Kenyan beaches I was told are marvelous. Unfortunately, we couldn’t make it to Lamu up north, I personally didn’t wanna miss the train experience, from Nairobi to Mombasa, like in “Out of Africa”. We boarded the train and it departed at 8 am sharp, no African time in this case, as I have previously told you. The seats were e bit narrow, but still comfortable. During the journey, we enjoyed the bush landscape, read, slept here and there, listened to music, and had deep conversations. Everything went so smoothly for 6 hours until we reached Mombasa and the adventure truly began.
Upon reaching Mombasa, we got a TukTuk to the city center, which is quite far from the train station. Initially, he took the wrong off-road route, but after asking for help, he was able to find the correct path. This wasn’t the best choice, as navigating through rural areas with exposed luggage felt unsafe. I recommend taking a shuttle for this route, even though it costs more, it offers a greater sense of security and comfort. After quite some, we arrived at the bus agency and discovered there were no buses available for the rest of the day. We then asked our TukTuk driver to take us to the shuttle station. Upon arrival, we were bombarded by drivers offering their services to Malindi, our final destination. This brought me back to when I was little, traveling from Durrës to Tirana. All the crowd was a bit overwhelming, We chose a shuttle for 400 Kenyan Shillings instead of a Matatu for 300, though even in the shuttle we felt squeezed.
A small piece of advice for the ladies: Mombasa has a significant Muslim community, so it’s wise to dress modestly to avoid unwanted attention. After a three-and-a-half-hour journey, we reached Malindi. It didn’t look like a town center, however we were used with this infrastructure by that time. The Uber system here is different — you need to negotiate prices with drivers inside the app, as otherwise, no one will accept your ride, and cars are scarce. Once again, the a TukTuk came to our rescue, picking us up and taking us to the Swordfish Villas, which, were not located by the beach.
We were exhausted beyond words, having left our hotel at 6:30 am and arriving at 6:00 pm, we faced another challenge: the reception had no computer, and our reservation wasn’t in their records. That was the cherry on top! After waiting an hour by the pool, the situation was resolved. It turned out that there was no situation in the first place, they had given our villa to someone else, but the villas were identical. This was the first time we really lived the pole-pole expression in a bad way. We finally settled in, freshened up, and went to an Italian restaurant by the beach to end our long day.
Malindi has a significant Italian community, and many manage restaurants or hotels. Rosada, an Italian restaurant, is a place I highly recommend. If you book ahead and spend over 5000 Kenyan Shillings, you get the best beach beds under a marvelous tree for free. I spend the whole day there, relaxing and enjoying the beach. My friend, like a little explorer, walked north and south along the beach, talking to locals and learning about their culture. The ocean here is beautiful but different from what I’m used to in Albania. The shore has smooth white sand, however the ocean had seaweed and some kind of stones.
The tide was something that shocked me, I was not used to see a tide with this much change. On 28th of May of 2024, at around 01:00 pm, the ocean got further and further, but by 6 pm, it had advanced tens of meters. It was the first time for me experiencing something like that. There was no more shore, the ocean was at our feet, by the sun beds.
The scene by night changed 100% compared to the day. The beautiful lights and music created a completely different atmosphere. The local DJ played a mix of old hits like Shakira and local music presenting a new kind of music to us. I’ll add some in my Travel playlist on YouTube. At the same time the people that were having fun and making the club full, were a mix of a sort. We’ve been commuting all these times from the Swordfish to the beach by TukTuk. We felt very safe once we were in a TukTuk or with a local. It reminds me of the phenomenon of the Albanian “BESA”. “N’Besën tënde!”
Ok back to the trip now. The next day, we arranged for a car to take us to Diani, with a stop in Watamu for a tour. At the Watamu Marine Ticket Point, I recommend paying in cash to avoid the lengthy card registration process. The tour was around 30$ per person. After a brief wait, we sailed towards the dolphins. We went very close, however because there were many boats chasing them in the hopes to catch a nice photo, none of them made a nice big jump. Next we did some snorkeling. There were some nice colorful fish, however not a lot of corals and crowded. We drank a lot of salty water. Our last stop was a small island formed during low tide in front of Garoda Beach. A beautiful place with white sand and clear water. A lot of tourists of course, we even met one of our neighbors from the Swordfish Villas. We really enjoyed our time there.
Unexpectedly, our boat left us in the middle of the ocean, and we had to walk 150 meters to the shore with our bags. We were promised a TukTuk, but after several phone calls and a lot of waiting, we finally got one to take us back to our driver. The scenery had changed completely; the last remaining boats were now stuck in the sand due to the low tide. It was a devastating view, a desert was born right there.
We headed to Diani, where another adventure awaited — this time, less pleasant. We got stuck in traffic for four hours before boarding a ferry to cross to the other side. We arrived at our hotel, Diani Beachlet, late at night, only to find it lacked air conditioning. We made due with some fans. We Ubered to the nearest restaurant, a service I don’t recommend in Diani. TukTuks are better, you can get their number or arrange a pick up time.
The next morning revealed a serene, private beach that was practically our backyard. A place so calm and private, that gave you a sense of serenity. We explored the area, enjoyed the calm beach and saw a passing camel caravan. Later, at Diani Watersports, besides the beautify view, we had also the show of flying kites. I tried lobster for the first time — it was delicious and the best 18$ I’ve ever spent.
In the evening, we went at latin party at Funky Monkey. We had a blast dancing. The next day, we explored a new beach with free-roaming monkeys, adding excitement to our visit. We had to be cautious with our belongings, as the monkeys were quick to snatch anything they could, especially food. It stole my cupcake while I was sleeping. We offered the monkey a banana, and it was adorable. By this time, we had changed hotels to get a real feeling of Diani. That night, we went to Manyatta, which was quieter than usual.
Our final day in Diani involved crossing the bridge to Mombasa airport to catch a flight to Nairobi. We weren’t aware Diani had its own airport. We arrived on time at the airport, however our flight to Nairobi was late. It was the last leg of our Kenyan adventure before heading to Entebbe, Uganda.
