We spent day and night in Watamu, a small coastal town with a relaxed village atmosphere. It’s known for Watamu Marine National Park, which covers three bays: Watamu, Blue Lagoon, and Turtle – and they’re all white-sand, aquamarine, coconut palm-lined natural beauty. Seabirds and green and hawksbill turtles inhabit Mida Creek, which has sand flats and a mangrove forest. If you’re here between November and February, there’s a good chance of spotting whale sharks and manta rays, while July to October is the season for humpback whales.
While Watamu is still a relatively sleepy beach town, a growing number of hotels have put it on the map, including the popular Hemingways, named in tribute to the US author who spent a vacation here deep-sea fishing. Not many restaurants were open, so we chose Nadia’s Chinese Corner for our dinner. Not expecting anything special, we got excellent chicken fried noodles (550 KES) and fried rice (550 KES).
We loved sitting at Paradise Beach Bar at Watamu Beach, where the service was perfect. We had just drinks (Tusker Beer – 350 KES, Fresh coconut – 250 KES), and they also served us nice tomato bruschettas free of charge, quite unusual in Kenya. But you have to pay 300 KES for a sunbed. Plenty of “beach brothers” also try to guide you around the bay (1 hour / 500 KES) or sell a boat ride.
Our second visit – We ❤️ Watamu
