Private Sunset Dhow Lamu
Sports
Beach holidays
Lamu Sunset Dhow
A Wooden Sailing Boat
Ask anybody who has been to Lamu what they remember and you will get the same answer often enough that it stops being a coincidence. Not the beach, not the Old Town, not the food. The dhow.
A dhow is a wooden sailing boat with a single triangular lateen sail, built by hand on this coast without drawings, shaped by eye from mango and teak. The design is roughly a thousand years old and it has not needed changing. There are still boatyards on Lamu Island turning them out the same way. What that means on the water is that once the sail goes up and the engine goes off, you are moving by wind alone, and it is very quiet.
A private sunset dhow in Lamu takes two hours. You board at the jetty in Lamu Town or, if you are staying in Shela, the boat comes and collects you there. The crew clear the moorings under engine, raise the sail, and then it is off. The route crosses the channel between Lamu and Manda so that the sun goes down behind the coral stone rooftops and minarets of the Old Town rather than behind empty water, which is the difference between a nice evening and the photograph you will actually keep.
Private means the whole boat. Not a curtain, not a reserved section. Nobody aboard but the two of you and the crew, no waiting for a group to assemble at the jetty and no other couple sitting three feet away doing exactly what you are doing. If you would rather spend less, the shared sail runs most evenings with up to ten people aboard and costs half as much per person, and it is genuinely good. The private option simply buys you the boat.
Departure is not a fixed hour. It moves through the year, timed backwards from sunset so that you are already out on the water when the light turns rather than still tying up. Your exact time is confirmed the day before.
Details
Summary information about this package
Lamu Sunset Dhow
Lamu
Couples
Available
For Adults only (18+)
Not included
Excluded
All year round
Costs
Kenyan Citizen
Ksh. 5000 per person sharing
Non-resident
$ 50 per person sharing
Transport
Options:
Duration and Timing
Yes
No
About Package
More information about this package
A real dhow, not a motorboat with a sail on it. Wooden hulled, rigged with a triangular lateen sail, built by hand on this coast the way they have been for centuries. Engine on to clear the jetty, then off.
Private means the boat, not a partition. On the private option there is nobody aboard but the two of you and the crew. No other couples, no group, no waiting for anyone.
Timed backwards from the sunset, not to a fixed hour. Departure moves through the year so that you are out on the water for the light rather than arriving after it has gone. Your exact time is confirmed the day before.
The route holds the Old Town skyline behind the sun. You cross the channel between Lamu and Manda so the sun drops behind the coral stone rooftops and the minarets rather than behind open water.
Pick up from Lamu Town jetty or from Shela. Both are included. If you are staying in Shela the dhow collects you there rather than making you find your own boat into town first.
Weather and tide can move it, and we will tell you honestly. If the wind is wrong the sail is worth less, so we would rather move you to another evening or refund you than take your money and motor around the channel.
Package Itinerary
The package itinerary is as follows
How the sail runs
Not a fixed timetable, because the sunset moves. Your departure is confirmed the day before, roughly ninety minutes before sundown.
Boarding. You are met at the jetty by name rather than joining a queue. Cushions, kikois and life jackets are already aboard. The crew introduce themselves, and on a private sail they will ask what you actually want from the evening, because some couples want the whole thing narrated and others want to be left completely alone. Say which.
Sail up. The dhow motors clear of the moorings, which takes a few minutes and is the only time the engine runs. Then the lateen sail goes up on its long yard and the boat leans into the wind. This is the moment people take out their phones.
Across and back. The route runs out into the channel between Lamu Island and Manda Island, along the mangrove shore, and back with the Old Town on your beam. You see the town the way it was meant to be seen, which is from the water. Working dhows pass, fishermen come in for the night, and the light starts going.
The drop. The crew position the boat so the sun goes down behind the Lamu Town skyline. It takes about ten minutes from gold to gone. Afterwards you sail back in the last of the light and come alongside the jetty in the dark, which is its own small pleasure.
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ADD-ONS: Choose your sail
Shared sunset dhow — From KES 2,500 ($25) per person, up to 10 aboard
Private sunset dhow for two — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
Private sunset dhow with sundowners, wine and snacks aboard — From KES 7,500 ($75) per couple
Romantic Touches
Champagne aboard in place of wine — From KES 4,000 ($40) per couple
Private beach or rooftop dinner immediately after the sail — From KES 9,000 ($90) per couple
Celebration cake brought aboard — From KES 3,500 ($35) per cake
Proposal setup aboard, including crew briefing and signal — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
Photographer aboard for the sail — From KES 4,000 ($40) per session
Make a longer day of it
Full day archipelago dhow trip with lunch — From KES 8,000 ($80) per couple
Manda Toto snorkelling and sandbank stop, with gear — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
Matondoni dhow building village trip — From KES 5,000 ($50) per couple
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+ Inclusions
Private two hour sunset dhow sail, boat exclusive to your party
Experienced local crew, minimum two hands aboard
Pick up and drop off at Lamu Town jetty or Shela village jetty
Cushions, kikois and life jackets
Drinking water
Adjusted departure timing throughout the year to match sunset
Confirmation of your exact departure time the day before
- Exclusions
Transport to and from your accommodation on land
Alcohol and soft drinks, unless you have booked the sundowners option
Meals
Photographer
Tips for the crew, which are appreciated and not expected
Travel insurance
Anything not listed under Inclusions
What To Carry
A light jacket or shawl. It is warmer than you think on land and cooler than you think on the water once the sun goes
Flat shoes you can take off easily, or just flip flops. You will be barefoot on deck
A hat and sunglasses for the first hour, because there is no shade anywhere on a dhow
Sunscreen applied before you board rather than carried
Insect repellent for the last half hour, since the mangrove shore brings mosquitoes out at dusk
A phone or camera with battery left. Late light drains phones faster than people expect
A small torch for stepping off at the jetty in the dark
Motion sickness tablets if either of you is unsure on water, taken before boarding rather than aboard
Cash in Kenyan shillings for crew tips if you would like to leave one. M-Pesa also works
Book This Package
Reach out:
For enquiries or bookings, write to [email protected]. We’ll revert within 20 minutes during business hours.