Kenya's Swahili Coast, beaches and lost cities: What to visit in this African destination?

Although Kenya is visited mainly for its national parks and safaris, its coastline offers travellers white sand beaches as well as a rich and unknown historical heritage . Swahili culture, which mixes African tradition with Omani heritage and the imprint of Portuguese, Indian and English traders, has given rise over the centuries to magical enclaves such as Mombasa and Lamu.

With only 61 years of history, the current independent Kenya brings together more than 40 different tribes that speak more than fifty languages , among which the most widely spoken is Swahili, which was born on the coast, as a result of the mixing of the languages ​​of the African Bantu people, and the Arabic and Persian of the sailors and merchants.

The traffic of people and goods between present-day Iran, the Arabian Peninsula, and Persia also gave rise to a civilization of its own between the 8th and 13th centuries .

Today, the Kenyan coast still maintains this cosmopolitan spirit and meeting point for merchants from all over the world, which, together with its white sand beaches, a warm climate most of the year and proximity to nature reserves, make it one of the main tourist destinations on the African continent.

The capital of British East Africa until 1907, Mombasa is Kenya's oldest city and also its second most populous . Kenyan school books say it was founded around 900, and that by the 13th century it had already become a prosperous trading centre through which slaves, spices, jewellery and all kinds of products circulated from the interior of the continent to the rest of the world.

Like other Swahili city-states in the area, it was founded on an island close to the mainland but protected by a sufficiently wide strip of sea to offer protection from invaders. On this and other nearby islands, continental Africans, Arabs and Persians settled for centuries with their trading posts that would eventually give rise to the Swahili world. Although it was destroyed several times in history, the old town of Mombasa that visitors encounter today follows the traditional structure of irregular, star-shaped streets and two- or three-story houses. Not unlike the one encountered by the navigator Vasco de Gama in 1498, the first European whose passage through the city was documented, and which would give rise to a Portuguese military and commercial presence for several centuries until the arrival of the British Empire in the 19th century.

All these stages of the city's history can still be felt and experienced in the city today. Fort Jesus, built in 1593 by the Portuguese, is the best-preserved monument in the city and a must-see for those interested in discovering the spirit and history of the city. Inside, vestiges of the Portuguese presence are preserved, but also of the periods of Omani rule, of the local mestizo elites and of the British period.

The monument can be visited on your own, although a cooperative of specialized and well-informed guides offers guided tours of the site for between 1,000 and 3,000 Kenyan shillings (between 7 and 21 euros). Hotels also often offer guided tours of the monument, and on weekends there is a light and sound show on the walls of the monument, with dinner included, which reviews the history of the city.

The historic Lusitanian fort is also the best starting point for exploring the old town. Nearby are the Arabic Gardens , a perfect place to enjoy the sunrise or sunset, or the Africa Hotel, which was the first hotel in the country. Among its narrow streets you can also find the Mandhry Mosque, the oldest in the city, antique shops and local crafts, the old port or the Forodahni restaurant, which with spectacular views of the sea and typical Swahili dishes is a classic among travelers.

The British heritage is also very much alive around Moi Avenue , with its colonial-style buildings that now house offices of banks, large companies and government buildings. Also on this artery you can photograph the famous “Mombasa Tusks”, a sculpture-monument erected by the British government in 1952 on the occasion of Elizabeth II’s visit to Kenya, where she arrived as a princess and from which she returned to London as Queen.

Nairobi's growth, especially after Kenya's independence, meant Mombasa's decline during the second half of the last century. With a reputation for being dangerous and unattractive, it was for a time considered merely a stopover on the way to the surrounding beaches.

However, the turn of the millennium has been a welcome development for one of Africa's most international metropolises. The re-arrival of traders from the Persian Gulf countries and India, as well as the recent restoration of the historic "lunatic railway" built by the British a century ago and which connects the city's port with Uganda, has put Mombasa back on the commercial, and also tourist, map of the African coast.

This can be seen in the new neighbourhoods such as Nyali, where local middle- and upper-class residents share the white sand beaches with tourists . An oasis of tranquillity where you can swim or spend the afternoon reading, for example, 'Out of Africa', the book by Danish Baroness Karen Blixen about her stay in the country, or any of the titles by Ngugi Wa Thiongo, the most internationally known Kenyan writer who for a time was touted as a possible Nobel Prize winner for literature.

These are not the only leisure options offered by these urban beaches. In addition to local food and drinks, local beach bars offer jet ski excursions along the coast or camel rides, and hotels and resorts in the area offer spa services and restaurants for the most sybaritic visitors.

And although Mombasa is not typically a stop on specialized safari tours, Tsavo National Park is located just a few hours away (about 170 kilometers) from the city center , allowing for visits even on day trips. Local hotels and travel agencies also offer two- or three-night options for those wishing to stay overnight in the parks.

Even closer, less than an hour from the city to the north, is Haller Park, with its population of giant tortoises, giraffes, buffalo, antelopes and hippos among other fauna, or Mombasa Marine Park, a natural area protected since 1986, which thanks to a coral reef allows you to dive to discover the local marine fauna, but also to practice windsurfing and other water sports.

But the most famous beaches are located about 50 kilometres to the south, towards the border with Tanzania . The beaches of Diani, with their endless rows of palm trees, reefs and kilometres of white sand are another option to enjoy the “African Caribbean” during any season. Its four and five star resorts are often a meeting point for international celebrities and the local elite to enjoy water sports, sun and nightlife.

The island and town of Lamu, at the northern tip of the Kenyan coast, are very different from life in Mombasa and its surroundings. Kenya's oldest inhabited town had its golden age between the 17th and 19th centuries, when the Sultans of Oman made it a protectorate and trading centre. The Lamu Fort, open to travellers today, dates back to that period , and was the site of slave trading well into the 18th century.

Forgotten by progress and the British, Lamu remains suspended in time. Its narrow streets, a veritable labyrinth of buildings of varying heights, preserve the original structure making it the best preserved Swahili city in the world. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, life in this Muslim community has changed little in recent centuries, except for the arrival of electricity not long ago, and of course the Internet.

There are no cars on the island. Walking, riding one of the 20,000 donkeys that populate it or travelling by boat along the coast are still the only means of transport in a place where time has stopped and there is no rush. It was precisely because of its tranquillity that Lamu began to become popular in the 1960s among backpackers looking to isolate themselves from the world or find themselves.

Getting lost in the streets of the old town, and visiting the Lamu Museum , the Swahili House or the German Post Office are recommended places to discover the history of the place.

The main attraction, however, is to enjoy the tranquillity of a place where clocks have no meaning and life is ruled by the sun and the calls to prayer from the mosques. And for that , there is no better place than the beaches and dunes of Shela, which remain practically untouched . Some (of the few) hotels in Lamu also offer the possibility of practising water sports or going fishing.

On the neighbouring island of Manda (Lamu is actually an archipelago) , exclusive resorts have opened in recent years for travellers who prefer modern luxury , and from where you can visit the ruins of Takwa, an old abandoned trading post, or take trips through its mangroves aboard a Dhow, the traditional boat of the area.

Another very different type of traveller who visits the island is the charitable one. Lamu is also the field of action of several Spanish NGOs such as OneDayYes, Anidan (anidan.org/) which runs a school for orphans and a paediatric hospital or Afrikable, an NGO focused on female empowerment, which offers charitable stays on the ground to those interested in solidarity tourism.

IGOR GALO - FOR TIME