17 must-try experiences in Mombasa!

17 must-try experiences in – and on the way to – Mombasa 

Mombasa is closer than you think…

I recently flew to the coast – with a few hours stopover in Nairobi. Here are the muzungu’s 17 recommendations on how to fly, where to stay, what to eat, and more!

1. Fly to Mombasa via Nairobi

Our journey to the coast started with an early morning flight from Entebbe to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi.

We passed a day sightseeing in Nairobi, Kenya before catching the short flight to Mombasa.

2. Eat breakfast at Four Points by Sheraton, a hotel that overlooks both the JKIA runway and Nairobi National Park

Breakfast time found us on the outdoor terrace of the Marketplace restaurant of Four Points by Sheraton, a high-class hotel in a unique location.

Whether you are a safari goer or a plane spotter, you’ll love staying at Four Points JKIA. (Rooms are soundproofed so you aren’t disturbed by the planes). I could imagine staying here for business meetings between flights. The hotel caters for tourists, walk-in guests and corporates.

3. Take a safari game drive in Nairobi National Park!

It was fun to fit in a game drive before our early evening flight to Mombasa. Nairobi is the only East African city where you can go on a game drive. Here’s my story about my first safari in Nairobi National Park.

4. Eat lunch at ROAST by Carnivore in Karen

5. Hop on the flight to Mombasa

Woo hoo! THE COAST is calling me! We took the evening flight from JKIA to Mombasa’s Moi International Airport.

6. Soak up the nautical theme at Voyager Beach Resort, Nyali, north coast Mombasa

As we entered the gates of Voyager Beach Resort, Nyali Beach, north coast Mombasa, the ascari raised his trumpet to sound a fanfare to welcome us on board. The resort’s fun nautical style is apparent throughout: rooms are known as cabins, floors are decks and the staff dress in naval uniforms. The theme continues as the Voyager ‘docks in a new port’ every day, meaning the resort takes on the menus – and more – of the new destination. One day the Voyager docked in Mexico; another day we docked in Mombasa for Swahili breakfast and dinner. Local fabrics adorn the dining room to complete the look.

Voyager Beach Resort is the ideal location for all-inclusive family holidays on the coast. (It’s the kind of place I LOVED as a kid!) Think kids’ activities, yoga classes, live music, theme nights, family shows, activities for teenagers, watersports centre, gym, three swimming pools, tennis courts and four bars. One night we watched the brilliant Mombasa Roots play live as the ‘Animation Team’ (resort staff dressed in yellow T-shirts with a big letter A on them) got guests moving and a grooving on the dancefloor – (there was some classic Dad Dancing on display too!) Voyager is a mixed crowd of Kenyans and other Africans, Europeans and a few Americans. There’s a super relaxed vibe.

7. Contemplate the colours (and your morals) at the Shree Cutch Satsang Swaminarayan Temple

What a way to start our day… gazing at the gorgeous colours of the temple’s painted walls and doors put me in a fantastic mood. Take a closer look and many of the images are rather scary: dire predictions about how thieves, drinkers and meat eaters will be ravaged in hell. (These graphic warnings did not put us off enjoying everything that Mombasa had to offer us however!)

This temple is a cracker. There’s no charge to enter (and if you arrive before 10.30 am they will open the inner sanctum for you). If you admire temples, there is another one further along Haile Selassie Avenue.

8. Stop for a selfie with ‘Pembe za ndovu’ Mombasa’s giant elephant tusks

Pembe za ndovu is the Swahili name for Mombasa’s famous elephant tusks that form a M shape across Moi Avenue. Selfies here are the classic “look at me, I’m in Mombasa” shot.

According to my driver, Mombasa’s tusks (thin sheets of metal) were erected in 1956 by a European. He got the date right. The European was Princess Margaret of Great Britain who visited that year. Does the M stand for Margaret or for Mombasa?

Be mindful of the traffic while posing for your selfie – Moi Avenue is a busy road.

9. Taste local snacks on Mama Ngina Drive

Mama Ngina Drive is famous for the freshly fried kachri ya muhogo cassava crisps and chilli washed down by madafu coconut water – the perfect combo!

You can pick up tourist souvenirs and trinkets on Mama Ngina Drive. (I doubt you should buy the seashells and many countries won’t allow you to take them through customs). This makes thought-provoking reading: You might want to think twice before buying a seashell souvenir.

I’d avoid the rather dilapidated toilets in the Mama Ngina heritage building if you can. (The blue and white building looks like a lighthouse). The place is clean enough for the cheap entry price but toilet doors don’t seem to lock.

From Mama Ngina Drive, you can watch the non-stop flow of human traffic embarking and disembarking the Likoni Ferry that connects north and south coast Mombasa. As we watched the tens of thousands of people pass by, you might imagine they are running to catch an Underground train in London or the Metro in Paris.

10. Pretend to be a commuter: take the Likoni Ferry

The July weather had us running down the slope in the rain to catch the ferry from Mama Ngina Drive across to Likoni. Pedestrians travel for free; cars, tuk tuks, and heavy lorries pay a small fee. Men on bicycles ship jerry cans; women carry bundles of produce for the market; small trucks are loaded with goats.

As soon as the Likoni Ferry fills up, it sets off for the other side of the creek. The journey lasts just a few minutes but gave us a chance to look upstream to the Port of Mombasa and downstream to the Indian Ocean. The Likoni Ferry may not be on every tourist’s itinerary but it does give you an insight into the everyday lives of the people of Mombasa.

11. Step into 500 years of history with a guided tour of Fort Jesus

Despite numerous trips to – or should I say through – Mombasa, this was my first time to visit Fort Jesus. Entry fees to Fort Jesus are 400 KES (local price) or 1200 KES (muzungu price!) plus guide fee, which is negotiable.

Our guide Dunga recounted the history of Fort Jesus. In 1498, Vasco de Gama – with a Christian cross emblazoned on his sail – first passed the Kenyan coast en route to India. In 1593, the Portuguese invaded and built Fort Jesus as a military garrison.

Beyond the heavy cannons, the Fort Jesus’ small museum records the history of conquests and sieges by the Portuguese, Arabs, Omanis and British. On display are pottery, old stamp collections and beautiful artefacts from Persia, Oman and China. The Omani Museum showcases modern displays in an ancient building. I wish I’d paid more attention. (Next time I’ll leave my camera behind and just take my notebook…)

The areas open to the public are small enough to make Fort Jesus an easy trip of half a day or less. Visit early morning when it is not too hot. Afterwards, drink some fresh tamarind juice under one of the ancient trees on the main road.

Mombasa is a melting pot of African, Arab and European influences. Nowhere is this more evident than in Fort Jesus.

12. Explore the Old Town of Mombasa on foot

The Old Town of Mombasa is an interesting mix of narrow streets and Swahili architecture. Hire a local guide to scratch below the surface of this UNESCO-listed city. I adored the antiques and knick-knacks in the Gallery Shop, one of many curio shops. I could have spent all afternoon browsing!

13. Enjoy the ocean breeze at Forodhani Restaurant

Forodhani’s quiet location is five minutes’ walk from Fort Jesus, next to the Old Port, with a panoramic view of the Indian Ocean and English Point, a small promontory of land on the north coast opposite Fort Jesus.

Beyond its setting, the restaurant is nothing special to look at, some plastic tables and chairs, no table decoration. Since I was in a Muslim city, I decided to try a mutton biryani; it came in a spicy tomato sauce with plenty of meat. I also ate a delicious lamb kofta sausage. According to my Kenyan travel companions, the standards were not as good as before. Service was average and staff attention was minimal but lunch was pretty affordable (and the restaurant worth visiting simply for the view and the cool breeze!)

Across the water is English Point Marina, a state of the art luxury development that looks across to Fort Jesus.

14. Chill on a sunset dhow cruise and dine at La Marina Restaurant, Mtwapa

Our sunset cruise along the inland waterways of Mtwapa Creek left from the jetty at La Marina, where our enthusiastic hostess Alice took our dinner orders and organised my preferred tipple of Kenya Cane rum for our cruise boat’s bar. The leisurely cruise was a calming tonic after our day exploring the city of Mombasa. Our small group had the whole creek to ourselves that night. Oh the starlit sky!

The candlelit, open air palm tree terrace at La Marina Restaurant is a romantic setting on the edge of the creek. (I feel relaxed just remembering that night). Dinner was exquisite: calamari in a creamy sauce for me, followed by grilled suli suli  Kingfish. Other seafood options were octopus, sushi, baked oysters, king prawns and grilled lobster. I’ve always loved seafood (even more now that I live in land-locked Uganda and visits to the coast are such a treat!)

La Marina Restaurant is a short drive north from Nyali. Call +254 (0)723 223737 for bookings. For the full romance, watch the sun going down aboard a traditional Arab dhow.

15. Feed the giraffes and crocodiles and meet a 200 year old tortoise at Haller Park

During Mombasa’s hot months, there’s no place I’d rather be than here underneath the trees. What a gift Haller Park is!

Haller Park deserves several entries in this list of things to do in Mombasa as there are so many activities you can take part in, from physical exercise to animal feeding to educational tours.

Be there at 11 o’clock or 3 o’clock to take part in the giraffe feeding. Crocodiles also get a little snack every day at 4.40 pm. (They have their main feed of 10 kg of meat just once a month).

There were shrieks from our group as we passed through the reptile enclosure. Many of the snakes had been rescued from local homes. I don’t mind snakes but felt rather nervous when the Puff Adder eyeballed me. That snake has a mean reputation!

During the 1950s, the Haller Park site was a Bamburi Cement quarry. Thanks to the vision of a certain Dr Haller, the barren quarry site was reclaimed for the environment: it is now a popular location for biking and running the nature trails, and school trips, thanks to Lafarge Eco Systems (a subsidiary of Bamburi Cement).

Haller Park opened to the public in 1984. The transformation from barren site to lush woodland is phenomenal and gives me hope for the future.

Unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to meet Owen the hippo and Mzee, his giant tortoise buddy!  When Owen was stranded after a tsunami, he was rescued by Kenyan villagers. To everyone’s amazement, the orphan hippo and Mzee, a 130-yr-old tortoise, became inseparable. Photos of their friendship made them worldwide celebrities. Their friendship has even spawned a Broadway musical!

16. Admire the multi-coloured starfish on a glass-bottomed boat ride and snorkelling adventure

I never knew starfish came in so many colours! Orange, red, blue, brown and grey were clearly visible as our boat motored along the coast. But note: don’t pick up the starfish. Pulling them out of the water can kill them, even if they are put back! And boat operators turn a blind eye to this…

The highlight of our afternoon was anchoring in shallow water and walking to an exposed sandy ledge of the reef to explore the crevices of the rock pools for sea urchins, starfish and shellfish.

Kenya Wildlife Service manages the country’s protected areas. In addition to the cost of the boat ride, you’ll need to pay the Mombasa Marine National Park entry fee if you want to snorkel.

Snorkeling, scuba-diving lessons, big-game fishing, windsurfing and canoeing and dhow safaris can all be arranged from Voyager Resort.

17. Taste Nyali nightlife!

Next stop Tapas Cielo lounge bar for a Johnnie Walker /DJ night. Eddy Kenzo and Sauti Sol videos made a perfect night of it at Anuba Lounge.

I wish I’d stayed longer in Nyali. I get the feeling that Mombasans are very like Ugandans – they’re easy going and love to party!

More about Voyager Beach Resort, Nyali Beach, Mombasa

We were so caught up in sightseeing in Mombasa, I’m not sure I did the Voyager’s facilities justice. It’s the perfect base for family holidays, with an extensive programme of activities, sports, entertainment, shows and tours for all ages. However, research for this blog forced me to sample the bars – at least!

My favourite was the Lookout Bar (above the beach) and the small Harbour Bar near the restaurant. Go find Raymond – he’s an award-winning cocktail maker!

Voyager caters to many tastes: European, Indian, African and more. While most meals are served buffet-style in the main restaurant, Voyager’s Minestrone Restaurant has an Italian à la carte menu (included in the all-inclusive price).

The Smugglers’ Cove restaurant is hidden in a coral cave! The food was superb (discounted for Voyager residents).

The balcony of my deluxe room looked onto gardens of palm trees, just 50 metres from the beach. It was perfect. The room had aircon, TV (did I even switch it on?), fridge, a good size safe, a powerful shower and plenty of complimentary toiletries. Voyager has 234 cabins, of various styles, each with its own balcony.