the cottages.
Long Term Stays
If you fall in love with the place and want to stay for an extended period of time to write your novel, for volunteer work, or any other reason, please speak to our office for available homes for long-term rent on our property.
Rates
Our rates start at $35 per room per night (maximum two adults per room) and include breakfast. They include government taxes and tourism levies. Rates are quoted in US Dollars for ease of reference. Guests are welcome to pay in Mozambique Meticais at the prevailing rate of exchange on the date of payment. We offer discounts if you would like to rent the entire homestay.
Arrival & Departure
Our standard check-in time is from 2pm on day of arrival; with check-out before 11am on day of departure. We will, of course, endeavour to accommodate both earlier check-ins or later checkouts whenever possible, but this is strictly by prior request.
Meals
You can get all of your basic requirements to make a meal from Gurue town. A cook will be available to all our guests to assist them with, preparing meals, serving and cleaning up, and provide you with complimentary cups of tea throughout your visit. We also offer lunch and dinner at an extra cost per meal. Please enquire about our menu’s when making your booking.
Smoking
SDZ Chá Sarl does not permit smoking in any of the guest rooms nor internal common areas. Guests are advised that if evidence of smoking is detected in a bedroom after a guest has checked out, an additional charge, equal to one night’s full room rate will be applied. Patios and gardens are available for the convenience of guests who wish to smoke outside.
Right of Admission
SDZ Chá Sarl reserve the right, at its discretion, to terminate, without notice, an individuals’ stay where deemed necessary through unacceptable behaviour or as a result of actions likely to offend or endanger other guests or staff. Guests are liable for any damage or loss caused by them during their stay at our properties and will be required to pay the amount reasonably required to make good or remedy the damage or loss.
Tours and Activities
1. Hiking
The best way to explore the estate is to walk within the fields, but this is prohibited without an estate guide. Otherwise, you are welcome to walk around the roads of the estate on your own.
The length of each of these hikes are dependent on your personal physical fitness, and where you want to go. They are usually between 2-4 hours. Please book a day in advance. If you prefer morning hikes we recommend that you start anytime between 6:00 – 8:00 am and if you want to hike in the afternoon the latest we leave is at 3:30pm.
Some of the hikes will pass the main roads, so if you get tired and do not wish to continue at any point, just inform you guide and he will arrange for someone to pick you up for an additional 15 USD.
- Santinha Waterfall & Honey Moon Cottage
The Guide will take you from your accommodation through our tea fields to the sacred Santinha waterfall located in the Serra division of SDZ Chá Sarl Tea Estate. There is Shrine of Mother Mary, who hears all the prayers said at this spot.
You can decide to return back to your accommodation from there, or for those of you who are more adventurous, from here, it is a steep up-hill climb all the way to the ruins of the Honeymoon Cottage.
- Tea Forest Tour
The Guide will take you from your accommodation and walk you through our Forest, down and around our tea fields and back back up to your accommodation. You will see our streams, silver oaks, jacarandas.
- Into The Mountains
Follow the stream into the mountains, to where the mashamba’s (kitchen farms) are and and walk the rocky path behind the top. This rout is inaccessible by car so we only recommend it if you have a high fitness level.
2. Tea Tours: Plucking, Manufacturing & Tasting
The Guide will collect you from your accommodation around 7:30am. You will be given a plucking basket and taken to the nearest field where we are currently harvesting. Our pluckers will teach you how to best pluck the fresh green tea, and when you feel you have collected enough leaf, the guide will help you analyse the weight and quality before you walking you to your accommodation for lunch.
At around 3:00pm your guide will walk you back down to the factory to see our manufacture. The factory manager will show you the processes and you will get to and taste the different types of teas manufactured. Our guests will also have the opportunity to purchase factory-fresh teas during their visits.
The entire tour cost is 35 USD per group (maximum 4 persons per group). If you only wish to do the manufacture & tasting tour, it is 15 Usd per group.
If you enjoy exploring, it would be easy to spend a week here within the estate estate and the surrounding districts. Some of the attractions include:
Mount Namuli
It is Mozambique's second highest mountain at 2419m above sea level, and from which flow the Licungo (Lugela) and Malema Rivers. The climb rewards you with stunning scenery and bird lovers will also enjoy watching the Namuli Apalis (African passerine bird) and encounter rare species like the Thyolo Alethe and the Dapple-throat. The forest is also home to the Vincent's Bush Squirrel.
The mountain is considered sacred by the local Makua people, so while climbing is permitted, the local traditions must be observed. These traditions are now commercialised and entail an offering of rice (arroz), or sorghum flour (farinha de mapira) to appease both the spirits and the local régulo (chief), who also require a payment. It is also necessary to have a guide as the route isn’t straightforward and it’s easy to get lost.
It makes a scenic but challenging climb for which you’ll need a good level of fitness and lack of a fear of heights, as there are several near-vertical spots where you’ll need to clamber on all fours. Please ensure that you pack the following, and anything else that you may need prior to the hike:
- water bottle and water purification tablets (refill at the spring)
- lunch and snacks
- hat, sunscreen, hiking boots etc.
SDZ Chá Sarl can assist you to make the following arrangements, with 2 days prior notice of your visit/climb.
- Drop off & pick up to and from the Mountain
- Offerings for the Regulo
- Guide
The cost is 55 Usd per group, and is subject to change. We do not take any responsibility for any accidents and incidents within or outside our property.
Gurue Town
Gurué is one of the principle towns located in the middle of the Zambezia Province of Mozambique. The town is also centrally located with respect to the northern Mozambique region i.e. north of the Zambezi River, as well as access to all the areas of this northern region, including into Zimbabwe, Malawi and Tanzania.
Founded and named by the Portuguese in the 19th century, Gurue was developed as a major tea producing town from the 1930’s. It was renamed in October 1959 as Vila Junqueiro, after the death of the tea tycoon Manuel Saraiva Junqueiro, in an airplane crash.
By the late 1950s the town had grown due to the expansion of the tea industry and the cinema was founded in 11 April 1970. TAZ airline (Transportes Aéreos da Zambézia) had also increased its flights in the town’s airfield.
Post independence from Portugal in 1975, Vila Junqueiro returned to its original name. The eruption of the Mozambican Civil War between 1977 to 1992, resulted in economic and social decline that significantly deteriorated the town.
Today, there are no more commercial flights into Gurue, but you can still visit the mud airstirip. The cinema still stands, and visitors and locals alike still frequent it. There are other remaining monuments and heritage buildings in town including the:
- Independence Square with its concrete monument of the Mozambique flag.
- The Mozambican Heroes of national liberation court.
- Frelimo Monument.
- Igreja coloniale (colonial Church)
The national language of Mozambique is Portuguese, however the major language spoken by the locals in Gurué is Lomwe. Though most Lomwe would consider themselves Christians, the traditions of the paying respect and worshipping the ancestral spirits greatly influence their daily lives.
Traditional Lomwe norms dictate that men build the houses, make the reed and grass mats, the barriers to protect the gardens, and the grain bins to store the maize. In the past the men have been skilled hunters, but there is little game remaining to be hunted. The major tasks of the women are cooking and caring for the children and making clay pots.
Igreja da Missao
South 17km from Gurue, towards Invinha on Route 484 this church is a beautiful lonely remainder of the once thriving area.
The only way to get into Gurue is by car. Please check the road conditions prior to travel.
As there are many border checks within Mozambique, in-between the provinces and districts, always keep your passport with you at all times. The closest International airports and cities and their distance from the town are as follows:
- Milange: 200 km
- Blantyre: 350 km
- Nampula: 450 km
- Nacala: 650 km
Founded and named by the Portuguese in the 19th century, Gurue was developed as a major tea producing town from the 1930’s. It was renamed in October 1959 as Vila Junqueiro, after the death of the tea tycoon Manuel Saraiva Junqueiro, in an airplane crash.
By the late 1950s the town had grown due to the expansion of the tea industry and the cinema was founded in 11 April 1970. TAZ airline (Transportes Aéreos da Zambézia) had also increased its flights in the town’s airfield.
Post independence from Portugal in 1975, Vila Junqueiro returned to its original name. The eruption of the Mozambican Civil War between 1977 to 1992, resulted in economic and social decline that significantly deteriorated the town.
The national language of Mozambique is Portuguese, however the major language spoken by the locals in Gurué is Lomwe. Though most Lomwe would consider themselves Christians, the traditions of the paying respect and worshipping the ancestral spirits greatly influence their daily lives.
Traditional Lomwe norms dictate that men build the houses, make the reed and grass mats, the barriers to protect the gardens, and the grain bins to store the maize. In the past the men have been skilled hunters, but there is little game remaining to be hunted. The major tasks of the women are cooking and caring for the children and making clay pots.
