Mida Creek Village Experience

$180 pp

  • Duration

    3 days

  • Bookable From

    Year-round

  • Trip Style

    Privately Guided

  • Country

    Kenya

  • Physical Rating

    Easy

Overview

Immerse yourself into authentic Kenyan culture and beautiful nature with this village experience by the famous Mida Creek. This private experience is perfect for a small group of friends or for a unique family vacation!

A lovely family welcomes you to their community camp, a masterpiece that has come to life – treehouses, swings, and tent platforms built by their own hands. Have the opportunity to head out to the creek, on a wooden canoe or boat, visit islands, learn about the mangroves, swim in the water, and feel the essence of being in the middle of breathtaking nature.

Highlights

  • Canoe rides
  • Swimming
  • Island walks
  • Boardwalk through mangrove forests
  • Cooking class
  • Coconut tree climbing
  • Makuti roof building
  • Sports with village children

A bit like summer camp on the gorgeous Kenyan coast, your days will be filled with leisurely hands-on activities that will introduce you to the local way of life here. This style of immersive learning is fun for adults as well as curious children.

This short, sustainable excursion is perfect to pair with other experiences in Kenya, such as our Kenyan Coast & Safari or Kenyan Coast for Ocean Lovers trips, or a luxury Kenyan safari experience in the Maasai. Contact us for help in customizing your adventure; we'll make sure it suits your needs and preferences.

Seasonal Notes

This experience is available year-round. Generally, we suggest the shoulder season (November through February) as the most sustainable time to travel because it promotes tourism dispersal – spreading out tourist arrivals so destinations do not get overwhelmed and resource-constrained. However, since this excursion is off the beaten path and won't have many tourists, traveling during the high season (June through October) would also be fine.

Itinerary

Day 1 Mida Creek [Kenya] (arrival day)

Arrive at the Mida Creek community camp in Watamu, Kenya.

Start with a cooking class, and learn to make authentic Swahili food the local way! Villagers will teach you how to cook African food from scratch to pleasantly fill your belly with goodness.

After this, you'll learn how to climb coconut trees and have a well-deserved fresh drink. You’ll be taught different methods of how to climb, and be sure to bring a camera to get that sought-after picture!

Then you'll make 'makuti' roofs; 'makuti' is the thatched roof style made from dried vegetation and palm leaves which are used for the local homes.

Relax in the evening watching the sky light up with stars as the campfire sparkles beside you.


Accommodation: Treehouse / Banda in community camp
Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 2 Mida Creek

Today, you'll be getting involved with a range of local activities out in nature. Take a local canoe out on the creek to experience the mangroves, water pathways, see locals fishing, and visit a secret island - all while spotting over 50 bird species. The local guide will teach you along the way about the vast array of birds and fish in the area. Of course, you'll have time to swim in the crystal-clear waters, too!

Once back on land, have the opportunity to take a boardwalk through the mangroves, exchanging knowledge with locals. The boardwalk was made by the community to fund projects in the area, which you can learn about as you’re surrounded by dozens of types of mangroves.

Head back to camp, where we’ll light a campfire and stargaze while sharing stories.


Accommodation: Treehouse / Banda in community camp
Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3 Mida Creek / Watamu

Wake up to a morning swim in the calm waters of the creek, sipping coconuts while you take it easy and take time to digest the spectacular last few days!

If you're feeling energetic, take a moment to play some sports and games with the local village children.


Included meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Customization

This trip can be customized to suit your needs and preferences.

As this trip is short, we strongly recommend combining this short village experience with a longer experience along the Kenyan coast or a classic Kenyan safari. You can even add this to your own self-organized plans if you're already planning a longer trip to Kenya or Eastern Africa.

Route Map

A route map for the Mida Creek Village Experience in Kenya showing where the Mida Creek is in relation to the town of Watamu and Watamu Beach.

Inclusions & Exclusions

  • Treehouse/banda/tent (your preference) at the community camp

  • 3 meals a day

  • Transport within Mida Creek for all activities mentioned

  • All activities mentioned above

  • Flights to/from Kenya

  • Transport to/from Mida Creek

  • Travel Insurance

  • Personal purchases

  • Additional activities other than those mentioned

Pricing

Prices exclude flights to/from the destination.

Prices are for double room occupancy unless indicated otherwise.

  • Deposit per person

    40% of the trip price

  • Shared Room - sleeps 2 - price per person

    $180

Optional Add-ons

  • Transport to/from Mida Creek. The cost is highly variable based on where you’re coming from (Watamu, Mombasa, an airport, etc.). For context, transport from Watamu to Mida Creek is roughly 800ksh (~$6) and we can help you coordinate finding a driver.

Sustainability

This tour promotes tourism dispersal by taking you to lesser-known parts of Kenya. It's reflective of an innovative way of creating new tourism experiences, that are not made for the masses and instead focus on truly connecting with locals. This rural village is completely sustainable, with zero waste, local ingredients, conservation, and clean energy.

Environmental Initiatives
Our sustainable accommodations include tents in the community camp, which focuses on recovering & re-using rainwater and recycling their waste properly. The camp was made by village locals using natural resources such as dried vegetation, and by visiting you are directly supporting the camp and nearby village.

The camp emphasizes serving local & organic Swahili food (vegetarian food available) - many of the ingredients are homegrown in their gardens.

Sociocultural and Economic Intiatives
You'll learn about their culture, and the money you spend will be kept fairly in the hands of those on the ground, thereby promoting the local economy in this area around the small coastal village of Watamu.

This directly empowers the local community leading to a greater investment in healthcare, education, and employment.

This will be slow travel. We will be exploring this creek by canoe or boat, and walking around the mangrove forests and village. The pace will be relaxed so you can soak it all in. Other activities are also local-based, which provides opportunities for cultural knowledge transfers. This trip takes you off the beaten path, meaning your tourism revenue goes farther here in supporting local people. If you want to be seeped in nature, immersed in the culture, and have an eco-friendly vacation, this trip is for you.

Health & Safety

Be sure you have traveler's insurance.

FAQs

What does the Physical Rating of "Easy" mean?

It means that no special physical preparation is required.

What are the accommodations like?

You'll be staying at a nature camp owned and run by local villagers, where everything is made by hand using naturally available materials.

  • Zero Waste: a use is found for everything, nothing is wasted. Recycled, upcycled and reused, as you walk around camp you’ll notice many examples of this.
  • Community Focused: a camp central to the community, being a critical source of income and empowering the community to create further impact. 
  • Clean Energy: the entire camp runs on solar lighting.
  • Fair Food: the majority of ingredients are grown in the backyard or surrounding areas of the camp. Ensuring the food you eat is seasonal and organic. 
  • Natural Design: using materials found locally and naturally, built by the owner himself hence reducing the impact on the environment while staying authentic.

What do I need to bring for the village experience?

There is no requirement to bring anything, your mere presence will bring joy to their days. There is no need to learn any local language either, most of the families there speak English fluently.
We specialize in vegetarian food, but in case you have any dietary requirements, don't hesitate in talking to us, all requirements can be catered for. All the ingredients in the meals are fresh and locally sourced.

Can this trip accommodate dietary requirements?

Yes! We focus on vegetarian food, but all requirements can be catered for. The ingredients used are locally found and fresh.

Do the village members speak English?

Yes, most of the families' English is great and you can easily converse with them. P.S. Listen out for Shizzo’s jokes and riddles!

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