Fort Jesus & Old Town

Fort Jesus was constructed by the Portuguese in 1593-1596 to the design of Italian architect Giovanni Battista Cairati, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2011. The fort changed hands nine times between the Portuguese and Omani Arabs, each conquest leaving architectural layers visible today. The surrounding Old Town is a two-square-kilometre labyrinth of coral-stone houses with intricately carved Swahili doors, balconied upper storeys, and interior courtyards. Walking tours wind past the Mandhry Mosque (one of East Africa's oldest), the old slave market site, and curio shops selling Swahili brass lamps and carved coconut-shell handicrafts.