Located just 150 miles form Mombasa, Lamu Island is a port, city, and island just off the shore of Kenya in the Indian Ocean. It is a part of the East African country of Kenya. Lamu was founded in the 12th century. Lamu is one of the longest-established and best-preserved remaining settlements of the Swahili tradition in East Africa that remains today. The island has continually been inhabited for over seven hundred years, and continues to be an important center in Eastern Africa.

Lamu Old Town, the principal inhabited part of the island, is one of the oldest and best-preserved Swahili settlements in East Africa. This city has had civilians living in it for over seven hundred years, while most of the other East African settlements along the coast do not have inhabitants. Due to Lamu’s history in trading gold, spices, and slaves, it is truly a melting pot of different cultures. Arabic, Persian, Indian, European, and Swahili traditions that are evidently on display in its Architecture. Lamu is an important centre for trade because it is the most important trade centre in East Africa. People migrated from various lands and from various cultures to conduct trade at the port of Lamu. The abundance of a diversity of people trading at Lamu  impacted the culture of this island. Not only did the traders help the economy of Lamu grow, but it also gave the local people the opportunity to adopt different customs as their own. Because of this, Lamu is also an important cultural, technological, and religious center in Eastern Africa. Lamu has hosted major Muslim religious festivals since the 19th century, and has become a significant centre for the study of Islamic and Swahili cultures which scholars from both traditions studying in Lamu. The town is characterized by the simplicity of structural forms enriched by such features as inner courtyards, verandas, and elaborately carved wooden doors. It is also uniquely Swahili in that the town is spatially organized and is littered with narrow winding streets. Explore the nearby areas dotted with remote villages, olden ruins and a limited number of deluxe and select resorts that lie hidden among the islands of Manda, Siyu, Pate and Kiwayu.