Where Tanzania has Zanzibar, Kenya has Lamu, an archipelago comprising three islands: Lamu, Manda and Pate. The focus is Lamu, which contains just four settlements, interspersed by dense, protected mangroves along the east coast and an almost uninterrupted stretch of wild beach to the west. Perhaps the most seductive of Swahili communities (and one of the oldest), the Unesco-heritage listed Lamu Town is a cluster of coral stone and lime houses pinched together along the waterfront. Donkey and cart is the mode of transport and the streets and alleys are tapered to the point where the buildings almost seem to prop one another up. The animated market square, with its meat and fish halls – long, dark passages with slabs of unidentifiable meats and goats' heads and tropical fish displayed on wooden benches – and dhow-cluttered jetties, belie a laid-back society that is one of the coast's most welcoming destinations.
After exploring Lamu Town, tourists often make for the beach resort of Shela, which has a noticeably more European feel and a smattering of upmarket hotels
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