“It is tough to find a good hotel in Dar es Salaam”

I right this recommendation with the understanding that its difficult to find a good hotel in Dar es Salaam. A 5 star in Dar is the equivalent to a 2 in Europe or North America. The Protea Hotel Oysterbay has some good features great water pressure, rooms for long stays, and helpful staff. However, overall maintenance on the place could really improve. We were in a ground floor room (there are only two floors) and the window in the bedroom could not lock and in fact was not even on the hinges it was a serious security issue especially since this place stands out in a low traffic area as a "western" establishment where people probably have money. There were also a tremendous amount of mosquitoes in the room that where in the room from when we just entered it and continued to get in. We never had the windows open or anything.

“It's not really a Protea hotel”

This is owned by Protea, but don't go there expecting Protea standards. It's an old, refurbished serviced-apartment complex. The staff are not very interested, the rooms are uncomfortable and old. It does have a kitchen and living room, so if you need a place to work for an extended period and don't mind a hard bed, it might be ok. But get this - the restaurant is great! It is out of place here. I would recommend eating at the restaurant but staying somewhere else.