april-2019

32 / TRAVEL / Kenya
TRAVEL / 33
Aerial view of Shela, Lamu
Island (top); A street scene
in Lamu (bottom left);
Dhows at sunset off Shela,
Lamu Island (bottom right);
View from the Peponi
Hotel, Shela, Lamu Island
(right page).
“Take a dhow or speedboat and head north up the
archipelago past Pate Island through the Siyu Channel
to Kiwayu Island in Kiunga Marine National Reserve”
Things to do
• Desert Rose Lodge organises
half- and full-day wilderness camel
walks. Also check out the natural
rockslides near the lodge.
• Visit the El Molo tribe on the shores
of the lake near Loiyangalani, take
a boat to South Island or look at
the desert museum.
• Tube down the river from
Shompole Wilderness when the
water is high.
• Get eye level with game in the
animal blind at Lentorre Lodge.
• Explore the Lamu Archipelago in a
dhow or speedboat.
• Beautiful beach walks, and ancient
ruins are accessible on Lamu
Island and Manda Island.
• Sandyachting, fishing or diving at
Kiwayu Island.
Doinyo Lengai volcano. This is pure wilderness combined with
low-key luxury. Each room has a private plunge pool, and the
waterhole close by provides plenty of easy-to-access game
viewing, including sightings of rare wild dogs.
SEA CHANGE
If four-wheel-drive japes and safaris are not your idea of
relaxation, then the Lamu Archipelago has Kenya’s best farflung
beach locations. Lamu Old Town, a UNESCO World
Heritage Site, and ancient trading port that’s been inhabited for
over 700 years, is like something from another world. Narrow
lanes, crumbling coral façades, rambling donkeys and creaking
wooden dhows (some still marvellously constructed without
the use of a single nail) combined with empty kilometres of
beach contribute to the age-old environment.
The charming Shela Village, which is frequented by the jet
set, gets very busy in peak times, as does Lamu Island during
the Maulidi Festival. For true quiet, take a short hop across the
channel to the idyllic Majlis Hotel and Resorts Lamu on Manda
Island. Designed by Malindi-based architect, Armando Tanzini,
and chock full of Africana treasures at every turn, Majlis has an
upscale Lamu Island vibe. Dreamy pools, charming staff and a
plethora of activities, including: water-skiing; kayaking through
mangroves; an innovative wild gym; biking across parts of
Manda Island to Takwa Ruins; and sunset dhow rides lounging
on plumped-up cushions fill the days all too quickly.
It’s a hard place to leave, but the less-trodden parts of the
Lamu Archipelago are worth it. Through the Mkanda Channel
from Lamu Island is Manda Bay, a once gloriously quiet lodge
frequented by reclusive celebrities. Wonderful service and
charm make it a memorable retreat. Boating the opposite way
to the southwesterly tip of Lamu Island, you’ll find Kizingo:
barefoot simplicity in a spot where there is little more than sea,
sun and sand. My favourite activity, though, is to take a dhow
or speedboat and head north up the archipelago past Pate
Island through the Siyu Channel to Kiwayu Island in Kiunga
Marine National Reserve. The sense of wild beach is unparalleled,
and the beauty of small bays and the long stretches of
sand is liberating
Mike’s Camp sits in semi-splendid isolation on the top of a
ridge, with views of the sea on one side and the creek on the
other. You won’t bump into passers-by here. Snorkelling, deepsea
fishing and long walks on an empty beach are some of the
pleasures available. On the mainland is the Dodori National
Reserve, and in the past, elephants have swum past the island.
It’s the ultimate in wilderness sea journeys.
➔
Plan your trip
Book your flight to Kenya
on kenya-airways.com
Neil Thomas, Rachel Clara Reed, Robert harding