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Founded by the 1950s American actor, William Holden, and counting Winston Churchill and Bing Crosby amongst its former members, this refined club makes for a unique base from which to explore the region. Today, the original colonial building houses most of the facilities and rooms. Tusks is the signature restaurant, with views from the terrace over the sprawling gardens to Mount Kenya and offering a diverse gourmet menu that showcases local produce. At the casual Zebar, your waiter will need to cross hemispheres to take your order! The afternoon tea here, served on the lawn terrace, comes recommended. There’s a pool bar and the Mawingo Room – an exclusive private dining venue set around a wood-burning fireplace with a collection of photos featuring actors from yesteryear. You’re welcome to spend your days here as you please, taking it easy by the pool or immersing yourself in activities from golf to mountain biking. There’s also a new health and fitness centre. Tastefully furnished traditional rooms are housed in the main building, with a sitting area, fireplace, bathroom with rain shower, and views of the gardens or towards Mount Kenya. A range of suites are more spacious, some located in the original building and others in cottages throughout the grounds. The charming William Holden Cottages are simply huge, with their own private lawn area.
This safari camp is one of a kind. Located in a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it benefits from the active conservation efforts of the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy. There are currently 137 black and white rhino, which makes for superb game viewing, and the conservancy also has the largest concentration of Grévy’s zebra in the world. Owned by the local community, Lewa Safari Camp’s profits are directly reinvested into conservation and community efforts – this means your stay here will help to continue this vital work and protect some of Africa’s most vulnerable wildlife. Prepare for a near-private safari experience – the outstanding feature of this camp is that the strict tourism limits means you rarely have to share viewing areas with other vehicles. You can even meet the Head of the Anti-Poaching Unit and learn about how they look after the area and its inhabitants (at extra cost). The conservancy covers 65,000 acres; it’s a vast wilderness with habitats that include pristine forests, grasslands and woodlands with views of Mount Kenya. Within the camp, there is everything you might need for a comfortable stay. Rise early for a bush breakfast and game drive, perhaps viewing the same wildlife that Duke and Duchess of Cambridge might have seen on their visit when they famously got engaged in Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in 2010. Relax by the log fire in the lounge and indulge with home-made cakes at afternoon tea before returning to your large, thatched tent, designed with simple rusticity and an emphasis on the abundant space. Groups are well catered for with two family tents which each sleep up to five people.
Home to the largest black rhino conservancy in East Africa, Ol Pejeta is an exceptional place to embark on your safari adventure. Watch wildlife quenching their thirst at the local watering hole, just a few feet away from your tent. The Rhino Dining Room’s huge windows overlook the great body of water so you can watch impalas, giraffes and even elephants grazing while you have your own breakfast from the buffet spread each morning. Visit the Endangered Species Enclosure to see the last two northern white rhino on Earth. Visit the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary – the only one in Kenya – or go on a night game drive for a peek into the habits of the most awe-inspiring predators under the night sky (at extra cost). While in the camp, choose from a wide range of activities, including painting and archery, or simply enjoy the spellbinding views of Mount Kenya on the horizon, the biggest mountain in Africa after Kilimanjaro. All tents have traditional canvas interiors under a thatched roof and are angled towards the watering hole for close-up wildlife viewing. Upgrade to the newer Morani tents which are decorated with deep wooden accents and glass doors to perfectly frame the incredible views. Formerly a colonial farm, the old manager’s house is now the main building of the camp, where you’ll find the main restaurant as well as the bar and lounge.
At this peaceful Serena-managed tree lodge – at an altitude of 2195 metres and reached by a timbered drawbridge leading up from the forest – it’s all about appreciating the sweeping views and the wild African sights and sounds. You’ll be able to see the jagged snowcapped peak of Mount Kenya and, thanks to the natural waterhole and salt lick, there’s abundant wildlife viewing from the lodge itself. Watch from your balcony, pull up a seat at the viewing deck in the bar, head up to the rooftop or down to the photo hide (reached via a tunnel and offering spectacular photo opportunities) as bushbuck, buffalo, herds of elephants and the occasional leopard come to drink. The waterhole is floodlit at night, and the lodge offers a lovely wake-up call service if you’d like to be woken when a particular animal makes an appearance. Buffet-style meals are served in the atmospheric gallery dining room, which sits at tree-level to showcase the views over the forest canopy, and where the dining chairs are hand-crafted, each with a different animal carved into the back. For pre and post-dinner drinks there’s a comfy wood panelled bar area with a fireplace and viewing deck. Cosy chalet-style rooms are furnished from indigenous wood and feature authentic African artwork. All rooms have a terrace that overlooks the lively waterhole below.
There’s great wildlife viewing at the private Mugie Conservancy in northern Kenya. You’ll see herds of elephants drinking at the waterhole close to the main house and if you’re lucky you might watch leopard and cheetah on your game drive from the airstrip. There’s rarer wildlife to be found, too, like the Grevy’s zebra, Reticulated giraffe and Jackson’s hartebeest. Wildlife viewing is exclusive and private as only four vehicles head out on game drives each day. The house and its facilities are beautiful. An infinity pool overlooks the Laikipia plateau and individual stone cottages have plush bathtubs and open fires. All meals and drinks are included during your time here, served in the cosy main house with its roaring log fire. But a stay at Mugie House goes beyond a traditional wildlife-viewing experience. Governors’ really want you to come away with an understanding of the local culture and ecosystem of this incredible region. You can track lions with rangers, head out with the anti-poaching unit (bloodhounds and their handlers) and see the excellent community cattle grazing programme. We’ve worked with Governors’ for over 40 years and love their other properties, too. Mugie House is great to twin with any of their Maasai Mara camps, or you can go all out with a triple-centre by adding a pre-stay at Loldia House as well. With Governors’ Aviation flights between the properties, getting around couldn’t be easier.
Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club
Lewa Safari Camp
Sweetwaters Serena Camp, Ol Pejeta
Serena Mountain Lodge
Governors' Mugie House
