LUXURY TRAVEL TO MOMBASA

IThe second largest city in Kenya, Mombasa stood for coastal tourism in Kenya (before the unlikely advent of Lamu, of course).

A melting pot of influences, Mombasa figured as the site of a brief stopover by Ibn Battuta, Zheng He and Vasco da Gama, the last's visit culminating in a sacking of the citt by the Portuguese two years later.

Today Mombasa is the site of luxury beach villas such as the Alfajiri Villas and Msambweni Beach House. Travelling across the bridge (from the airport onwards to your villa), is an instruction in daily life in Mombasa, much of life seeming to centre around, or at least pass through, the bridge, sending commuting workers to their workplaces in the morning, or back home in the evenings.

Arriving at Msambweni House in the evening is an experience unto itself- a veritable Orientalist fantasy of djellaba-clad staff awaiting your arrival in the candle-lit porch. Bearing fresh towels, you're then introduced to your villa/room and then join the others over a fireplace before your customized dinner is served.

One of our favourite hotels around East Africa(and anywhere, really), Msambweni House is a great way to end a safari(or to start one, in fact).