Dolphin Suites is a quiet hotel in a business district of Kampala. Many international NGOs have offices nearby and the area feels very safe, even at night.

The stay, which also included using the conference amenities, was mostly to my satisfaction. Wireless Internet has almost complete coverage of the hotel area and very good speed, considering. My room also had a wired connection available. The rooms are spotless and clean. My room, and I don't know if it goes for all of them, had a locked door to the adjoining room. This made sound to travel extremely easily, so hope that your next-door neighbor doesn't snore. And don't go here if you're on your honeymoon.

Very friendly bar/restaurant with a wide selection of dishes, including Indian and western. Breakfast is somewhat dull, though. Better coffee would have been nice.

An earlier reviewer complained about the somewhat rigid management, and I second that. At the time of my checkout their VISA-machine decided to call it quits – something they quickly turned into my problem. They refused to reimburse me for my costs for the taxi, as I had to go around to ATMs around Kampala to collect money. I was lucky to have time to spend as my flight left late, but please reserve some time for the process. Insisting to clear the bill a day in advance might not be a bad idea, to be on the safe side.

Another reviewer complained about the mosquitos, and even though I can confirm they're there, it is true for most of Kampala. Dolphin Suites are not an exception. Even so, they are not very malaria prone. Just take your prophylaxis and you’ll be fine. And I had no problem in my room.

Excellent small hotel outside city centre, very attentive staff, lovely open dining room/bar and good smallish pool. Room spotlessly clean, newly decorated with excellent shower. Food only average & unfortunately three tvs in dining area were nearly always on, sometimes with different channels & could only be turned down if other guests agreed. Laundry prices high, so I didn't bother.

Good points:
Nice quiet neighbourhood. Bugolobi is an up-market neighbourhood with some super properties surrounding the hotel and is very quiet, away from the hustle and bustle and traffic madness of Kampala city centre. The staff were very friendly and service mostly very good. Food is not bad.

Negative points:
Despite other reviewers comments, the Dolphin does NOT have kitchenettes in the rooms.
Safes: We stayed in 3 different rooms during our 3 stays in the Dolphin over a 2 week period. One had no safe and the other 2 had a non-working safe.
Rooms are fitted with modern Sony flat screen TVs, but the installation of antenna and distribution system has not been done properly as most channels were un-watchable due to poor signal.
The manager has a habit of watching cricket until the early hours (2 or 3 a.m.) in room 25. Unfortunately sound carries at the dead of night and we complained. Have also suggested he buys a pair of headphones for his late night viewing!
The sheets are too small for the beds!
You need to allow at least 30 minutes to check out as the front desk staff are barely able to do simple addition.

Despite those negative points, we would stay there again. Hope the management reads this as the criticisms are meant to be constructive.

Has the potential to be nice, but service is slow, rooms somewhat dated and prices too high.

We also suffered having no hot water for 5 days out of 6. We complained to the management every day and were told a technician was fixing it. Clearly they were not.

There are many other hotels in this area of Kampala that offer a superior experience for less money.