City: Coast Province
Top Things to do in Coast Province
What to do and see in Coast Province, Kenya: The Best Historic Sites
The Coast Province (Swahili: Mkoa wa Pwani) of Kenya, along the Indian Ocean, was one of Kenya's eight provinces. It comprises the Indian Ocean coastal strip with the capital city at Mombasa and was inhabited by the Mijikenda and Swahili, among others. The province covered an area of 79,686.1 km² and would have had a population of 3,325,307 in 2009.
Restaurants in Coast Province
1. Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forests
2. Lamu Old Town
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 325 reviews
Distinctive architectural features in this old town center, such as enclosed courtyards and intricately carved doorways, exhibit the confluence of Arabic, Indian and European cultures.
Reviewed By Shw3ta86 - Mombasa, Kenya
Best way to explore the old town and navigate the narrow alleys is to get a local guide. After the tour make sure to enjoy some local swahili cuisine at the various ocean front restaurants.
3. Jumba la Mtwana
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 42 reviews
Reviewed By 200nickn - Nairobi, Kenya
I love the walk through the ruins with the shore on the background a lot of history behind it having the beach nearby makes it a perfect choice
4. Leven House
5. Old Town
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 542 reviews
Reviewed By alfredboss - Emirate of Dubai, United Arab Emirates
We visited the old town with Erick,the town is made of narrow streets,many local shops with lots of local people.thanks Erick for your help +254715577497
6. Slave Caves
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 26 reviews
Reviewed By IaninKenya - Mombasa, Kenya
I previously wrote a review of the Shimoni Reef Lodge https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g674639-d1888939-r234285325-Shimoni_Reef_Lodge-Shimoni_Coast_Province.html#CHECK_RATES_CONT This review relates to the colonial buildings and slave caves at Shimoni, which are historically very interesting well worth visiting on any trip to Shimoni. There is an informative slave museum located in the restored Colonial District Commissioner’s building. The colonial buildings of the Imperial East Africa Company dating from 1885 are some of the oldest European buildings in Kenya. Slave caves Starting in the 1750s, Shimoni, along with Malindi, Mombasa and other coastal cities and towns, was a primary, 'slave holding port,' for east Africa's coastal slave trade. These slave holding pens were located in the natural coral cave systems. At Shimoni these coral caves extend for something like 5km, and before silting up gave direct access to the beach where slaves could be directly loaded onto the slave dhows, and taken to the slave markets in Zanzibar before being shipped elsewhere. Captured slaves from as far inland as Lake Victoria and Uganda were first taken to the main slave markets in Mombasa, Bagamoyo, Kilwa, Zanzibar and Pemba, from where they were shipped to places that are now Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, India, China and Iran. The slaves were also used as porters to ferry ivory and other goods from the hinterland for shipment. It is said that up to 5 slaves died to carry one tusk of ivory from the interior to the coast. In 1857, the British parliament enacted an international ban on the slave trade and slavery was officially abolished in Kenya in 1873. The abolition movement in Britain grew out of the Christian churches, and the horrors of the east African slave trade where bought to the attention of the public by the famous explorer and missionary David Livingston. In the 1870s, the British were successful in convincing the Sultan of Zanzibar to acknowledge the ban. This edict choked the trafficking of slaves to and from Zanzibar, effectively cutting off Shimoni's relevance in the slave trade. Some vestiges of chains and iron hooks in the cave walls where slaves were chained up still remain. Today the caves are home to a number of different species of bats. Tours of the salve cave are organized by a local community organization. Proceeds go to funding the local school (teacher‘s salary and scholarships for bright poor students), drugs for the local medical clinic and other local community services. British colonial buildings These buildings are well worth visiting, although mostly in ruins, expect the District Commissioner’s building which has been restored and houses (up the steps to the 1st floor) a very informative historical exhibition on the East Africa slave trade. In the 1880s, British colonialism began in Shimoni with the arrival of the British Imperial East Africa Company's headquarters. According to the somewhat weather beaten information signs these buildings were erected in 1885. A prison (Kenya’s first colonial prison), a District Commissioner’s home and office and other buildings. There is also a graveyard with a clearly marked grave of a British soldier killed in 1893 while fighting the slave traders.
