Mombasa City Tour –Tamarind Dhow Lunchtime Cruise

TOUR DESCRIPTION

Mombasa is the second-largest city on the coast of Kenya after the capital Nairobi. The history of Mombasa is believed to be as early as A.D. 150 when Ptolemy marked the town on his map. In 1498 A Portuguese, fleet commanded by Vasco da Gamma called at Mombasa and for the next 200 years, the Portuguese ruled the area. In 1652, the Omani Arabs took over control and in 1837 the sultan of Zanzibar defeated these rulers and remained in control of the Mombasa Island until 1896 when the area became a British protectorate by treaty.

The Mombasa City tour starts early, at 7.30 in the morning. We will visit the Fort Jesus, the fortress built by the Portuguese in 1593 to guard the entrance to the Old Dhow Harbor, the island’s Landmark. Four hundred years old, the fort still stands and serves as a historical museum. We will have a short walk at the Arab Old Town through its narrow twisting alleys, displaying the beautiful carved doors and overhanging Arab verandas, the old Dhow harbor still in use, a Hindu temple, a visit to the Akamba wood carvers. Our tour will be followed by with the amazing Tamarind dhow lunchtime cruise.

The lunchtime cruise departs from the Tamarind Jetty at.1.00 pm, cruises gently up the tudor creek to a secluded spot where the dhow moors. Lunch consists of a delicious tamarind seafood platter with a selection of Kenya’s wonderful seafood or a prime Kenyan fillet steak followed by fresh tropical fruit-salad, and rounded off with Kenyan coffee and halwa. The dhow returns to the jetty at 3.00 p m. Return to the hotel.