How to Spend 24 Hours in Watamu Beach, Kenya

If you've got just one day on coast of Kenya, you've got to make it count.

Watamu beach is the place to be. To me, it's the most beautiful place on earth - but you've got to know exactly how best to spend your day. First things first: you NEED to get up early for the sunrise. REAL early.

No later than 5:25 AM is ideal. Quietly exit whatever resort or hotel you're staying at, say a quick "Habari za asubuhi!" to any other early risers, and start off down the dunes.

Side note: you definitely want a place to stay that's right on the coast! Find one of the hotels or resorts right in Watamu's Turtle Bay. The place is named for the massive, turtle-shaped outcropping on a sand bar a couple of miles offshore. It is seriously one of the coolest places on earth, and is rightly one of the most popular spots to stay on the Kenyan shoreline.

You'll want to wander south along the sand until you find a huge, rocky outcropping. If the tide is not too high, it should be easy to scramble up to the top of this seaweed-covered boulder - and then you can just perch on top. The ocean faces east, so you get to watch the sun climb over the water, turning everything from cool gray-blue to searing pink, orange, and gold. The view here is second only to the sunrise over the Masai Mara; but the Mara is pretty far west of Watamu, and you can't easily swing that drive in one day.

Once you're done watching the sunrise, you've got to find some coffee.

It will be fresh, delicious, and probably the most local brew you will ever have in your life. Kenya is one of the world's greatest exporters of coffee for good reason! If you can find a local spot to grab a mug, rather than just the stuff in your hotel foyer, absolutely do that - both for the highest quality sip, and for a chance to support local business.

For the coffee non-enjoyers: fear not! There is a delicious and crucial sip for you all, too. Kenyan chai (which, in Swahili, is just the adopted word for tea) is the stuff of legend. You can't visit the country without trying some. Just make sure you drink it the proper way: LOTS of sugar and at least half filled up with milk!

Along with your coffee or chai, grab some eggs and chapati (a delicious pan-seared flatbread) for a very tasty breakfast. Don't forget to acquire some mandazi (mildly sweet fried dough, perfect alongside chai) for the road, too. You'll likely find all of these things back at whatever hotel or resort you're staying at - but you could also take another opportunity to support a small business and grab your breakfast from a stall or restaurant nearby. There are dozens within walking distance of the coastline.

Once you're done with breakfast, it will be the perfect time and temperature to get right back on the beach. You've got to go for a swim, naturally; the ocean is warm, clear, and positively gorgeous. Spend your morning basking in the glory of the Watamu coast - just stay alert for potential riptides!

After you've enjoyed some good time on the beach, you MUST book a snorkeling trip on one of the many glass-bottomed boats.

For a very reasonable fee, they'll take you and as many friends and family members as can fit on one vessel out to sea. With rented snorkeling gear, you'll be able to hop off the boat about a mile offshore and see the genuinely, jaw-droppingly gorgeous reef life of Kenya. You'll see thousands of curious fish in dozens of colors, rolling mounds of pastel-like coral, and - if you're lucky - a rare octopus or sea turtle! A crucial note: be very careful not to touch anything. Almost nothing in this environment will seriously hurt you, but direct human contact can seriously threaten some local species (most especially, the coral). Please be a conscientious enjoyer of this beautiful marine ecosystem, people.

If the tide allows, the boat-drivers may also be able to deposit you on one of the far-out sandbars close to Turtle Bay's eponymous rocky outcropping. Being fully surrounded by ocean out there is a truly awe-inspiring experience, and one which I recall fondly to this day. But don't worry! The boat pilots are very cautious about only taking people to large, safe sandbars - and they will be sure to get you safely back to shore in time for lunch!

For lunch, take the opportunity to enjoy some of the freshest seafood EVER.

Freshly caught and grilled Barracuda (known locally as Tengesi) is one of the most incredible flavors in the universe - and if you get some for your lunch on your day in Watamu, you will be talking about it to friends, family, and strangers for the rest of your life. Bonus points if you ask the fishermen for their craziest fishing stories; these are some of the most skilled, funny, and badass people in the world, and your time will be made all the richer for including a conversation with one of them.

The early, post-lunch afternoon will likely be pretty blazing hot. If you're looking to get away from direct sun, the Watamu Snake Farm, located just a couple of minutes down the road from the beach, is a fantastic place to check out. As well as being incredibly educational on local wildlife and anti-venom research, the place will give visitors a chance to see a whole host of reptile species right up close. And while the snakes were certainly epic, I particularly enjoyed seeing the farm's small population Leopard Tortoises - many of which were older than me!

Once past the heat of the day, head back to the beach to play some late-afternoon football (soccer, to Americans!) in the sand with local kids.

Unless you are quite a skilled player, they will absolutely SMOKE you at the sport - but that's just part of the fun. Be ready to laugh at yourself when a ten-year-old destroys your ankles with a skillful dribble. But also know that you'll probably receive enthusiastic cheers following your every feeble attempt at a goal.

If you've got the time and energy left, play some volleyball on the beach too! To recover some strength, you can stop by one of the spots offering deals on delicious bottomless cocktails (and mocktails, for the alcohol-non-imbibers!).

Before the light is gone from the sky, buy some soapstone carvings from one of the vendors on the beach. In customary East African fashion, have fun doing some good-natured haggling on the price ("2000 shillings for that? I heard I could one of those for 750...") but still be prepared to pay a good deal more than locals would. It depends on where you are from, but your currency will likely go pretty far when converted to shillings - and these small businesses are how many people provide for their families.

For dinner, stop by one of the buffet-style spots in the area to stuff yourself with as wide a variety of dishes as possible for your final meal of the day. Eat some Ugali (thick corn-meal paste) with roasted goat and cabbage if you can get it. This is classic Kenyan fare, and some of my favorite flavors from my whole time in the country. Depending on which buffet you go to, you might be able to get some fresh, buttered lobster with dinner too - along with lots of other local seafood, and an abundance of yummy roasted veggies!

I enjoyed spending the evening at Watamu just watching the darkening sky over the waves. The sight and sound of the sea is an incredible thing, no matter where in the world you get to enjoy it.

Take a few moments in your evening there to savor the last moments of the day, and reflect on what made it such a special one.

If you're the type to journal, your future self will thank you for committing a few memories of your wonderful day to words. Try sketching one or two passersby, too, or scribble out a few lines of poetry to try encapsulating the feelings of the day.

In closing - and before any of you actually spend a day at Watamu beach, or somewhere nearby - I want to take a brief moment to reflect on one's mindset in visiting coastal Kenya.

Most crucially, you have to accept that you are a tourist there. Maybe that sounds obvious. But I've seen many people walk away from one of these experiences with an inaccurate, if not downright problematic, understanding of their experience abroad in Kenya. You are NOT having the deepest, most authentic and exhaustive experience of Kenyan culture in making this trip - so don't go home convinced that you have fully experienced the beauty and depth and truth of East Africa, and speaking as if you know and understand the place and people in some profound way. You are just a tourist. Remember, respect, and honor the individuals with whom you interact; do not minimize nor make a monolith of them in your storytelling about the your trip. Savor your time at Watamu. Embrace your identity as a tourist, and be humble, generous, and curious. The economy relies heavily on tourism, so don't feel bad about being a part of that - just do it thoughtfully. Don't spend all day in a resort, buying things in a gift shop and eating at the built-in restaurants, and funneling your money towards the big businesses that already rake it in; support the local economy by getting food, services and memorabilia from as many independent workers and businesspeople as possible.

With all of that in mind, I now say kwa heri for today! Asante sana for reading this brief, wandering article, and safari njema on your future trip to coastal Kenya - the most beautiful place on earth.