TWIL Travel Advisor, Julie law, journeyed across the world to Kenya. What she saw was a roaring place with both commotion and serenity.
Kenya is the original safari destination where you can see wild animals in wild places. It is a place of colourful tribesmen, pristine beauty, and unparalleled diversity. Here, silver beaches with unspoiled palm and a bustling landscape of wildlife will juxtapose to create a mosaic that will leave you in awe.
The start of our trip was one to remember. We were welcomed with a dinner feast carving game meats table side like ostrich, crocodile, and camel. This meal paved the way for the nature and journeys we would share as a family for the days to come.
Nairobi Highlights
Carnivore restaurant is a traditional African restaurant owned by the Sarova Brand. Skewers of meat of all different types (ox balls (for real!), alligator, lamb, beef, chicken etc. It’s a fun place for all ages.
Daphne Sheldrick animal orphanage - must do combined with Giraffe centre (next to and part of giraffe manor). Animal orphanage has public hour from 11-12 daily. Private tours available outside this time.
Nairobi Accommodations
Sarova Stanley Hotel: We loved this 5 star hotel. Once you enter the high security gates to enter building there is a feeling of safety and warmth. This hotel is steeped in history. The staff take great pride in their hotel and will take you on a complimentary ½ hour tour of the hotel to discuss its history. This is a great 1 or 2-night stopover place. We stayed here 2 nights which enabled us to recuperate after a full night’s travel. We incorporated a day of touring the Elephant Orphanage and Giraffe Centre which was a great start to the trip.
PROS
This hotel steeped in history-colonial feel
Warm rich red/gold tones/wood panelled walls throughout hotel
Beautiful traditional bars
Service impeccable
Restaurants, particularly the Thai restaurant excellent
Rooms spacious, clean, well equipped-connecting rooms and suites available
Rooftop pool and restaurant/fitness facilities on site
CONS
Location is in the centre of Nairobi-there are no restaurants to walk to from this location and feeling of uneasiness outside the hotel security gates. Not safe to wander the streets here.
Fairmont, The Norfolk (Site Tour): My first impression was this hotel was a great stopover place in a quiet location in a more modernized hotel. Unfortunately, the rooms weren’t up to par but the rest of the building made up for those flaws.
PROS
Peaceful location, situated in a quiet part of the city
Caribbean Colonial flair to hotel décor-palm ceiling fans, mahogany wood, white walls
Common areas more modernized and newer in appearance
Rooms a large, centred around a central courtyard (didn’t feel like you were in the heart of Nairobi)
Adjoining rooms perfect for families (or for bodyguards- Seriously, that’s how they pitched the rooms!)
· Beautiful wood panelled bar next to lovely tea room
CONS
Rooms need updating. They were very tired in appearance
Lewa Highlights
Must pay a visit to the Lewa Operations Department which explains how they control poaching, conserve Rhinos and protect the animal population.
There are 5 properties in the conservancy, all ranging in high level accommodation but different style.
Brunch in the middle of Mara following game drive.
Lewa Accommodation
Lewa Safari Lodge: I would stay here again in a heart beat. I am intrigued about visiting the other 5 Lewa properties, particularly Lewa Wilderness and Lewa House.
I felt like Lewa Safari Camp had a nice balance of luxury and rustic qualities. The best thing about staying in a Conservancy is that your game drives are more private and personal compared to drives in the Mara. By the way, I was woken up at 5am to a Lions Roar and watched the sun rise while watching a heard of elephants drinking from the water hole 30 feet away.
PROS
5-hour drive from Nairobi. Lewa also has its own private airstrip
This was a lovely property on a private conservancy of 63000 acres of protected land.
Conservancy for rhinos, incredible BIG 5 sightings seen here-best thing about conservancy game
Drives are less vehicles and more private game viewing
12 Tented Lodges on property
Very cool first impression with rugged, organic, authentic, minimalist design
Two games drives daily - early morning and early evening
Rooms-very private-permanent African canvas tented accommodation - nice bathrooms with functional toilet and shower- Wi-Fi in rooms, comfortable bed, screened in with views overlooking plains - beautiful!
Hairdryers on generator in main area
Limited electricity-solar and battery - no power between 11pm-6am (pretty standard)
Fenced property - safe to wander around freely
Some tents can be combined for families
Pool area and beautiful restaurant - rustic luxury
All inclusive plans - 2 drives per day - excellent guides - options of brunch in the middle of the wild
CONS
Service pretty slow and lax
Food is good, not great
Fairmont Mount Kenya:
I get a feeling that this place was something VERY special a long time ago. It’s the antithesis of a safari experience which might be welcomed to those that want a reprieve from safari life. I personally loved the character of the rooms and the beautifully manicured lawns and gardens but can’t help but feel like I was missing out on an African experience while staying here.
PROS
2-hour drive from Lewa
Beautiful setting overlooking Mt.Kenya (situated on equator)
Very colonial feel about property-incredible gardens and landscape
Rooms have tons of character (all have real fireplaces)
Family cottages available
Resort feel and prices of F&B and activities reflects this
Good place for 1-2-night stopover - all of your luxury items available
Great for hiking
Good place for multi-generational families
CONS
Service here was slow
Rooms have character but need some updating - splash of paint on walls/clean furniture would help. I believe they have plans to refurbish rooms so stay tuned!
Sarova Mara: I was SO impressed with this property. This is a fantastic place for EVERYONE to stay- young families, teenage families, and multigenerational families are comfortable here. It’s a great place to stay following a ‘proper’ tented camp experience. The Sarova Hotels have perfected their service skills and is one of the reasons why I would recommend this brand.
PROS
Located in Largest National Park (Park of Serengeti), the Massai Mara
Five-star property, in my opinion, when weighing in rooms, F&B and service
VERY family friendly, small resort style
Fenced property and lots of space for children to roam freely
Many activities for children and teens
Room (tents) beautiful! Shocked by the level of cleanliness, space and beautiful décor
This was a nice property to stay in following a few tented nights with limited Wi-Fi, water and electricity
Nightly entertainment
They have family tents, spa, pool, 2 restaurants, incredible food choice
2 game drives daily
Very affordable
CONS
Lots of vehicles - can really alter your game viewing experience (not a reflection of hotel)
Walking safaris, night game drives not allowed in national park
Must be out of park by 6:30pm
Sarova Spirit, Mara: A very remote location in the Mara with some great game drives but not worth the extra drive to get here. This was my least favourite place. This hotel with its stark interior and modern design belongs in Miami, not the Mara.Lots of potential, but not there yet.
PROS
Beautiful location, beautiful, well appointed and massive self-contained huts
Rooms were huge, great for families
Not a fenced property (has its pros and cons)
Watering hole nearby attracting animals
Nice pool
CONS
Not a great main communal lounge, bar and restaurant décor-very cold feeling
F&B service terrible
Quality of food and drink terrible
Rooms not cleaned properly
OTHER HOTELS TO CONSIDER IN KENYA
Nairobi: Giraffe Manor, Emakoko, or Sarova Stanley in town
Laikipia (2 hrs from lewa): Kecheche camp or Borana
Lewa: Lewa Wilderness, Lewa House, Borana, Lewa Safari Camp
Mara: Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp, Bateleur Camp, Mara Plains Camp, budget: Mara Sarova
TIPS AND INSIDER
Tents:
Different levels of tented accommodations - what differs are exposure to elements, electricity, WiFi, toilets and running water
Level of privacy- many tented camps have communal eating/lounge areas
Usually only 5-10 tents on property
Luxury tented camps really vary in quality – make sure you know what is included
Fenced vs. unfenced camps: unfenced means you are vulnerable to animals entering camp - staff on duty all night monitoring animal activity - cannot walk unaccompanied outside after dusk without armed staff. Can feel scary and claustrophobic.
Lodges: have a boutique feel-combination between tented camp and resort. All amenities available without sacrificing a rustic ‘tent’ experience
Resorts: they are great for the young families - open space to run, organized children’s activities, theme nights, pools, other sport activities, fenced, feeling of having a safety net within a wild environment
Type of vehicle: you want an open land cruiser
Traffic horrific in Nairobi-took 2 hours to drive 3 miles; should determine where your clients stay overnight if they have an early morning flight
Nairobi: not a safe place to walk - worth staying 1-2 nights to rejuvenate after a long flight journey
$50 visa required to enter country
