Lamu Island

Lamu Island is 200 kilometers North of Malindi lies a haven from civilization. Lamu Island is a part of Kenya's Lamu Archipelago, and has managed to stay unspoilt and untouched. Kenya's oldest town, Lamu has retained all the charm and character built up over centuries.

Lamu Island is a unique medieval Swahili town with no roads or vehicles. Its streets are designed wide enough to allow only the passage of camels and donkeys.Children playing in the narrow streets, Muslim men (baraza)chat on street corners and women in their black buibui veils strolling on a shopping spree. Most houses have a rooftop which is used as a patio for catching the breeze'. There is just one car on the island and it belongs to the mayor so donkeys are the main form of transport as well as dhows and speedboats.

The island long history dates back in the 15 Century as a successful port, exporting timber, ivory, amber, spices and slaves from the hinterland. Colonized by the Portuguese without a murmur, mid-1800s it became a subject of the Sultan of Zanzibar that nominally controlled the whole of the coastal strip until Kenya’s independence in 1963.

Up to the late 19th century Lamu’s economy thrived on slave labour with the abolition of slave trade it declined rapidly. With development of tourism and a generation infected with wanderlust Lamu awoke. In the 1960s Lamu was infamously a hippy joint .today taken it has been taken over by a much more sophisticated investors and attracts traveller from the world over.

Flying is the best way to get here and there are daily flights to Lamu. The airport is located on the neighbouring Manda Island from where you will be collected by your hotel or lodge and transferred by boat across the channel to Lamu town

Activities

Dhow sailing trips to the Takwa and Manda Ruins on Manda Island
Hang out in the famous Peponi's Bar in Shela Village on the water
Shopping for beautiful clothes, kanga's and kikoys, leather work, carved wooden furniture, silver jewellery and artifacts
Walking tour of Lamu old town with a local guide - approx. 3 hours.
Visit the Museum and Old Fort in Lamu town which have been nicely restored and have some fascinating displays

Sports for the adventurous

Kayaking trips into the Mangroves
Snorkeling between the months of November and March when the water clears and the wind drops
Swim with dolphins form Kizinga between November and March
Walk the 14 km beach to Kipungani village - the less athletic can hire camels - and have lunch at Kipungani Explorer Lodge