Shela travel guide

Sticking out on the southeastern tip of Lamu, this village is a smaller duplicate of Lamu town and is the upmarket end of the island. It is a tangle of narrow, sandy lanes, tall stone houses, some smaller thatched dwellings, and a spacious square ringed with a few market stalls and small shops. Here in the cool of the evenings the elders gather to talk and women come out to shop. Also look out for boys washing donkeys on the beach at low tide. In the town are a number of old buildings including several wonderfully restored houses that you can rent (at a price). The people of Shela were originally from the island of Manda and speak a dialect of Swahili that is quite different to that spoken in Lamu. The Friday Mosque was built in 1829 and is noted for its slender, conical minaret. The 12-km Shela Beach starts a five-minute walk from the village. Shela is just 3 km or a 40-minute walk from Lamu, go down to the end of the harbour and then along the beach. If you don’t want to walk you can catch a dhow taxi.