Maji Magic Aqua Park, and it’s the first of its kind in Africa. Its main feature is the Aquaglide inflatable sports park: a circuit of inflatable slides, climbing walls, swings, monkey bars and other obstacles anchored to the floor of the lake in front of the mall. They also offer stand up paddle boarding sessions, and plan to introduce more attractions over the next few months, including a Konex wakeboarding cable system, aqua zorbing and a high rope course.

I was keen to try out the inflatable sports park, so I booked a session with a group of friends last weekend. We were advised to arrive 30-45 minutes early to give enough time for a short briefing, and to change into our wetsuits and life jackets, which were provided.

I had enough time to chat to the owner, Ben Kelliher, who is also Head of Training at Tribe Watersports in Watamu. Ben was confident that the aqua park would help to increase the popularity of watersports in Kenya, and he said that it offered a fun and safe outdoor alternative for kids normally glued to their game consoles.

Safety is clearly a priority for the team at Maji Magic. The lake bed is lined to avoid contamination, and the water is chlorinated every few days, so is safe to swim in. A filtration system is also being fitted to remove all of the sediment from the lake to make it clear. The park’s lifeguards are qualified by the Kenya Life Saving Federation, and recently completed a UK lifesaving open water course specific to lakes and aqua parks.