DESTINATIONS KENYA | AFRICA
Beyond the big five
Explore Kenya’s culture, community and cuisine with a trip that goes further than a game drive, writes Meera Dattani
i
travelweekly.co.uk
t’s so peaceful. I’m sipping masala chai in a cafe; a donkey clip-clops along on the street; a call to prayer reverberates around town. I’m in Shela
Village on Kenya’s Lamu Island and it’s my first real Kenya trip that’s not about lions and lodges. Later, we tour nearby Unesco-listed 14th-century
Lamu Town, one of the oldest Swahili settlements in Africa. Kenya does safari well. Really well. But the classic safari-beach combo – luxury lodge-hopping with a diet of two game drives a day, interspersed with elevenses and sundowners then rounded off with a beach resort – is just one way to visit this East African nation. Wildlife may be the magnet for clients, but Kenya’s riches go way beyond the big five. The country is home to 40-plus ethnic groups, who have survived everything from colonisation to civil unrest, and its diverse cultures are increasingly forming a key part of itineraries and giving visitors a richer experience.
FROM DESERTS TO LAKES Landscapes are equally varied. Beyond the savannah, there’s the arid semi-desert of Samburu in the north, the towering peaks of Mount Kenya, 60-plus lakes including Nakuru and Naivasha and the exciting, if
oft-overlooked, capital Nairobi. And not forgetting the white-sand beaches of Mombasa, Watamu, Malindi and Diani along with Lamu Island, a short flight from Nairobi. Kenya Airways began non-stop flights to Nairobi
from Gatwick in July, with services three times a week to complement its daily Heathrow flights. British Airways also flies daily, with three extra flights a week during
Kenya’s diverse cultures are
increasingly forming a key part of itineraries and giving visitors to the country a richer experience
summer, while Emirates remains a top choice for travellers from regional UK airports, with connecting flights from Dubai to Nairobi. Kenya Airways and local airlines also connect travellers within Kenya and East Africa. As Uber Safari enters the Kenyan market with an ‘on-tap’ model of booking game drives via its app, this is the time for agents to show the value of their expertise. This year, the tourist board revamped ²
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