Kumekucha sent one of his top reporters for a day in an island that everybody is talking about. The guy almost did not come back. Find out why from his report and photographs. He claims that it is a brilliant alternative to the usually crowded beaches this time of the year and all year round. And what’s more it is extremely affordable. I had to heavily edit his article to stop it looking like an advertisement. The man seems to have been badly smitten by the island…
My first glimpse of Chapwani from the boat that brought us to the island. I was still not prepared for the sheer magic in this dream island off the coast of Zanzibar.It is the holiday season again and the end of perhaps the most difficult year in the history of Kenya. It is around that time of the year when there is a mad rush to Mombasa to crowded beaches and fully booked hotels.
Kenyans are determined to have fun this holiday season because many say they did not have any holiday last year with the general elections and the mishaps that followed them.
Strange that everybody should just think of Mombasa when there is such a wonderful alternative not too far off in an island resort I fell head over heels in love with, called Chapwani. Chapwani is one of the islands surrounding the famous Zanzibar.
I had read up a lot on this holiday spot whose fame is rapidly spreading, but none of it prepared me for the serene beauty and unique aspect of Chapwani. I am lost for words to describe what it felt like being away from it all listening to the waves quietly lap up at the shore of my bungalow while I watched the sun set in the horizon.
No chance of crowded beaches here because the island has a maximum capacity of 20 visitors only at a time or rather 10 couples housed in some beautiful bungalows overlooking the beach. Definitely the place for those looking for a little privacy in this holiday season. And yet there was no shortage of activities. I explored the island and picked up shells and swam close to the shores of the dream island wondering where it had been all my life.
Inside one of the rooms in Chapwani: Romantic and unforgettableI am always accused of being an exaggerator but this has got to be the most romantic place on earth. Ideal for honeymoons I must say. Just imagine for a minute a candle-lit dinner right on the beach with the one you love seated across the table enjoying a sumptuous dinner made by the kind of chef you would never dream would be marooned in this dream island.
Interestingly the weather is a wee bit cooler here for those who find Mombasa’s heat unbearable.
I made a promise to myself that I must go back some day… very soon.
More details can be obtained and bookings made by directly emailing the friendly staff at the island NOW at:- chapwani@zitec.org. Tel:- +255 77 743 3102
