Kenya has a near perfect tropical coastline - hundreds of miles of sand shading from white to silver to gold. On one side it's laced with palm trees or forest or flanked by sand dunes. On the other lies the Indian Ocean, every shade of blue-green imaginable. Its waters are gentle near the shore, thanks to the coral reefs that act as barriers to the full force of the waves, and host an amazing array of tropical marine life.

The Kenyan coast is steeped in history, too. From the 9th century onwards, Arab and Indian traders arrived in dhows to trade, and created the special Swahili character of the coast, which still thrives. The very word is derived from the Arabic Sawahil, meaning ‘coast dwellers.' A few hundred years later, the Portuguese arrived, and made their own mark on the coast, most visible today at Fort Jesus in Mombasa. This, together with Malindi and the Old Town on Lamu island, offers an intriguing cultural edge to beach holidays in Kenya.

There are any number of luxury hotels to choose from for a perfect Kenya beach holiday and it would be easy to stay put in any of them and do nothing other than enjoy the sunshine - eight hours a day on average - and the sea. However, with so many Kenyan game parks close at hand, it's worth combining sea and safari in a tailor-made holiday.