Idyllic beach, fabulous snorkeling, tidal pools and peace and quiet beckon you to this beautiful island. Until date, it has been the secluded nature spot for celebrities, now it can become the dream destination for your holiday.
A guest naps on a hammock above the bay.
There are just two exclusive resorts in this island , Mike’s Camp and Kiwayu Safari Village. The two resorts are right in the middle of the Kiunga Marine National Reserve and the Dodori and Boni reserves, where you can see cheetahs, giraffes, lions and elephants. Both are stunning. Neither is cheap. They claim to being the hide-out for folks like Prince William and Mick Jagger.
The living room of the lodge at Mike’s Camp.
Kiwayu Safari Village, on Kenya’s mainland across the bay from Kiwayu Island, consisting of 18 thatched-roof bungalows strung along the shore, plus one off-shore honeymoon suite on Kiwayu Island. The cost is $700 a night per couple, including all meals. Higher rates apply over the year-end holiday period, and there is an additional $20-a-day conservation fee.
Inside one of the cottages. The cost is $700 a night per couple, including all meals.
Mike’s Camp, also known as Munira Island Camp, is on Kiwayu Island itself. The trip by motorboat from Kiwayu Safari Village takes about 15 minutes. The camp has only seven rustic bungalows nestled along the ridge of the island, with exceptional views of the Indian Ocean to the east and watery mangrove forests to the west.
Dinner is served with a view at Safari Village.
Kiwayu is part of the Lamu Archipelago, located in the Indian Ocean close to the northern coast of Kenya, which controls them. The largest of the Lamu Archipelago islands are Pate Island, Manda Island and Lamu Island.
The sun rises over the Indian Ocean at Kiwayu Safari Village.
Food , food and food... Mike’s Camp is the true haven for good food, especially for the warmth bwith which it is served, it offers the Zen vibe, the tasty Swahili food, the beaches straight out of the paradise manual, and the bucket shower.
Kiwayu Safari Village has 18 thatched-roof bungalows strung along the shore.
Meals remain scrumptious and out of the ordinary. You can hope for seaweed tempura and mini raw oysters as bar snacks. Dinner menu provides calamari and skewered shrimp. Lunches are the classic Italian two-step of primi piatti and secondi like risotto with asparagus and cracked crab.
A family-style lunch in the dining room at Kiwayu Safari Village. The resort is owned by an Italian family.
What is there for you to do? Well for the better part, there are naps to be taken, lazing in hammocks and just relaxing. Besides which you can walk the endless beaches, take picnics, go dhow sailing or take game drives into the bush right behind the resort, which is teeming with lions, giraffes, buffaloes and elephants. For water lovers, there’s snorkeling, water-skiing, boogie-boarding, windsurfing, sailing and deep-sea fishing.
Get set to relax in a hammock yet again
How to get there: SafariLink, an airline based in Nairobi, makes stops in Kiwayu en route to Lamu if there are two or more passengers, which usually translates into daily service and an easy leg to add to any East African safari. It offers daily flights, at $365 round trip, from mid-December until mid-April and from July until the end of October, provided there are at least two passengers.
Image credits: Guillaume Bonn
Source: The New York Times
