About Us
The Fort was made for moments like this. Nestled directly on the shores of Lamu Island, it has long been a place where groups come to escape the ordinary — to gather, to breathe and to experience something quietly extraordinary together. Whether booked by families, friends or like-minded souls, The Fort offers an exclusive, intimate setting directly by the sea that lends itself naturally to retreats of any kind.
It is this very quality that drew Marlon to it. Through his longstanding friendship with the owner of The Fort, he discovered a space that felt unlike anywhere else — intimate, beautiful and full of quiet potential. It was here that the idea for fortretreats was born: a desire to share something truly special with those who seek more than just a holiday. With yoga at its heart, creativity woven through its days and the Indian Ocean as its backdrop, this retreat is his invitation to like-minded souls — the yoga enthusiasts, the creatives, the quietly adventurous.
Our Team
EMMA
Emma is a Scottish yoga teacher and former primary school teacher who has called Kenya home since 2019.
After several years living in Tanzania, she fell in love with East Africa’s people, culture and wild spaces. Through her own journey of self-discovery and a growing passion for health and wellbeing, she trained as a yoga teacher and now shares that love through classes, retreats, children’s yoga and her online studio.
When she’s not teaching, you’ll usually find her exploring, crocheting or writing children’s books.
YOGA INSTRUCTOR 
MARLON
Marlon is a German hospitality expert and has been travelling to Kenya for many years — and to Lamu in particular, an island that carries an atmosphere and energy entirely its own. Over time, Lamu became more than a destination. It became a place he returns to, drawn by its stillness, its Swahili soul and the rare sense of slowness it offers to those who arrive open to it.
With a deep background in gastronomy and hospitality, Marlon knows how to craft experiences that feel both effortless and exceptional. It is this expertise that brought together two remarkable young talents — Emma, whose teaching brings warmth and depth to every session on the mat, and Pie, a gifted artist whose connection to Lamu runs through her work — to create something that is more than the sum of its parts. This retreat is personal. And that, above all, is what makes it worth coming for.
FOUNDER & HOST
Pie is a British figurative painter who has lived and worked within communities across Africa for the past six years — much of that time in Lamu. She knows the culture, the people and the atmosphere quite well and loves coming back to this unique place.
Her practice explores how art can become a bridge between people and place. Rooted in collaboration, her craft seeks to create lasting relationships and meaningful change that extends beyond the artwork itself.
ARTIST