Stefano Cheli reviews his Kenyan beach holiday
5 May 09
APRIL 2009 : Letter from Stefano Cheli
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Liz, the boys and I have just returned from 3 nights at Kiwayu Safari Village. We must admit that we had not been to Kiwayu for a while, and were very happy to find it still one of the most wonderful beach locations anywhere.
The Kiwayu and Kongoali Bays are still outstanding and one of the best places to be lost in for a few days on the East African coast, if not in the world. I truly believe that nowhere else exists with such peace and feeling of remoteness on a beach, a true bare foot luxury in every way. The relaxed atmosphere and the unpretentiousness, but at the same time knowing what a luxury it is to be in this paradise.
I want to share with you a few facts:
Lamu town north to Kiunga town in a direct line is 88 km, with a few fishing villages in between, but otherwise empty beaches, the Kiwayu Bay is approx half way.
The Kiunga Marine Reserve surrounding Kiwayu Bay includes 50 km of coastline and stretches 4 km into the ocean.
Kiwayu to Lamu in a straight line is 55 km
The Kiwayu Bay and adjoining Kongoali Bay are 3km and 2km respectively, ie 5km of empty soft sand beaches.
Every room in Kiwayu Safari Village has its own beachfront, so the total beachfront of the lodge stretches for 1km.
This means that Kiwayu Safari Village has 5 km of private beach front with the occasional fisherman walking past. This for me is pure luxury and I am guessing that no other luxury resort in the world can claim the same.
The fish comes straight off the beach, but other fresh items come from either Lamu or Nairobi, they arrive by Dhow from Lamu and by air from Nairobi. This means that each item that is consumed at Kiwayu costs Kiwayu 3 times more than what the item cost at the point of purchase. Imagine the remoteness, although Kiwayu Safari Village is not on an island it’s remoteness does make it an island surrounded by bush and ocean.
The Lodge:
Bare foot luxury in the true sense of the phrase, all you need is a Kikoi (sarong) a few t-shirts and bare feet. The 20 rooms, suites really as each is an average of 80 to 100 sq meters, are all different. Alfredo was a purist, and the lodge is made of mangrove poles, driftwood and palm matting; decorated with shells, drift wood collected over 35 years and colourful Swahili fabrics. No cement or permanent structure is erected and each room needs to be rebuilt every 2 years.
Alfredo Pelizzoli pioneered the lodge in his hunting days in the 70s, and Kiwayu has stayed in the Pelizzoli family. (Many are not aware that Alfredo also started Mnemba, but Kiwayu always remained his favourite). We were pleased to see that Simone Pelizzoli and her husband, George Moorhead are maintaining the old Kiwayu way, but with renewed energy and passion and proper hands on management that was very much needed. Simone the daughter of Alfredo and George her husband are a great asset to Kiwayu and a pleasure to be with. What you would pay very dearly for in a restaurant in London is served everyday at Kiwayu, Indian Ocean crab (the best in the world), lobster, prawns, calamari, oysters and the fresh catch of the day either sashimi, baked or grilled, is to die for.
We had a fantastic 3 nights, I would recommend a minimum of 5, so that you can really unwind and have time to try some of the activities. My boys tried to do everything and enjoyed what they could fit in, snorkelling (they found giant clams and turtles), water skiing twice (the boat driver was excellent, getting a novice up on the 4th attempt, and our boys progressed to mono) in the mangrove creeks, creek fishing and kayaking.
Liz and my highlight was lunch on Kongoali beach, it was magic, lobster and chilled wine in the shade, again the peace and having the biggest swimming pool in the world to dive into at anytime was great.
We had a great stay and we have been to lots of places that say they are competition to Kiwayu, but Kiwayu was the original and still is today, the undisputed best.
Thank you. Stefano and Liz
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