Peponi Hotel Lamu

Shela Beach on the Indian Ocean, Kenya

(Peponi is a small Hotel on the exotic island of Lamu. Shela village where Peponi is located is 2 Miles from Lamu Town. Lamu Town, Island and Archipelago, all of the same name, lie 2 degrees south of the Equator along Kenya's coast. Peponi is a bumpy seven hour drive from Mombasa and at least four hours from Malindi. You will have to park your car on the mainland at the Mokowe jetty and take a boat from there to Shela.)

Peponi Hotel Lamu

Peponi Hotel Lamu; Peponi is a small hotel on the exotic Indian Ocean island of Lamu, just off the coast of Kenya. It is the very root of Swahili culture in East Africa, which centuries ago spread down the coast from the north. When the Sultan of Oman moved from Lamu to Zanzibar Island - further south - Lamu lay dormant, forgotten for three hundred years. There is only one car on the island and the narrow streets of the old town are very much as they were in his day.

Peponi is still run by the Korschen family who opened the hotel in 1967, and it has retained much of the character and charm that it had then. Small and personal, it is the perfect rest after a safari, or a hide-away holiday from modern life. This is perhaps one of the best known hotels on Lamu and very much still retains the original colonial style feel to it.

Peponi Hotel Lamu Accommodation Rates/Prices

Valid from 1st December 2007 until 30th November 2010

Valid from 1st December 2010 until 30th November 2011

Notes

* Peponi Hotel Lamu is closed May and June

* Peponi Hotel Lamu does not offer Half Board

* Peponi Hotel Lamu Prices/Rates apply per room per night, not per person

* All rooms at Peponi Hotel are sea facing with private shower and verandah
* All prices quoted include service charge, VAT, Training levy and boat transfer

Peponi Hotel Lamu has a total of 24 rooms, which are divided into superior and standard rooms. All rooms at Peponi have ocean views. The superior rooms are differentiated by their location, size, private outside area, indoor plants, artwork and Swahili furnishings. No two rooms are alike. Five of Peponi Hotel Lamu rooms are built right on the beach, with private veranda areas overlooking the sea, while the rest have a combination of ocean and garden views. All rooms have overhead fans, mosquito nets, showers (no baths), fresh flowers, and personal safes.

Peponi Hotel Lamu bar is run by Charles, who will whip up in an instant our famous house cocktail 'Old Pal', or pour a fresh juice of lime, passion or orange, or even serve a fresh coconut with the top whipped off allowing access to the sweet, milky liquid inside. The bar is a favorite watering hole for quests and Shela village inhabitants alike, with "its nexus of entertainment, its fountain of gossip."

There is no hurry to dine at Peponi. Breakfast is available in the dining room or on the terrace or even in your room from 7am to 10am. The choice is yours, from our wide selection of luscious tropical fruits to fish cakes and waffles with local honey and freshly squeezed lime juice. Coffee is poured from the traditional brass pots and you can guess what our jam and marmalade is made of.

Lunch is available from 12pm to 4pm. You may choose to dine either outside at the grill, under the colorful bougainvillea, where you can dig your feet in fresh white coral sand, or on the terrace overlooking the ocean, the movement of dhows and local fishermen. Should you prefer a light snack without leaving the bar, fresh rock oysters are available or a range of samosas and sandwiches all day. You may even prefer to have them sent to your room with a cold passion juice or a local beer.

Dinner is distinguished by its plethora of new ways to celebrate seafood - with ginger, lime and garlic. Mangrove crabs, warm water lobster, squid, giant prawns and fish of all varieties. For something a little more local, a Swahili menu is also available, which can be eaten in the traditional way, on the floor, around a huge brass platter.

Peponi also has a fresh-water free-form swimming pool, situated under two Baobab Trees overlooking the ocean. It is the perfect place to relax with a good book, and if you so wish lunch can also be served here. Peponi is situated at one end of the spectacular twelve kilometer Shela Beach on the Indian Ocean. Flanked by ancient sand dunes, the beach is one of the few remaining untouched, empty stretches of coastline in Kenya.

There is plenty to do around Lamu with trips to Manda Island, where you can walk or swim, easily organized and the bustling narrow streets of Lamu Town an easy 30 minutes walk or a short boat trip away. Peponi is a great spot for those that enjoy the sun and the sea but don't necessarily want to lie prone on a beach all day ...there's plenty to offer by way of interesting things to do and culturally, it can't be beaten. Peponi activities include White sands, excellent swimming and an idyllic setting for a walk at dawn or sunset. Dhow cruises and trips to a range of sites on the archipelago including Lamu Town; a range of water sports including snorkeling, diving, water skiing, windsurfing and deep sea fishing.

Lamu Town
Travel back in time to Lamu. This small, coastal town offers tantalizing glimpses of life as it was five hundred years ago. A fascinating mixture of Arabic, Indian and African cultures, Lamu is one the original trading outposts of the East African coast.

Sited on one of seven islands in an archipelago, this ancient trading town is one of the last remnants of a trading empire that encompassed the entire East African Coast. This distinct Afro-Arabic culture, the Kiswahili, has provided East Africa's lingua franca and a fascinating mixture of cultures for the modern visitor to explore.

This old town of tall houses, narrow streets, intricately carved doorways, hidden courtyards and deserted, white-sand beaches is the home of Peponi Hotel. This family-run, small hotel is rated as one of the best hotels in the world.