If you are like me, a trip is always made 100 times more exciting once you know where you are going to be staying. For Onja Food bloggers and myself, this was exactly the case. Our three day attendance of Lamu food festival was made better by being accommodated at Kiwandani house. Kiwandani house is located at Shella beach in Lamu and it is one of 8 moon houses. The moon houses are given that name due to their white glistening at night, just like the moon. You can check out the other houses here.This post is a full review of our stay at Kiwandani house.
Ease of access
Kiwandani house is located right at the beach where most boats and dhows stop. This makes it easy for all residents to get a ride to Lamu town whenever need arises. It takes roughly 7-10 minutes from the airport to Kiwandani via boat ride. You arrive at Manda and within 10 minutes, you are already taking in the breathtaking view of the vast ocean and beautiful beaches. I wish everyday life in Nairobi was this smooth.
Jayson Mbogo | www.jaytakeapic.com
Facilities and decor
Kiwandani house has 3 double rooms and all rooms en suite. The rooms are very spacious, decorated in minimalist style with plenty of pieces that have that have very strong coastal influence, intricate design and historical value.
Morning ocean view from one of the rooms. Paradise!
Food
Kiwandani house is a bed and breakfast; the best bed and breakfast I have ever been to personally. This means, you are entitled to receive only breakfast while lunch and dinner are totally up to you to find. Food in Lamu can be found in various eateries so that is not much of a challenge. However, if you feel like you do not want to venture out and want to eat at Kiwandani, a chef is always at standby and they can prepare what you want upon request.
For our first breakfast at Kiwandani, we were pretty much underwhelmed by what we received. The food was not prepared by the chef, but bought outside and roughly served to us. We had chapati, mahamri and viazi karai. We expected to have an elaborate coastal style breakfast with plenty of fresh fruit but that was absent.
The chefs made it up to us the following day and gave us a more filling breakfast, but still, only after we had requested. In my opinion, this is an area Kiwandani house needs to work on. Food is a big deal anywhere you go whether you are a foodie or not.
Service
The staff at Kiwandani house are so kind and always ready to help out. Majority are men since culturally, women are not allowed to work. When we arrived, our host, Nina told us that we need not worry about our possessions since no one will steal them. Being form Nairobi, I was a bit skeptical about that. But to my surprise, truly our belongings were always left untouched. That is one thing I will always love about Lamu.
Beach bum friendly
Kiwandani house is not necessarily located right at the beach though you still get treated to fantastic oceanic views from nearly each room. The beach is however 30 seconds away as there is a passage that directly connects the house to the beach. So do not feel shy about dipping in the ocean.
Gorgeous lifestyle blogger Lyra Aoko (www.lyraoko.om) and I
Just to note, Lamu is a conservative town, whose majority population are Muslim, so you cannot walk around with super short shorts. However, at the beach it is totally ok to dress down and enjoy the ocean in whatever swimming attaire you choose. So don’t be afraid to let loose and let everything hang!
Cheers to the good life!
-K
Hey there! My name is Kaluhi and I love food! Through my blog, I am happy to share with you my self-taught recipes, steeped in nostalgia and the happiest of memories. I hope each recipe you try out is as addictive as the previous one and is shared on a table full of love and hearty laughs!
Nice review with coolest images. That juice though….*love*
http://www.kayiniafrika.com
The juices were really really refreshing.I love mangoes but my fave juice was the lime juice! too good!!
GORGEOUS!!! Also lol I love my picture
http://www.jaytakeapic.com
You make a perfect muse!
I love the pics…and yes, beautiful shot of the juice. I love the pic where you are jumping, so carefree and *enchating* see what i did there;-) Anyway great post the house looks breath takingly beautiful:-)
I hope we get a chance to go back to Kiwandani house the entire Onja team! And thank you so much :))
The Kiwandani house looks unusual, thanks for sharing! I wish I could be there, fully engulfed its incredible beauty.
<3 <3 <3
This landscape is entrancing and the chapel is amazing. I am very grateful for the photos you made! They are gorgeous. I want to be there one day.
You should make a point of visiting! Truly unforgettable place! <3
I would with great pleasure rest in such a beautiful house with a thoughtful and concise interior.
<3 <3 <3
The house is gorgeous and that would be so nice to appear there and enjoy all the views like that.
<3
I like how you spent time with your friend and day. I think it was a bright vacation, which I want to extend
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you are so merry immediately wanted to sing and dance, very bright photos, I hope I will have the same today
Thank you
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