Amazing Kenya (Kenya)

Member Name: shadsybear

Product:	Kenya
Date:	22/10/08 (96 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Too many to list here - see review

Disadvantages: Been a lot of trouble there this year

I was just looking back at my photos from my holiday in Kenya last year and felt compelled to write about the wonderful places we stayed and attractions we visited. It feels like being back at school having to write about holidays we went on!!

I went to Kenya last June with my Mum, her fiancee and my little sister (well not so little at 23!). Mum and my now step dad were getting married out there are took me and my sister out to celebrate with them. Having seen Africa on TV I wasn't really too keen on going, especially having to leave my husband behind for 2 weeks, however, I really wanted the chance to celebrate my Mum's wedding and who can turn down a free holiday!

We went with First Choice from Manchester airport. The flight is about 8 hours but it really doesn't feel that long if you take advantage of the movies and other in flight entertainment.

If you are thinking of holidaying in Kenya I would strongly recommend choosing First Choice as we found them to be incredibly helpful right from the flight and throughout the whole time we were in Kenya.

Arriving in Mombasa airport we faced a fairly lengthy wait at the airport and had to fill in a couple of forms which then had to be checked before we were allowed to continue to our respective hotels. We were probably at the airport for around 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours in total!

Once we were allowed on our way our luggage was loaded on to the top of a minibus and on we got. I must admit at this point I was wondering what I had done! Here I was on a rickety old minibus with my luggage placed precariously on top in a place that looked really quite rough! The area around Mombasa airport is not the nicest but this does not reflect on the main part of the city!

Getting to our hotel all my fears quickly disintegrated. We stayed at The Severin Sea Lodge for the most part of our holiday (whilst we were not on safari!). The hotel was well protected by security and there were big gates at the entrance which were kept locked unless people needed to come in or go out. The hotel backed onto the beach and there were always guards down on the beach stopping anyone coming in who was not supposed to be there.

For the first couple of days we stayed in the main hotel which was not the best. The beds were uncomfy and the air conditoning was so loud you couldn't sleep! However, once back from our safari we were upgraded to one of the lodges which was absolutely great - it is hard to beleive they are part of the same complex! The lodges are large and we had 2 comfy double beds and a decent sized bathroom with both a bath and shower! If you stay at Severin make sure you spend the extra money on a Lodge!

There were plenty of facilities on the complex including:

A small (and expensive) gift shop
2 pools
A laundrette
A hairdressers
One large restaurant where main meals were served
A small pizza and pasta outside restaurant which also served cold breakfasts
"The Dhow" restaurant which is a small boat in the grounds which serves a la carte meals (have to be paid for - not included in all inclusive)
A main bar which on one side went out to the pool so you could sit in the pool drinking cocktails!
A bar by the beach which had swinging seats (not a good idea when you have been drinking - yes I did fall off!!)
Another smaller bar where most of the evening entertainment took place
A small internet cafe

The food in the main restaurant was reasonable but not always great so we often went for a toasted sandwich or pizza at the smaller restaurant. This smaller restaurant would also take your order and bring your food to you at the pool if you were having a particularly lazy day!! The only problem was they didn't always come and collect your plates and when, at around 4pm, the monkeys start sniffing around the pool they will come straight for any leftover food! One afternoon when I was sunbathing I heard lots of people laughing and opened my eyes to see a monkey right next to me eating my left over salad!! Quite scary as they are not the nicest animals no matter what you see on tv!

We ate on "The Dhow" on the eve of the wedding and I have to say the food was excellent. We sat down to a seven course meal but could only manage five - there was far too much food!! The food is rather expensive but is well worth treating yourself one night!

There was always plenty to keep you entertained throughout the day such as water aerobics, water polo and volleyball. There was also nearly always one of the entertaining staff around if you wanted a game of table tennis etc.

As well as going on safari we had a couple of day trips. We spent a day looking around Mombasa and I was surprised at how many shops there were. I don't really know what I expected but it was a complete revelation!

To get our souvenirs we visited a wood carving workshop in Mombasa. You get to go round the workshop first and see all the people carving the wooden animals etc, before going into the shop and making your purchases. This really was an eyeopening experience as there are so many people carving and if no-one buys their items they make no money, it is difficult not to buy something from everyone.

We spent an afternoon in the hippo and crocodile park (on a trip run by Severin) in Mombasa. This was great as we got to see hippos and crocodiles up close which we had not got to do on safari. We also got to feed giraffes! This park is not expensive and only takes around 2 to 3 hours to go round so is well worth a visit one afternoon. Be warned though it is a very humid place and would probably not be suitable for everyone!

We met a local at the hotel who provided holidaymakers with trips into Mombasa for a small fee. I definetly recommend going with someone as they know all the right places to go. During our last day in Kenya we asked him to take us out of Mombasa to see the "real" side of Kenya. He took us to the school that he attended and then on to his village to meet his family and friends. Having seen this side of Africa on the TV, actually seeing in person the poverty some of these people live in is still a real shock. All the people we met that day were so kind and generous and all the children were just so grateful for anything you gave them (we took some sweets with us) and were all so willing to go to school and learn.

As it gets dark (and I mean pitch black!) in Kenya at 6pm it was a good time to go and get ready for dinner and the evening entertainment. There was entertainment on every night, some nights just being a disco but one night there was a reptile show and I held some snakes and lizards which I never thought I would do!

One night we decided to go to a nightclub with some of the etertainment staff we had met. This was a real experience. The nigh club was outside and dance floor was kind of a giant boxing ring raised high off the ground! The toilets were not the best! Basically just a hole in the ground! The music was like going back in time 10 years with lots of old Craig David songs amongst others. If you go to Mombasa I would strongly recommend you have at least one night out of your hotel to experience the local culture.

We spent 5 days of our holiday on safari staying at 3 different resorts in the Tsavo safari game reserve.

We were picked up from Severin early one morning and got on a mini bus for a few hours until we reached the game reserve. The mini bus ride is quite scary. Because the roads in Kenya are so straight you travel quite fast and are constantly on the wrong side of the road overtaking the numerous lorries and other safari buses. It is definetly not for the faint hearted but is really worth it!

As soon as we got to the game reserve we started seeing elephants and giraffes.

Our first resort we stayed in was the Voi Safari Lodge. The rooms here were really spacious and airy and we had nice big comfy beds. The food here was great. Although the view from the room was probably the worst out of the three lodges we stayed in we still got to see plenty of activity, mainly from the elephants and the complex itself was probably the nicest we stayed at.

The next day after travelling through a bit more of the game reserve and seeing other animals such as ostrichs and even a lion (as well as the usual elephants, giraffes, zebras, deer etc) we arrived at our next resort, Nguila. Out of the three resorts this was definetly the worst in terms of the room and food, however, the view from the room was amazing. As soon as we got there we got to spend a good couple of hours on our balcony watching a family of elephants playing in the mud. It was surreal! The other bonus about Nguila was at night we were in the bar and were able to watch an elephant that was about 10 metres away from us just rubbing himself up a tree. There was no windows in the bar just a bit of a moat around it so the animals could not get to you but you felt like you could just reach out and touch them! Sat drinking a beer watching an elephant just doesn't compare to anything else, drinking at a pub in the UK has never been the same since! Whilst I was in the shower at Nguila we got a knock on the door from a member of staff telling us there was a leopard outside and we should come take a look! They tell all the guests if there is an exciting animal outside so that you don't have to miss anything which I think is a really nice touch.

The last resort we stayed in was Saltlick. These were definetly the most impressive. They are huts on stilts all joined together with wooden bridges and can be seen from miles away. The huts are quite large and you get a fairly decent bed and bathroom. The food here was the best of any of the other resorts. The huts are based around a salt lick (hence the name) where all the animals come to drink and wash so we saw many more elephants!

On the way back to Severin we stopped at a Massai village and were shown around by one of the Massai. It was really interesting to see how they live. The only problem was as you try to leave they all crowd round trying to sell you things and it can be quite daunting. You just have to be firm but polite and don't buy everything that is shoved in your face!

A couple of days after we got back to Severin was the wedding. This was a really nice experience. It was done in the grounds of the hotel and we had some kenyan dancers/singers as part of the ceremony. It really was a great day and I would recommend anyone thinking of going abroad to get married to seriously consider Kenya.

I know there has been a lot of trouble in Kenya this year but it would not put me off going again. All the people we met were really friendly and put you at ease. As long as you don't go off on your own into areas that are not meant for holidaymakers you are fairly safe. At the end of the day most of the people in the tourist areas are trying to make an honest living and it is in their best interests to be friendly to all holidaymakers.

I have loads more I could say but think I have rambled on for long enough!

If you are considering Kenya but are not too sure, go for it!

Summary: Kenya is a great place to go for a holiday of a lifetime!