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Watamu & Malindi

Marine Park Lagoons, Swahili Ruins and Turtle Beaches

Plan this trip
3 daysIdeal stay₹4,070From / night₹1,480Food / day₹1,920Entry

Two beach towns twenty kilometres apart on the north coast. Watamu sits on a marine national park of coral gardens and turtle-nesting beaches, next to the mangroves of Mida Creek and the Arabuko-Sokoke forest; the 13th-century Swahili town of Gede lies in ruins in the forest nearby. Malindi, with its Vasco da Gama pillar and Italian holiday villas, has the airport with flights from Nairobi. Calm and lower-key than Diani.

Highlights

  • Glass-bottom boat over Watamu's coral gardens
  • Gede, a ruined Swahili town in the forest
  • Mida Creek boardwalk and mangroves
  • Birding in Arabuko-Sokoke Forest
  • Local Ocean turtle rescue centre
  • Sunset at Marafa's eroded canyon (Hell's Kitchen)
  • Vasco da Gama Pillar in Malindi

Things to do

  • Glass-bottom boat in Watamu Marine ParkMorning · 3h
  • Gede RuinsMorning · 2h
  • Mida Creek boardwalk and canoeAfternoon · 2h 30m
  • Arabuko-Sokoke Forest birding walkMorning · 3h
  • Sunset at Marafa (Hell's Kitchen)Evening · 3h
  • Malindi old town and the Vasco da Gama PillarAfternoon · 2h

Tours & tickets

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When to go

Best time: December – March, July – October

Worth knowing

Long Rains on the Coast

April to June is the coast's wet season, heaviest in May: humid, with heavy downpours, rough seas and cloudy water for the reef trips. Some smaller hotels close or renovate; those open are at their cheapest.

Heads up

Kusi Wind: Rough Sea and Seaweed

The south-east kusi monsoon blows from about June to September: good for kitesurfing, but the sea is choppier, the reef water cloudier, and seaweed washes up on the beach. Dhow and glass-bottom-boat trips can be cancelled. The calmest, clearest sea is from about December to March, under the lighter kaskazi wind.

Heads up

Christmas and New Year on the Coast

From mid-December to early January the coast fills with holidaymakers from Nairobi and Europe: hotels raise prices and set minimum stays, and flights and SGR tickets to Mombasa sell out. Book early.