[Kenya] The Social House in Nairobi

On our last night in Kenya, we stayed at The Social House in Nairobi. My family and I absolutely loved this place!

The Social House in Nairobi

I decided to book this place because of a couple of reasons. First, a friend of mine who went to Nairobi earlier this year stayed at this hotel and he highly recommended it. Second, it was ranked #1 among Nairobi hotels on tripadvisor when I was searching for hotels (as of this writing, it's ranked #2). Third, the room rate was pretty good; in fact, it was less expensive than a lot of other good hotels in the city.

The Social House lobby area

As if all that wasn't enough, I found it tremendously easy to communicate with them. Their website provides an option to talk to them via whatsapp, which I did. In fact, it was through whatsapp that I made my booking.

Wall art at the hotel #BeSocial

A really good customer service moment: there was some miscommunication regarding my reservation and I only found out about it the night before we were supposed to check. I was really worried about it but they helped me resolve the problem over whatsapp very quickly and with no fuss. Whew!

Our twin-bedded bedroom

When my family arrived, we were welcomed with big bright friendly smiles. They took us to a comfortable seating area and served us coffee as our welcome drinks while we waited to be checked in. This was the first hotel I've been to where the welcome drink was coffee and I absolutely loved that about it.

We enjoyed our welcome coffee in this beautiful area at the lobby

The women who helped me with my reservation the night before and with our check-in were Angel and Beautie, and even when assigning our rooms, they were really helpful. They knew we were really tired from a week-long safari so they gave us rooms at the side of the hotel that was furthest from the bar, to give us as much peace and quiet as possible. Cool!

A cozy little seating area outside our room

Our room had a decent and comfortable size. I also really like its modern design.

Modern wall art in our room

That said, it does come with some really cool retro highlights, such as a red SMEG mini-fridge...

SMEG mini-fridge

...and a phone that is designed to like rotary phones of the past. Awesome!

Our room phone looks like the rotary phones of old

I also loved the wood treatment in the bathroom. It's very charming! I will say that it is a bit on the small side but it's adequate.

Bathroom

Everything in the room is free, including the water (both still and sparkling), coffee (there's also a kettle and a french press), and tea. We also got a plate of cookies and welcome treats. Pretty cool!

Welcome treats in our room

Visually, The Social House is really beautiful. There is a motorcycle draped with a traditional African cloth hanging as a centerpiece in the lobby. It's really cool!

Motorcycle centerpiece in the lobby

Lots of browns and greens all over the hotel give it a very welcoming and calming ambiance.

I've mentioned the topnotch customer service I experienced when we made our reservation and upon check-in, but really, it went way beyond that. Their staff is very friendly, professional, and helpful. In fact, even before we arrived, they answered so many of my questions that I asked on whatsapp. For instance, I asked them where we could get souvenirs, how long it would take to travel to the airport, and how far certain sights in Nairobi were from the hotel. When we were there, they told us where we could get taxis to the airport since the hotel car was really expensive. They also gave us a late check-out of 1pm, which was perfect because our flight was in the late afternoon.

There are a few restaurants here, including a steak place and a Peruvian restaurant. While we were there, we had all our meals at The Other Room. We had dinner here after we checked in and we all enjoyed the food.

The pool is right next to the outdoor area of The Other Room

We also had breakfast buffet here the next morning. One of the breakfast pastries - I can't recall what it was called but I believe it had raspberry in it - was really good and I wish I had more of it haha.

We enjoyed a breakfast buffet at The Other Room

The hotel is one block away from Lavington Mall. After breakfast, we went there to buy souvenirs at the weekend Maasai Market.

Lavington Mall

We then made our way to Lavington Curve Mall, which was another more block away from Lavington Mall, for a bit more shopping. There is a Naivas here, which is a local supermarket chain, and we ended up getting lots of Dorman coffee here, both to give as souvenirs and for ourselves.

Naivas at Lavington Curve Mall

I really love The Social House. It's a beautiful hotel with a good location, great restaurants, comfortable and cozy rooms, and fantastic service. If I have a chance to revisit Nairobi, I will definitely stay here again.

The Social House
www.thesocialhouse.ke
Address:154, James Gichuru Road, Lavington, Nairobi, Kenya, 200
Phone: 254-0-709216000 

Next: Travel Tips for a Kenyan Safari

[Kenya] Mara Empiris Safari Camp in Maasai Mara

Mara Empiris Safari Camp served as our accommodations in Maasai Mara. We stayed here for two nights.

Mara Empiris Safari Camp

It was most basic of the places where we stayed while in Kenya, but that somehow made the experience quite unique. Our rooms were built as a combination of tents and permanent structures, making us feel like we really were in a camp.

Tent rooms in Mara Empiris

Our tents were on elevated wooden platform and were protected by more structured roofing. Each room also has a different name. Ours was named Ndovu.

My room was named Ndovu

The rooms were really big and spacious. Ours had three beds, even if there were only two of us. The tents had "windows" that you could roll up to let in sunlight and fresh air.

Our large and comfortable room

But even when they are rolled up, there is a screen that prevents bugs from coming in. In case some bugs do manage to make it inside the tent, there is a bug zapper. Also, to secure our rooms, we would have to fully zip the entrance of our tent and use a padlock.

The toilet and bath room is separated from the rest of the room with curtains. It's pretty basic but adequate. The cool part is that there is a separate sink,

Sink and wash area inside the room

toilet area,

toilet area

and shower. This was pretty convenient because it meant that different people could be using different parts of the bath and toilet area. For instance, someone could be brushing their teeth while someone else is showering. The shower also has hot water.

Shower area

The food here was just okay but personally, we didn't really need fancy or luxurious dishes. Since all meals were served buffet style, we always had more than enough food and we were always satisfied. Mara Empiris was also the only hotel we stayed at that didn't serve brewed coffee but they did have instant coffee. I realized that I am actually okay with instant coffee as long as it is black. (It's the 3-in-1 coffee mixes that I don't like.) I can't believe I survived on instant coffee for a couple of days haha.

The dining area is in the same building as the reception

I think only a few guests were checked in at the time we were there. I only saw maybe 2 or 3 other groups of people during our stay. On our first night, another couple was having dinner at the same time we were. As it turned out, the woman was celebrating her birthday and the staff prepared a cake for her (most likely at the request of her boyfriend). Since they couldn't eat the whole cake, they very generously offered us some slices. Cool!

Another guest shared her birthday cake with us

On our second night, a small group was relaxing outdoors around a small bonfire. I'm sure my family and I could've also requested for our own bonfire but we were so tired that we all just wanted to head back to our tents after dinner to pack and get some rest haha.

Internet is only available in the reception area. We also experienced a partial power outage on our first morning there - right before we went on our Maasai Mara drive - with all the lights going out but I think the hot water still worked during this time. There is  also an electric fence that surrounds the camp for added safety for the guests.

An electric fence surrounds the camp

Service at Mara Empiris is very friendly and hospitable. The staff always greeted us with smiles and they made us feel welcome and as comfortable as possible. They always adjusted the time that breakfast would be served depending on the time we would leave in the morning. They also prepared packed lunch for us for our whole day game drive in Maasai Mara. Also, as we left the hotel, the staff stood at the doorway of the safari camp and waved us goodbye. It was really heartwarming.

The best moment that showcased their service and hospitality came after we had already checked out. Around 20 minutes after we had left, our guide Zachary got a call. Apparently, it was the hotel asking us if we might have left a brown bag at the reception. We did! I guess we were so tired and didn't pay full attention to all our bags as we were loading them into our jeep and we forgot one. The manager and the chef decided to meet us halfway since they were heading to the market anyway and they brought our bag with them.

Even if the this hotel is pretty basic, our experience here was still really good, especially because we had such cool rooms and the service was very warm, friendly, and genuine. I also love how integrated to nature it is, with our rooms surrounded by so many trees. Overall, we had an enjoyable and memorable stay at Mara Empiris Safari Camp.

Next: The Social House in Nairobi

[Kenya] Sentrim Elementaita Lodge in Lake Nakuru

For our Lake Nakuru safari, we stayed at Sentrim Elementaita Lodge. We stayed here for one night.

Sentrim Elementaita Lodge

The main draw of this hotel is its location, which is right next to Lake Elementaita. It makes for some amazing photos.

Lake Elementaita

Of the three accommodations we stayed at while we were on safari, Sentrim Elementaita was the only one located in a main city (Lake Nakuru is the 4th biggest city in Kenya). It is about 45-60 minutes away from Lake Nakuru National Park.

Reception area

Our rooms were really big. We had one king-sized bed and one single bed. Since it is located in a city, internet is available in the room. We also had a TV although the channels were limited. (I ended up just watching the news.)

Our room

It has a nice, clean bathroom with good amenities.

Bathroom

On the morning of our departure, we got to see hordes of pink flamingos along the shore on the opposite end of the lake. They were a really long distance away but you could see a blanket of pink on that far shore. While we didn't get to see flamingos in Lake Nakuru, it was quite nice to see them from our hotel.

Flamingos on the opposite shore of Lake Elementaita

The food here was also really good. Of the three safari hotels we stayed at, this one had my favorite desserts. Their coffee was really good too. There is also a souvenir shop at the lobby where we bought more items.

The downside of our stay here was that there was an infestation of lake flies while we were checked in. We were told that the lake flies were not dangerous but that they were very annoying so we shouldn't be worried, healthwise. At least we didn't have to worry about contracting some kind of disease if we got bitten by one. True enough, we didn't get sick (and I don't think any of us was bitten). It was not the most pleasant experience though.

Dinner was actually interesting because almost all the lights were off and the few ones that were on were covered by a cloth to dim them. This prevented the lake flies from being attracted to the light sources and invading the dinner area. This made for a bit of a challenging dinner but it also made it a unique experience.

I have to say that it can be a bit of a challenge to stay at this hotel during a lake fly infestation but it is supposedly very highly rated so I am guessing the experience here is much better if there are no lake flies.

Next: Mara Empiris Safari Camp in Maasai Mara

[Kenya] Samburu Sopa Lodge

Samburu Sopa Lodge served as our accommodations in Samburu. We stayed here for two nights. The great thing about this place is that it is located inside the Samburu National Reserve.

Samburu Sopa Lodge

Aside from the great location, the service here is exceptional. Everyone - from the receptionists to the restaurant wait staff to the person manning the souvenir shop - were all professional, courteous, friendly, warm, and genuine. You could tell that they really wanted all their guests to have a wonderful time, whether at the hotel or while on safari. They really made our memorably stay in Samburu even better.

Welcome to Samburu Sopa Lodge

One of the most special moments here was that while we enjoyed a late lunch upon our arrival, we got to see several impalas at a watering hole just outside the restaurant. After a long and tiring flight to Kenya and a long drive from Nairobi to Samburu, getting to see wildlife so close to us while we enjoyed a good meal was so exciting!

Impalas at the watering hole next to the restaurant

We got to see more animals here the next day as we had lunch again, including baboons...

Baboons

...and warthogs (plus a squirrel).

Warthogs (with a squirrel in the foreground)

The rooms here are detached and dispersed over a relatively large area. This meant that we had to walk about 5 minutes or so from the lobby to our rooms. While this can be viewed as a disadvantage, my family and I appreciated this because it allowed us to walk and get a bit of exercise after each of our heavy buffet meals.

The rooms in Samburu Sopa Lodge

I really love the rooms in Samburu Sopa Lodge. There's a lot of space inside...

Inside our room

...and it has a balcony (although we never got to use it since we were out on game drives all the time).

The balcony in our room

There is no fan nor aircon in the rooms but I never found it too hot while we were there. The temperatures go down in the evenings (the coldest temp was about 10-12 degrees Celsius during our stay) so it was actually pretty cool at night.

Screen windows allow air to get while keeping most bugs out

Since the hotel is in the middle of a national reserve, it seems that they are trying to reduce their impact to the environment as much as possible. Upon arrival, we were told that power in the rooms is only available during certain parts of the day (if I recall correctly, it is available for couple of hours in the morning, during lunch time, and for a couple of hours in the evening). That said, there is electricity at the reception 24/7 so whenever we needed to charge our phones or other devices while power was out in our room, we would just ask reception to charge them for us.

Reception area

The receptionist also told us that it is safe to walk to our rooms but if we are worried, especially at night, we can ask for an escort. (We never did.)

Pathway to our rooms

Another memorable moment was that on our first night here, we had a special dinner set up in the bush, just outside the restaurant.

Dinner in the bush on our first night at the lodge

We were regaled with a special performance of Kenyan dances and chanting. It included Adumu, the Maasai jumping dance.

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We were told that we had this special dinner because it was a full moon on our first night there. It was a bit dark but it was still a wonderfully unique experience!

Full moon on our first night here

I loved the food at our hotel. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all buffet and they offer mostly international fare, with a few local items. We also really loved Kenyan coffee!

Restaurant at the Samburu Sopa Lodge

There was a souvenir shop next to the lobby. We bought a few items here.

Samburu Sopa Lodge has an awesome location, the rooms are spacious and comfortable, the food is great, and the staff and service are amazing. There is also a swimming pool but we never got to use it. If you plan to go to Samburu for a safari experience and you are looking for accommodations, Samburu Sopa Lodge is a perfect choice.

Next: Sentrim Elementaita Lodge in Lake Nakuru