One of the biggest wellness retreats in East Africa will come back to Salty’s beginning of June2023. A four day festival filled with growth, laughter and connection - with self, others and Nature. We spoke with Tamara Britten, one of the founders of Kilifi Wellness Festival to find out where the inspiration for this event came from and what we can expect from the upcoming 4th edition.
Why did you start the festival?
It was during the covid pandemic when four of us, friends and yoga teachers, got together to think of ways to help people during this difficult time. We wanted to give people wellness, and to shine the light of happiness into their lives. We decided to plan a wellness festival at the beautiful location of Salty’s Kitesurf Village in Kilifi. We believe that the soothing loveliness of Bofa Beach and Kilifi’s distinctive creek, combined with a selection of wellness activities, is what people need.
We spent 2020 setting up the festival and planning the events, and launched our first Kilifi Wellness Festival in January 2021.
Where did you get your inspiration from?
It might sound strange, but we found inspiration in the dark days of covid. When the world was suffering, we wanted to bring joy into people’s lives and to give them some tools to enhance the wellness of their body, mind and spirit. We were also inspired by the beauty of Kilifi. Wellness isn’t only physical; mental health is incredibly important. We believe that being surrounded by such loveliness helps people find calmness and peace.
We’re also inspired by the team at Salty’s, the festival’s venue, who have welcomed our festival into their lovely space, and helped bring it to fruition. The festival team and the Salty’s team together have made the festival what it is today.
Tell us about your team
The four founders of the festival are Andrea, Sandra, Nyamwathi and Tamara. We have organised and taught at three KWFs so far, and are currently planning the fourth, which will be on Madaraka weekend: 1st to 4th June 2023. While the four of us are certified and experienced yoga teachers, we all have other skills that we offer at the festival. Andrea is certified in the circus arts, teaches aerial yoga and hula hooping, and runs a workshop on addiction resilience. Sandra teaches laughter yoga, and runs an interactive workshop in art therapy. Nyamwathi teaches Yin and Vinyasa, and offers workshops in hatha, head-wrapping and animal totems. I teach SUP yoga on Kilifi Creek, and offer a workshop in arm balances. Ivy is also a key part of the team, and does logistics and organisation in Kilifi.
Who are the teachers/mentors at the festival?
The four founders, Andrea, Sandra, Nyamwathi and Tamara, will be offering their sessions as before. Other teachers include Aruna and Camilla, whose double sound bath on the beach is one of the festival’s most blissful experiences. David and Mohamed are offering dance fusion sessions, based on their experience in the performing arts. Rachana is offering yin yoga and yoga nidra under the stars. Sham is offering a workshop on playfulness and tapping into your inner child. Victor is offering a balance, mobility and stretch session, and a body weight training and abs session. Obera is offering calisthenics and Sadam is offering aerial acrobatics.
What sort of events are planned for the next one?
The Kilifi Wellness Festival’s signature experiences include yin yoga, vinyasa yoga, aerial acrobatics, SUP yoga, laughter yoga, circus arts, head-wrapping, hula hooping, breathwork and arm balances. On top of these, we’re planning a whole host of new sessions to inspire, excite and rejuvenate. There will be sessions in Afro-fusion dance, salsa, callisthenics, and stretch and balance, and workshops in art therapy, divination and spiritual coaching, animal totems and communication, finding your inner child, and stress resilience.
Special events at the festival include a dance performance, sound healing, ecstatic dance, cacao ceremony, and a full moon dhow cruise on Kilifi Creek.
Who is the festival for?
The festival is for everyone. If you want to experience four days in a beautiful space, trying new things as well as participating in activities you love, meeting diverse people and sharing inspirational experiences, the Kilifi Wellness Festival is for you. Come to recharge your batteries and feel nurtured and nourished, and return home feeling relaxed and grounded.
What can you expect to gain from the experience?
Our core values are playfulness, curiosity, connection and service, and we offer these to all who attend. People who attend will have the benefits of these, and experience them holistically.
General information:
Early bird tickets are available until 1st April 2023. Head to the Kilifi Wellness Festival website https://kilifiwellness.com and grab your tickets before the rates go up.
Packages including flights from Nairobi and accommodation in Kilifi will be available on the website from next week. Let us do the work for you, buy one of our complete packages, and relax and enjoy the fun.
Message from KFW team:
We are still open for more sponsors, vendors and therapists to apply. If anyone would like to:
sponsoring the next festival,
has a selection of wellness, eco-friendly or coastal-related products they’d like to offer at the festival
offer a treatment or therapy,
are welcome to contact Kilifi Wellness Festival at info@kilifiwellness.com.