Lamu Island is a part of Kenya's Lamu Archipelago, and there is one town
and three villages on the island. As Kenya's oldest living town, Lamu
has retained all the charm and character built up over centuries. The
archipelago is a chain of Islands separated from the mainland by a
narrow channel bordered with dense mangrove forest and protected from
the Indian Ocean by coral reefs and large sand dunes. The island has
been a port of varying importance for thousands of years. In the 2nd
century, the Greeks knew of this coast and called it Azania and later,
in the 9th and 10th centuries Arab and Persian traders and settlers
called it Bilad-al-Zenj. Their small settlements grew into fiercely
independent city-states, which brought forth a distinct Arab-African
culture called Swahili
A thousand years of trade, settlement and Islamic expansion has resulted
in the people of Lamu being devout followers of Islam and the town is a
place of religious pilgrimage where Muslims from all over eastern Africa
gather every year to celebrate Maulidi, the Prophet's birthday. Lamu is
remote even by Kenyan standards. There are no cars on the island and a
way of life from and earlier age is still intact.
A short boat ride from the town of Lamu is Peponi, a small hotel
established in 1967 by the Korschen family, who still run it today. The
hotel is a collection of small buildings scattered through gardens and
following the line of the coast. Small and personal, it is the perfect
rest after a safari or a hide away holiday from modern life.
Day 1 - Nairobi to Lamu, Peponi Hotel
Depart Nairobi Airport on your scheduled flight to Lamu, flying time is
approximately 1hr 45mins. On arrival you will be met, your luggage collected
and you walk the short distance to the airport's own jetty. From here it is
a lovely 20 minute boat ride to Peponi Hotel.
Days 2 to 4 - Peponi Hotel
Enjoy the lazy mood of this beautiful Swahili Island. For the active there
are plenty of water sports, for the more relaxed there are quiet places in
the hotel grounds, by the pool or on the verandah of your room. Meals served
in the waterside restaurant are delicious, particularly the seafood which
comes fresh from the waters around the island.
Days 5 - Lamu to Nairobi
Sadly you will wave farewell to the new found friends at Peponis. Transfer
by boat to the airport and fly by scheduled flight to Nairobi.
