Diani Beach · Where to stay
Checked 31 August 2026 · 3 official sources
PICK YOUR BASE
Diani is essentially one long road with the beach on one side, so the decision is how far south you go, how busy you want it, and whether you sleep on the sand or a kilometre inland in Ukunda.
Central Diani — the main strip
The middle stretch of Diani Beach Road, where the shopping centres, dive shops, restaurants and most of the older beach hotels are. Everything is walkable or a short tuk-tuk ride, and the sand in front is the busiest and most worked by beach vendors.
📍 Map · $$
Galu Beach — the quiet south end
South of central Diani: wider, emptier sand, far fewer hawkers, and the base for the kite school and the drop zone. You need a tuk-tuk for anything that is not on your own hotel's beach.
📍 Map · $$
Tiwi Beach — cheaper, to the north
Twenty minutes north towards the Likoni ferry. Considerably cheaper, much quieter, a rockier shoreline and very few places to eat, which suits people staying two weeks rather than three nights.
📍 Map · $
Remember that Ukunda is the actual town
Practical tip: Diani Beach Road is hotels and restaurants; Ukunda, a kilometre inland on the main coast road, is where the matatu stage, banks, market, hospital and airstrip are. Sleeping beach-side and shopping in Ukunda is the normal split, and tuk-tuks between the two cost very little.