Budget Vacation Lamu
Affordable Tours
Kenya Flying Safaris
Amu House Or similar, bed and breakfast
Affrodable Romantic Vacations in Kenya
Lamu is not one island, and this is the package that treats it that way. Most people who fly in spend four days on Lamu Island itself, walk the Old Town, get to Shela Beach twice and go home thinking they have seen it. They have seen roughly a third of it. A budget vacation in Lamu with Baecation Adventures puts you on three islands in four days and still leaves you time to sit on a roof and do nothing.
You start where everyone starts, in Lamu Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the oldest living Swahili settlement in East Africa. There are no cars anywhere on the island. You walk the coral stone lanes, step aside for donkeys carrying cement and luggage, and cross water by boat when you need to. A licensed local guide takes you through Lamu Fort, the Lamu Museum, the Swahili House Museum and the carved doors that families here have kept for generations, and the entry fees are included rather than added at the gate.
Then you leave the island. Day three is a full day on the water. You cross to Manda Island and go up a mangrove creek at high tide to reach Takwa, a fifteenth century Swahili town that was abandoned around 1700 and simply left standing. The mosque, the pillar tomb and the house walls are still there, held by the National Museums of Kenya, and there is usually nobody else in it. From there the boat runs out to the reef off Manda Toto, where you snorkel with masks and fins provided, and stops on an exposed sandbank in the middle of the channel on the way back.
Shela Beach gets an afternoon of its own, twelve kilometres of open sand with dunes behind it and rarely anyone on it. The second evening is a private sunset dhow sail, just the two of you and a crew, sail up and engine off, ending as the sun goes down behind the Old Town skyline. Return flights from Nairobi and every boat transfer are included, so nothing on this itinerary needs negotiating with anyone at a jetty.
Details
Summary information about this package
Amu House Or similar, bed and breakfast
Lamu
Couples
Available
Flying
For Adults only (18+)
Bed and breakfast
Included
All year round
Costs
Kenyan Citizen
Ksh. 45500 per person sharing
Non-resident
$ 455 per person sharing
Transport
Options: Flying
Duration and Timing
Yes
More than >3 Days+
About Package
More information about this package
Three islands, not one. You sleep on Lamu, land on Manda for the Takwa Ruins, and snorkel off Manda Toto. Most visitors only ever see the first of those.
Takwa, a Swahili town that was abandoned and left standing. A 15th century settlement on Manda Island, deserted around 1700 and now a National Museums of Kenya site, reached through a mangrove creek at high tide.
A full snorkelling day with gear provided. The reef off Manda Toto with masks and fins included, plus a stop on an exposed sandbank in the middle of the channel at low tide.
The guided Old Town walk is included, not sold to you later. A licensed local guide takes you through Lamu Fort, the Lamu Museum, the Swahili House Museum, the carved doors and the donkey sanctuary, with entry fees covered.
A private sunset dhow sail with your own crew. Two hours under a lateen sail, engine off, ending behind the Old Town skyline.
Everything on and off the island is covered. Return flights from Nairobi, private boat transfers at both ends, and every crossing in between. Nothing on this itinerary needs negotiating at a jetty.
Package Itinerary
The package itinerary is as follows
4-Day Budget Vacation Itinerary to Lamu with Baecation Adventures from Nairobi
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Day 1: Nairobi to Lamu Old Town
Pickup from your Nairobi address at 7:30 am for the drive to the airport. The flight to Manda Airport takes a little under two hours, and the descent over the archipelago gives you your first proper look at where you are going, mangrove green cut through with shallow turquoise channels. Your Baecation host meets you at the airstrip and walks you to a private boat for the short crossing to Lamu Town, with luggage following on by donkey. Check into the guesthouse and take the rest of the afternoon slowly. In the evening, walk the waterfront as the dhows come in and eat in the lanes, where a plate of pilau or grilled fish costs a few hundred shillings.
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Day 2: Lamu Old Town, Shela Beach and the sunset dhow
Breakfast at the guesthouse, then a guided walking tour of the Old Town with a licensed local guide. The route takes in Lamu Fort, the Lamu Museum, the Swahili House Museum, the donkey sanctuary, the carved doors and the market at the hour the fishing boats land. Entry fees are covered. After lunch, a boat south to Shela Beach for the afternoon, twelve kilometres of open sand that is usually close to empty. In the late afternoon you board your private dhow at the jetty for a two hour sunset sail, sail up and engine off, ending with the sun going down behind the minarets.
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Day 3: Takwa Ruins and the reef off Manda Toto
An early start and a full day on the water. The boat crosses to Manda Island and runs up a mangrove creek, which is only navigable around high tide, to reach the ruins of Takwa. The town was built in the fifteenth century and abandoned around 1700, and the mosque, the pillar tomb and the house walls are still standing among the baobabs. From there the boat continues out to the reef off Manda Toto for snorkelling, with masks and fins provided. On the way back, a stop on an exposed sandbank in the middle of the channel at low tide, which is where most of the day's photographs come from. Back at the guesthouse in the late afternoon, with the evening free.
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Day 4: Market, then home
A last breakfast on the roof terrace with the channel in front of you, then a walk through the market for cardamom, halwa, a kikoi or a carved piece to take back. Check out, and a private boat carries you across to Manda. Your host sees you through the airstrip and you fly to Nairobi, with the transfer to your Nairobi address included.
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Add-ons:
Matondoni dhow building village boat trip — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
Extra half day dhow sail with lunch — From KES 8,000 ($80) per couple
Additional snorkelling session — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
Private guide, additional day — From KES 3,000 ($30) per group
Food and comfort
Packed lunch for the Takwa and reef day — From KES 2,000 ($20) per meal
Private beach or rooftop dinner for two — From KES 9,000 ($90) per couple
Massage and wellness treatment — From KES 3,000 ($30) per session
Accommodation upgrade — From KES 8,000 ($80) per person sharing per night
Extras
Photographer — From KES 4,000 ($40) per session
Additional private boat transfer — From KES 8,000 ($80) per couple per transfer
Snorkelling gear hire for an extra day — From KES 1,000 ($10) per person per day
+ Inclusions
Return economy flights, Nairobi to Manda Airport (Lamu)
Return road transfers between your Nairobi address and the departure airport
Private boat transfer, Manda Airport to Lamu Town on arrival and back on departure
3 nights at Amu House or similar, Lamu Old Town, on bed and breakfast
Guided Lamu Old Town walking tour with a licensed local guide
Lamu Fort, Lamu Museum and Swahili House Museum entry fees for two
Return boat transfer to Shela Beach
Private two hour sunset dhow sail for two, with crew
Full day boat trip to Takwa Ruins on Manda Island, including site entry
Snorkelling off Manda Toto with masks and fins provided
Sandbank stop, tide permitting
All government taxes and levies
Baecation Adventures airstrip meet and greet
- Exclusions
Lunches and dinners throughout
Drinks, including bottled water outside breakfast
Travel insurance
Tips and gratuities for guides, crew and guesthouse staff
Personal shopping at the market and galleries
Matondoni dhow building village trip
Photographer, spa treatments and all other add-ons listed below
Excess baggage charges on the flight
Anything not listed under Inclusions
What To Carry
Loose cotton clothing covering shoulders and knees for town. Lamu is a conservative Muslim community and modest dress is good manners
Swimwear, and a second set so one is dry after Day 3
A rash guard or light long sleeved top for snorkelling, since a full day on the reef burns shoulders quickly
Closed shoes or sturdy sandals for Takwa. The ruins are uneven coral rag and the creek landing is muddy
A kikoi, which works as a beach wrap, a shoulder cover and a towel
Flip flops for everything else
Reef safe sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses. There is no shade on a dhow, a sandbank or in the ruins
A dry bag or waterproof phone pouch for the full day boat trip
Insect repellent, which matters more in the mangroves at Takwa than anywhere else on the trip
Cash in Kenyan shillings drawn before you fly. Island ATMs are few and often empty, though M-Pesa is widely accepted
A torch for the lanes after dark
A power bank
Motion sickness tablets if either of you is unsure on water, since Day 3 is a long day out
ID or passport for the domestic flight
Book This Package
Reach out:
For enquiries or bookings, write to [email protected]. We’ll revert within 20 minutes during business hours.