Kilwa Ruins Lodge
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Activities Included
Tour of the Kilwa Kisiwani Ruins (by Dhow - includes Guide)
- US$25 per person
- Tsh. 15,000 for the Dhow ( min 4-5 Pax in one Dhow )
- Tsh. 1,550 per person paid to the Kilwa Cultural Office
- It takes approximately 30 minutes to reach the island
Tour of Kilwa Kivinje (by SUV - includes guide)
- US$ 50 (SUV)
- It takes approximately 15 minutes to reach Kilwa Kivinje.
Tour of Songa Mnara (by motor boat - Includes guide and soft drinks )
- Guests are taken there by motor powered boat from the Kilwa Ruins Lodge for US$ 350.
- The trip to the island takes one hour.
Water ways Cruise (Hippo and Bird watching - by motor boat )
- Tsh 15,000 for the guide
- US$ 300 by motor boat
- It takes approximately 45minutes to reach to the area.
- Max 6 People per trip.
The above quoted rates are subject to change.
KILWA KISIWANI
Kilwa Kisiwani is reached by dhow and has an amazingly well preserved collection of ruins. The most striking sight is the old Omani Fort which is built on the foundations of an old Portuguese fort. The other big attraction is the “Big Mosque” that dates to the 12th Century and was once the largest mosque in East Africa. The Sultan’s palace is located directly south of the mosque. Experienced local guides give tours of the ruins, and dhows are arranged from the small jetty on the mainland. The ruins are extensive and one can easily spend a whole day exploring them.
KILWA KIVINJE
Kilwa Kivinje was an ancient Arabian slave and ivory trading town, where caravans departed for expeditions to the interior. When the Germans assumed control of Kilwa Kivinje at the end of the 19th Century, the colonial government built a fort and expanded the town. Today you can still find a Market Hall, the Fort, and two pillars commemorating the dead of the Maji Maji War.
Songa Mnara
There is an impressive collection of ruins on the nearby islands of Songo Mnara, Sanje Majoma and Sanje ya Kate.
The earliest of these sites is Sanje ya Kate, to the south of Kilwa Masoko where there are ruins covering an area of 400 acres- including houses and a mosque.
The mosque is of an early type with a mihrab niche contained in the thickness of the wall rather than projecting out of the north wall as is usual in later East African mosques. Excavations have shown that the settlement was abandoned before 1200AD and most of the ruins date to the 10th century or earlier.
To the east of Sanje ya Kate is the larger island of Songo Mnara which contains extensive ruins on its northern tip. The remains date to the 14th and 15th centuries, and consist of thirty-three houses and a palace complex, as well as five mosques contained within a defensive enclosure wall. The remains at Songo Mnara are informative as they are one of the few places in East Africa where pre-eighteenth-century houses survive in any numbers. The houses have a standardized design with a monumental entrance approached by a flight of steps leading via an anteroom into a sunken courtyard, to the south of which are the main living quarters of the house.
Other Activities are:
Travelling up the waterways in a Dhow or motorized boat, gliding past the mangroves the abundant bird life and even the odd hippo showing its head above the water makes for wonderful leisurely cruise in the early morning or the late afternoon.