Watamu is a tiny coastal town north of Mombasa and south of Malindi. Watamu is less frequented by tourists than Diani and Mombasa. It is a postcard paradise, with white sand beaches, pocketed with coral islands, a protected marine park, and lots of bars and restaurants. Despite its rural nature and small size, there are tons of Watamu hotels, villas, resorts and teeny cottages.
Weather dictates where you want to stay in Watamu. In the hot months of January to March, there is only one option, as close to the sea as you can afford. The sun is so hot that a sea breeze becomes a lifeline. I’ve spent too much time in third row or in the forest with sweat running into my eyes, believe me, the sea breeze was a semi orgasmic relief. In the hot months, anything other than front row creek or seaside is a glistening heat haze of beaded sweat and stagnant palm trees.
In winter, Mida Forest/creek is the perfect place to be. On the beach, the wind whistles across the waves, machine-gunning you with pellets of fine sand. Sunbathing under palms laden with coconuts becomes less about relaxing and more about taking your life into your own hands. Drive into the creek and the endless booming of the waves and shuddering of trees fades away. Enter a sleepy land of swaying palms and the soft rustle of lizards across sun-warmed roofs. In the forest it’s warm enough to wear shorts all year round. In the winter on the beach you wrap up warmer on rainy days and in the evenings.
Watamu is blessed with an abundance of coves, and long stretches of beach and they all vary. In the winter months, Turtle Bay Beach becomes heaped with seaweed and sadly strewn with plastic, whereas just a kilometre down the coast at Garoda beach, the sand is unsullied by sea refuse. In the summer, Turtle Bay is the place to be. You can wander out of your house and visit restaurants on foot. Ocean Sports, Hemingway’s, Turtle Bay, Medina Palms all occupy the same short strip of beach and all welcome outside visitors. Creekside, Pilipan, Lichthaus and The Crab Shack are perfect spots for sundowners. On the northern beaches there is Papa Remo beach with its 7 coral islands and the divine Papa Remo restaurant and even further north is Jacaranda Beach – a lonely strip of utterly beautiful coastline where you can walk out for miles on sandbars on a spring time.
All-year-round mosquitoes and crawling things are worse in the creek and forest. If you are worried about malaria and what to bring for a beach holiday in Watamu, then read my post on essential things to know before travelling to Kenya. Chose your Watamu hotels or villas with the season in mind.
Watamu Hotels & Resorts.
Best Turtle Bay Beach Hotel – Medina Palms
This is a 5-star resort without all the pomp and snobbery. This Watamu hotel states that they allow you to have ‘all the luxury and amenities of a hotel with the privacy of your own exclusive holiday home or apartment’, and that sums it up really. It’s not a hotel but a series of beautiful Moroccan styled apartment within a hotel-style complex.
General amenities at Medina Palms Watamu include a gym, spa, kids club, café, restaurant, swimming pools and non-motorized watersports, but the apartments are when Medina Palms comes into its own. Each gorgeously designed self-contained apartment comes with WIFI and international TV channels. If you pick from one of the high-end packages you can also have a private chef and nanny included in the rate. I love it for its relaxed vibe, it’s very welcoming and warm, a high-end hotel where you wouldn’t worry too much about your kids going bananas in the pool.
Check out the best Medina Palms prices here
Best Garoda Beach Hotel for Couples – Kobe Suite
Kobe Suite Resort is located just off the stunning Garoda beach and right in Watamu Marine Park. To the far south of Watamu, this is a quiet tranquil spot with incredible views.
The Watamu hotel is a series of suites designed with an Italian / Swahili influence. The air-conditioned suites sit in a complex with two swimming pools, tropical gardens, onsite spa a great Italian restaurant and a cocktail bar. Kobe makes the most of its beachside location and is beautifully laid out with sinuous pools, white terracing and bleached wood furniture.
Best Kobe Suite Resort rates are here
Best Garoda Beach Hotel for Families – Gecko Resort
Like Kobe this Watamu accommodation is located right on Garoda beach. The sprawling resort has two huge pools, a walk up pool bar, a decent restaurant and heavenly air conditioned rooms. Day beds perched on a hill above Garoda beach, a perfect spot for gazing at Indian ocean.
Gecko Resort is no frills accommodation. Read my blog on Gecko Resort here. It’s basic, clean and perfect for families. Family rooms are available, as are babysitting services. The main pool which is next to the bar and restaurant is gorgeous. Even better the hotel is very reasonably priced. A must for most families with young children.
Best Papa Remo Beach Hotel – Seven Island Resort
Seven Island Resort has a couple of key points that score it highly. Firstly, it’s right on Papa Remo beach and next to Papa Remo restaurant. You can walk right out from the hotel to the beach, or the restaurant, and score sunbeds on the heat haze of white sand without hassle from beach boys. Second, it’s clean, neat, efficient and the rooms have air conditioning. Similar in feel to Gecko Resort (slightly more upscale i would say). The resort itself is lovely, but the food in the restaurant is lacking – cheerfully, this can be resolved by eating all the pizza and calamari you can manage at Papa Remos. Seven Island Resort Watamu has a vast pool, kids’ pool, playground, family rooms and babysitting service.
Best Mida Creek Hotel – Temple Point
Temple Point Resort is located just at the entrance to Mida Creek, where ocean meets creek waters. It’s an idyllic spot with killer sunsets. This Watamu hotel is basic, has a pool, a good dive school, restaurant, spacious air-conditioned rooms and is a decent price, but the pièce de résistance is Lichthaus, its beach bar which hovers over the waters of the creek. The cocktails are strong; the food is fabulous and you can lounge in hammocks and peer at puffer fish to your heart’s content. You should ask the hotel to book because the bar is very popular and open to the public.
Best Mida Forest Hotel – Palm Garden Resort
Palm Garden Resort Watamu is a haven of tranquilty in the back streets of Mida Forest. The forest of towering palms that sway above houses made of timber and mud, goats and chickens and the occasional huge white washed villa. Palm Garden Resort is a high end boutique hotel, with small number of rooms, a pool, spa, shop and an onsite restaurant and bar. I would recommend it more for couples / adults that children as it’s very calm and serene (and my children) are not.
Best Luxury Hotel in Watamu – Hemingway’s
Hemingways is your go to hotel in Watamu for 5 star luxury. Part of a group of super luxury hotels they recently renovated the site and its pretty swanky. Sadly its renovations included the building of a huge sea wall which is having a detrimental effect on this once beautiful bay, but high up in your tower its all posh food and coastal elegance.
Hemingways Watamu hotel is right on the ocean, its furnished in a modern style with a focus on ocean views, Hemingways has a spa, wellness centre, 2 pools, tennis court and all rooms are equipped with air conditioning and free WiFi.
The on-site restaurant offers outdoor dining with ocean views. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, it features eclectic cuisine with a focus on fresh sea food.
Best Family Friendly Resort in Watamu – Turtle Bay Beach Club
I wrote a whole blog on Turtle Bay here, so I won’t go into huge details except to say that anyone with little kids who lives in Kenya has probably been here. The kids all adore it whilst the adults appreciate it for the child-friendly vibe. A slightly dated but completely lovable Watamu hotel with a couple of huge pools, playground and more importantly a kids club where you can leave your kids in the morning and only pick them up when the movie finishes at night. The kids club will entertain your kids, with crafts, beach trips, water games and snacks galore.
Three buffet-style meals are served daily and pancakes at 4 pm. It’s located right on Turtle Bay which has been voted one of the best beaches in Africa (just watch out for the winter seaweed).
Get the best Turtle Bay deals here
Best Scuba Diving Hotel in Watamu – Ocean Sports Resort
Ocean Sports is part beach bar, part restaurants, part hotel and part dive school. Arguably the most popular bar in town with locals and holidaying Nairobi residents – it has a great vibe, great drinks and great food. Ocean Sports Resort is next to Hemingways on Turtle Bay Beach accommodation is simple, air conditioned and far enough away from the hubbub at the bar that you will get a good nights sleep. There is a private pool for residents and a playground for kids – there is also an excellent dive school. Aqua Adventures has been run by the same team since 1990. They offer all the PADI affiliated scuba diving courses, Indian ocean dives out on the reef and a bubbles course for little kids. There are two other dive schools in Watamu, one at Turtle Bay and one at Temple Point but Aqua Adventures at Ocean Sports Resort is my favourite.
Backpackers in Watamu – Watamu Backpackers
Gosh, I miss backpacking, rocking up to some groovy house in a hitherto unknown destination. Getting drunk by the pool, sleeping on the roof under the stars, making friends for a night or two, darts in the morning, beach days in the afternoon, back to drinking in the evening. Watamu Backpackers tips the hat to all those hostels I stayed in during my 20’s. Watamu Backpackers has accommodation in rustic style huts some with en suites. A small bar and restaurant shelter under the coconut trees, and crazy golf, volleyball and darts speaks of lazy days in chilling in the forest. It’s the epitome of relaxation. Just a 5-minute walk from Turtle Bay beach and the mangrove forest at the creek.
Best Holistic Retreat Hotel in Watamu- The Treehouse
I have a confession, this is the only place on this list that I haven’t personally visited but I have had so many people rave about it that I wanted to include it. As I haven’t visited I’m going to cheat and put in the snippet from their webpage which does a better job of explaining it than I can.
The Treehouse is a handcrafted home built-in synthesis with the stunning natural surrounds of Watamu Beach and the mangrove forest. Every aspect of the beautiful and unique features has been infused with care, sensitivity to nature and love. We welcome solo travellers, families, couples, adventure-seekers, kiters, yogis and yoga, retreat groups. We seek to share the best we know of a sustainably healthy and vital lifestyle with our guests.
Spacious open rooms, unique architecture, beauty and nature everywhere you look. We have seven unique guest bedrooms, all en-suite with shower, toilet and balcony. All rooms but one look to the sunrise and the sea. Most also view the sunset
- • Open-to-the-elements-inspired-architecture and rooms
- • Delicious and nutritious food • Yoga and massage in serene settings
- • A tropical beach within 5 minutes walk (paradise!)
- • Gentle adventures in nature, and many activities
- • Time to sit back and take in the sunrise and sunrise
Check Out Watamu TreeHouse on Trip Advisor
Houses and Villas in Watamu
Best Garoda Beach Villa – Matalai
A beautiful house, high up on a ridge with upstairs living accommodation that has the most spectacular views all across the bay and Watamu Marine Park. Matalai house has three air-conditioned double bedrooms, a plunge pool upstairs and a swimming pool downstairs. This Watamu villa has beautiful décor, an open lounge for day time cocktails and a snug night time area for book reading on the windy days. The house has access through indigenous trees down to Garoda beach which is one of my absolute favourites (Papa Remo may be my favourite beach but Garoda is my friends and families favourite).
Book Matalai Villa through East African Retreats
Best Turtle Bay Villa – Kazi Mingi
Kazi Mingi is located next to Turtle Bay beach resort right on the beach at Turtle Bay. A giant palm and a waving bush are all that separates your cerulean blue pool from the white sandy beach. At high tide, the waters crash almost into the garden and at low miles of turquoise water and shellfish filled rock pools appear. This is the closest you will get to living on the beach, even the garden and pergola at Kazi Mingi is made of sand. The simple Watamu villa has 4 bedrooms, a fully serviced kitchen, cosy lounge and a rustic beachy feel. The pool area is wonderful. Relaxed beach vibes on one of Africa’s best beaches.
Low season price : whole house (8 people) 200 USD / 20,000 KSH per night
Book Kazi Mingi through Langata Link Holidays
Best Luxury Villa in Watamu – Paradise Found
A colossal villa, decorated in absolute luxury, overlooking the ocean in huge grounds. Paradise indeed. This Watamu villa is set high up on a ridge overlooking Watamu Marie Park and I challenge you to find fault with it.
Paradise Found is set over three stories, the beautifully designed villa has several living areas including a daytime lounge, an evening lounge, a shaded outdoor lounge, an office/studio, a reading room, 3 dining areas and 2 rooftop terraces from where to drink in the spectacular ocean views. There is even a yoga room that overlooks the front garden. All of the bedrooms are spacious with air-conditioning, mosquito nets, ensuite bathrooms and lots of closet space.
Low season price : whole house (up to 13 people) 500 – 800 USD per night / 50,000/80,000 KSH
Book Paradise Found through Discover Watamu
Best family-friendly villa – Ayana House
Perhaps this is a bit of a misnomer as Ayana House (formerly called Yin Yang() is certainly fun for kids but perhaps less so for parents. This Mida Forest/ Creek house was definitely built with kids in mind. It has two swimming pools on different levels which are joined by a slide and a terrifying but fun bridge in which you can leap a good 12 foot into the water. My kids adored it; I sat the whole time with a slight fear pain in my tummy. This is a great house for people with kids 8 above, or younger if you block off the bridge. A beautiful Watamu villa set deep in the creek with swaying palms. 4 spacious bedrooms, a rooftop terrace and outside banda with sunbeds and dining table. This is true outside living, with lots of little terraces and nooks to escape with a book.
Low season price : whole house (8 people) 200 USD / 20,000 KSH per night
Book Ayana House through Discover Watamu
Best Value Accommodation in Watamu – Tumaini House
One of my favourite places for a getaway in Watamu. Tumaini House is set within the forest with an acre garden of swaying palms. This is another contender for best family-friendly accommodation. The huge garden is set up with table tennis, volleyball nets, hammocks and a wonderful child-friendly pool with different low ledges to splash around on. The large private house has 3 mammoth bedrooms and a huge, comfortable upstairs lounge area. Two of the bedrooms can sleep an entire family of 4 so this is a great value option for a couple of families. The property is completely secure, clean and comes with a cheery lady who will happily cook meals and babysit. This house has an awesome bohemian breezy coastal vibe and they allow pets.
Low season price : whole house (10 people) 70 USD / 7000 KSH per night
Book Tumaini House through Airbnb
How to get to Watamu
Direct flights to Malindi are frequently available from several Kenyan destinations. Flights from Nairobi to Malindi and vice versa run up to 6 times a day, take an hour and are pretty cheap. (Approx 70 USD one way). Once at Malindi its an easy 30 minute drive to Watamu
Kenya Airways, Jambojet and Fly540 flights from Malindi to Nairobi and return fly throughout the year.
You may also fly into Mombasa, which is slightly cheaper and take the taxi on to Watamu
The SGR train runs a twice daily, very cheap, clean and comfortable service from Nairobi to Mombasa.
Further Reading
A beach holiday in Watamu Kenya
Watamu Beach Kenya: The Insiders Guide to Paradise
21 Incredible Family Friendly Resorts in Kenya
Scuba Diving in Kenya – What you need to know
Essential things to know before visiting Kenya
Book Your Kenya Trip – Insider Tips
Find everything you need for visiting Kenya on my TRAVEL RESOURCES page.
Find everything you need for moving to Kenya in my THE EXPAT GUIDE TO LIVING IN NAIROBI book.
- Kenya Accommodation: Booking.com has the cheapest rates for hotels and guest houses in Kenya.
- Accommodation Reviews: TripAdvisor is my go-to portal for checking reviews on accommodation/restaurants in the local area. I never book without checking TripAdvisor first.
- ESIM: Airalo allows you to access the Internet from virtually any country without paying roaming charges
- Car Rental: Rental Cars is managed by Booking.com – guaranteed reliable.
- Tours and Guides in Kenya : Check out Get Your Guide and Viator – reputable companies that do tours within Kenya and East Africa.
- Travel Insurance: Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. I recommend Visitors Coverage, which covers you for East Africa and offers ‘special insurance’ for safaris and adventure sports:
- Visitors Coverage
- Compensair – if you have a cancelled or delayed flight, you may get a refund.
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