We went there with our kids last year as well and decided we should definitely go back! So we did:)
In both trips we stayed at Fairmont Safari Club. What a place! The service, food, rooms, amazing animal orphanage, tea time, breakfast, local shows, live music, everything is top quality. I cannot say enough. It sounds like an advertising, I know:) but there are not many places that memories stay with me...
By car, from Nairobi to Mt. Kenya it takes 3-4hrs depending on the day and time you travel. We left home on Friday at 6:30am and spent 1.5hrs on Ngong Road, thanks to road constructions! But good news returning trip was only 3hrs drive. Since we live on the other side of Nairobi, Karen, the trip takes little longer. Roads are not bad, especially after living Nairobi borders, it is pretty nice. The only thing you must be careful if you choose to drive is right after Nyari, because there are huge pot wholes! When you drive you feel like you are on a computer game, and last year obviously we lost the game because we had a flat tire right before we arrived to Fairmont! In second trip we were highly experienced:) besides the pot wholes driving is very nice, you get to see real Kenya which is very amazing and impressive.
There are many hotels in the area but I highly recommend Fairmont with its great service, staff and location. Guests are welcome by smiling local staff with warm towels ready. Hotel manager also greets you personally at the dinner. Fairmont Safari Club has also its own wild animal orphanage where you can feed 150yrs old turtle, monkeys, impalas, ostrich, and so much more. Tea served in the afternoon with petite cakes and sandwiches in bar and lawn area. Breakfast and lunch served open buffet style and menu changes daily. Dinner menu changes daily as well (hotel is all inclusive, except drinks and alcohol) and you get to dine in candlelight with a huge fireplace at the back. There are different types of rooms. We stayed at suite and garden room. Both were very spacious, tastefully furnished. Turndown service is nicely done, each room has a fireplace and throughout the year because of high altitude it gets chilly, so fireplace is lit at night. And how can I not mention! you get to sleep with warm water bags in your bed:)
Other amazing thing about Fairmont is, it is on the equator, and you can even test and see it with your own eyes, for testing northern and southern hemisphere bowls with water ready for you on the lawn! Kids loved it!
There are few National Parks in the surrounding area, the one we went and highly popular is Sweetwater Game Reserve which covers approx. 90,000 hectares. You can see big five if you get lucky. We were able to see all except lion and cheetah. But believe me our ranger tried so hard, we even got stuck in the mud!!! Sweetwater also has its own Chimpanzee sanctuary which is a must see. It was so amazing to be able to see them this close. We have been told all the chimpanzees are orphans and there are currently 39 of them and each has its own name and unique character:)
I wish we climbed to Mt. Kenya, unfortunately because of my youngest child we could not. So I still want to go back and do the hiking trip! But not so soon though:)
Best time to visit Mt. Kenya is between December and April. Rainy season usually starts mid April and it gets really cold starting May through September. We were very lucky, because Friday was very chilly and rainy (which is very unusual for March but these days weather in here is very unpredictable:)) Saturday and Sunday we had a clear sky with sunshine, and Mt. Kenya was looking at us with its impressive aura. By the way all the rooms face Mt. Kenya so you wake up with an amazing view.
Sorry my blog is kinda long, but so much to cover. So hope you find it interesting and fun to read:)
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