More history

Staying in the small village of Shela, Nanni gazed across the glittering reaches of the channel towards Ras Kitau Bay on Manda Island. Serene and beautiful, he was surprised to note that there were no houses on the pristine stretch of beach. Back in Italy, he found he couldn’t get the image of Manda out of his mind. Eventually, he decided to return, and bought a single plot of land. Embarking on his new challenge, he first built a small house; then, thinking that his three sons and their families would join them, he bought another plot of land and expanded their house into a villa.

Architecture

Built from local bleached-white coral blocks and delicately styled to reflect a fusion of Italian style and Swahili culture, the villa rose elegantly above the silver sands. Inside, Nanni and his interior designer Armando Tanzini filled the rooms with delicate Swahili niches, intricate fretwork, luscious rugs, hand-made furniture, and an eclectic collection of art, sculpture and carvings. Friends came from all over the world to stay. One of them, the artist and film director Julian Schnabel, provided the inspiration for certain architectural elements of the villa. Schnabel also used local dhow sails, faded by the wind and sun, to act as canvasses for his flamboyant paintings, which now hang on the pure white walls of the central drawing room alongside the work of a myriad of local artists, Swahili craftsmen, and internationally recognized artists.

Completion

In 2005, the villa was finally complete. A fabulous party was thrown to celebrate. Everyone marvelled over the purity and style of the cream-hued coral palace that stood on the sands of the Lamu archipelago. Two years later, two more villas were built for family friends, and then at the last minute, the family decided to combine the two villas and the main family villa to create a ’boutique hotel’ on Lamu island, thus providing an entirely new and unique accommodation option. The family decided to add an open-air restaurant with a rooftop bar equidistant between the various villas. The rooftop was constructed in a traditional Swahili style fanned by the cool breezes that wafted through its open sides and shaded by a soaring Makuti roof.

Naming

Debating what to call the emerging resort, Nanni remembered how a friend had remarked on the fact that the main villa had one reception room inside the house for the family and another eclectic Indian-styled pavilion on the beach for receiving honored guests. ”It’s called a Majlis,” said the friend. ‘The Arabic word refers to a beautiful place reserved especially for entertaining honored guests in the Muslim community’. ”Perfect,” said Nanni. ”Since Lamu used to be a Protectorate of Oman, we must honor the local community. We shall call it The Majlis.” Officially opened in October 2009, The Majlis welcomed its first guests that Christmas. Designed to offer an African ‘home-away-from-home’ for all who visit, The Majlis was built with love and finished in beauty. Not intended as a hotel, it still isn’t one, it’s simply a very special place in which our honoured guests can feel at home.

The Majlis Hotel located on the Lamu Island offers elegant and luxurious accommodation, in understated design complementing the natural beauty of Lamu and its tropical location. The beach hotel facing Lamu Island comprises 25 superbly appointed Superior and Deluxe rooms, Junior and Royal suites divided into 3 villas.