We were at Keekorok Lodge-Sun Africa Hotels in July 2019.It is right in the mid of Masaai Mara game reserve. Old lodge but well maintained. Super courteous staff. This facility is unfenced which is thrilling and at the same time you need to be cautious if travelling with kids.Over all very good, food selection was good.
What a difficult place to review! Whilst location is amazing (central in the Mara), the place itself is a mix of 1960s/70s architecture, entirely eclectic dining room furniture and a great hippo pool!
So, whilst our room was comfortable enough, the 1970s metal framed doors and windows were warped enough to get your key through (see photo)! The shower we were warned took time to warm up - they weren’t wrong! After saying to reception about it, the chief technician came out and said “run it for 30 minutes”. We did and it did warm up! But plan ahead.... and our room (1287) was closest to the lodge!
The dining room & buffet were a little dated, with an odd mix of food (nothing to write home about). Like the rest of the place, the mix of conference furniture, melamine and pine tables and metal as well as wooden chairs just smacks of a need for investment.
Staff were nice and friendly and the hippo bar was amazing in reality......
As for the drives - we were lucky to have Francis as a driver/guide and what we saw was truly astonishing. Definitely recommend a full days drive as well.
Overall - a really difficult place to review. Great location and drives, but a lodge in need of investment to keep it up to C21 standards. Go there for the location more than the accommodation.
The outside space is amazing, especially the hippo pool where you can sit for hours watching the buffaloes and hippos! The grounds are immaculate with a lovely swimming pool. The restaurant offers a good variety of food which could be hotter unless you have it cooked fresh at the grill while you wait. It is a large restaurant and I got the feeling of a canteen as it is so busy.
The room we had was not great. The phone didn’t work and you are required to ask security to escort you to and from the main building incase there are wild animals roaming after dark. Hence we had to go it alone the first night. They did change it. The toilet was not secured and rocked when you sat on it so when we got locked in the room on the second night we got them to fix it.....by putting cardboard underneath!!! We did have a new lock fitted eventually and were able to get out to dinner. There is a fridge cabinet which was locked so we asked for it to be opened so we could put water in it. Guess what, it was fitted with a Kenyan plug and the socket next to it was an english one (all sockets are the same as ours)! A bit redundant really. Overall not a great stay but it was only for 2 nights.
The staff were polite and professional but the Management of the facility need to step up. We had no water supply for over 24 hours as their sump broke down. All the hotel guests were inconvenienced as there was none even for flushing the toilets. I'm surprised that a facility of this size does not have a back-up or an effective contingency plan. Also there there are things which should be cared for better: Chipped toilet seat, the room phone didn't work. You should also know that the power supply is shut off through the night (10-4) and twice during the day. Maybe more solar panels will help. I think if they have a good audit of their offering, they can really improve. Also this place is best suited for groups as was the case when we were here. If you're looking for a quieter holiday look elsewhere.
I don't know where to start with my review to be honest, but I/we loved the place the staff are so friendly and always smiling, the rooms are cosy and comfortable the lodge is very clean and the staff are always doing something. The safari was out of this world and our driver Josef went out of his way on our last 2 days trying to find the elusive Rhino but to no avail, no worries we got lions, cheetahs and cubs, elephants giraffe you name it, and of course the beautiful Leopard. I really miss this place and I want to return. The hippo watering hole is just a 3 or 4 minute walk where from the safety of the viewing point you can watch the hippos. Special thanks to Judy who gave us our cake for our 25th wedding anniversary. There are too many names I want to thank but Judy, Peter on reception and of course Joseph our game driver all stand out. I hope I see you all again very soon
Chris & Jill Evans
