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Average
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About
4.5
#3 of 8 campgrounds in Nanyuki Town
Location
4.7
Cleanliness
4.7
Service
4.6
Value
4.4
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
A sheltered oasis, clustered around a waterhole and set in the pristine calm of its own private reserve, Sweetwaters Tented Camp is in a class of its own. Abounding with wildlife, unfettered by the more rigorous strictures of the Kenyan National Parks and designed to offer a charming blend of under canvas ambiance and uncompromising luxury.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Mountain View
Family
Languages Spoken
English
Location
Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Nanyuki Town, Nanyuki Municipality 10400 Kenya
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Sweetwaters Serena Camp is celebrated by guests for offering a unique and luxurious experience, with many praising the hotel's excellent service, including warm welcomes and thoughtful amenities like hot water bottles. The camp's location garners accolades for its serene, wildlife-rich setting, though some visitors note additional costs for activities and essentials.
The spacious rooms are generally appreciated, but there are mentions of missing mosquito nets and locks. The nostalgic 1920s vibe and clean, well-maintained facilities also contribute to the camp's charm, despite occasional noise from the nearby animals.
Location
Picturesque
Atmosphere
Nostalgic
Rooms
Spacious
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Spotless
Service
Attentive
Amenities
Well-appointed
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I wanted to treat myself to a nice camp since it had been a while since I have travelled due to the pandemic.
The camp is conveniently located inside the Ol Pejeta Conservancy, allowing us to maximize our time.
Our tents were spacious and well furnished. You need someone in your group who can kneel to zip the tents up to secure it. Hot water is available 24/7 and the water heating system is very efficient.
The variety of food available for each meal would easily satisfy most diners.
The watering hole near the tents was a particular treat, since many animals came very close to the tents and the dining area.
A few areas for improvement: The taps should be tightened to avoid wasting water. Cleaning of the room could be more thorough (I found someone else's hair in the shower the first time that I used it). When guests are told that coffee is available before their 6:30 a.m. drive, then it should be available (we had to wait about 10 minutes to get it). Spacing between tables should be improved especially when there are large groups.
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Date of stay: July 2021
Value
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Jul 21, 2021
Dear Guest, Thank you for this great review of your recent stay with us. We are thrilled to have had a chance to enable you have a comfortable and relaxed while staying with us. management has taken note on areas of improvement and rest asured your valued highlighted areas will be actioned upon. We appreciate your four-star rating that will positively influence travellers to Sweetwaters Serena and we can't wait to welcome you back for another memorable fun Safari! Kind Regards, Dan Chahenza|Camp Manager
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My family stayed in a luxury tent facing the watering hole. We had so much fun watching the animals come and go not just from our tent but also while dining. They offer a variety of food buffet style and even my picky eaters found food they liked. The tents themselves are more like private rooms than tents with double vanity sinks, shower room and water closet.
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Date of stay: July 2021Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Jul 12, 2021
Dear Jess, Thank you for this great review of your recent stay with us. We are thrilled to have had a chance to enable you have an awesome Fun experience and that you felt comfortable and relaxed while staying with us. We appreciate your five-star rating that will positively influence travellers to Sweetwaters Serena and we can't wait to welcome you back for another memorable fun Safari! Kind Regards, Dan Chahenza|Camp Manager
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The first day we arrived we were automatically greeted with freshly squeezed juice and a hot towel. (Which is always the best) Our tent was clean, neat, and our view was the amazing waterhole. The food was fantastic and Dennis was an excellent waiter. We were very pleased with our stay. I would definitely come back and recommend to anyone!
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from SerenaHotels, Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Feb 27, 2020
Dear Kylizllle, Greetings from Sweetwaters Serena Camp, thank you for making here your second home next to none, we value and appreciate your feedback on this plat form. Best luxurious stay as defined by your word it keeps our wheels rolling every moment as we strive to meet and surpass our guest needs and expectation. we look forward hosting you in the near future. Regards, Gilbert Toroitich- Serena Sweetwaters.
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I've become a well seasoned guest at Sweetwaters. This was my 6th stay. On check in, I was excited to hear that I would be returning to Tent #1, my favorite location. Tent #1 in my opinion, is the best situated tent to water hole viewing. You can easily sit on your porch or even at the desk inside with the tent flaps open and watch/photograph the birds. During lunch one day, I spotted a Black Rhino at the water hole and made a quick dash to my tent to take photos. I know many people find the newer wing of tents an upgrade. They are beautifully furnished. But for me, the animals seem to come closer to the older side making photography easy.
Meals here are always enjoyable. They are all buffet but I like that because I can pick and choose what I want. In addition to the prepared items, there is always a pasta station where you can choose your meat, sauce, vegetables and garnishes. Always excellent.
Laundry service is available for a nominal fee. It makes it so much easier to not have to take the volume of clothing I once did.
I had learned during my stay that Ol Pejeta House (where I stayed in 2010) had closed. A person working in the dining room overheard me mentioning that I wondered where those staff went. One morning after breakfast, a woman by the name of Juliana stopped by my tent. She learned that I had wondered what happened to the staff at Ol Pejeta House and stopped by to say hi. She had worked there and was now working in the newer wing at Sweetwaters.
My last stay here was in March, 2018. I was pleasantly surprised to see that James, the dining room manager, was still here. I've enjoyed our conversations on many visits. He introduced me to chef Daniel, who rapidly learned that chocolate desserts were my favorite. Harrison who had been my server on my last stay was also here as well as Abdul my tent attendant. Their memories are amazing. I truly enjoyed the conversations I had with them.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from SerenaHotels, Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Mar 11, 2020
Dear Guest, Jambo Greetings from Sweetwaters Serena Camp, We say thank you for taking your valuable time to review us on trip advisor. We were grateful and happy that you had a great time with us in Sweetwaters Serena just some days gone. We are happy for being a loyal customer and having trust with our products, happy for our staff as well and we long again in the near future to host you with your family and friends as well. Thank you for staying with us. Regards, Gilbert Toroitich-Assistant Camp Manager.
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My family and I usually stay at Sweetwaters multiple times a year and have done for years! Unfortunately on the 2nd of October we had a terrible experience. My mother and I were booked in for two nights. We got to the camp at around 4:30 and found a group of angry people at the reception but no staff were to be seen. After a few minutes one staff member came up to us and we indicated we had a booking and gave her our vouchers (We had booked 2 rooms in the Morani wing). She notified us that they had an overbooking issue and our rooms were not available and there was nothing she could do. At this point it was going onto 5pm and in Nanyuki there aren’t many options. We got back into the car and decided to try to drive back to Nairobi, when we realised it wasn’t the best idea to drive in the dark, our travel agent suggested a stay at the ark (Aberdares) instead. We had a lovely stay at the Ark and would recommend that over this place. The Ark has been completely renovated and is offering a wonderful experience with loads of animals! Till date we have not received an explanation from Serena as to why this happened or compensation for our time wasted. I have spoken to our travel agent today who has also told me they have not been refunded to date.
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Date of stay: October 2020Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Gilbert Toroitich, Marketing at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Oct 23, 2020
Dear Saviix, Thank you for taking the time to share your candid feedback. We are are extremely sorry for what happened on the 2nd of October we owner-up the mistake, this was due to late communication between us and your agent, we are very disappointed you saying you were sent away as above of which it wasn't the case, we had one tent for you for 2 nights comfortably and the only issue was the 2nd tent which we had allocated to you for your daughter which was a standard tent to be checked in on 3rd but you failed to listen and negotiate with us, because this was a mistake on our side we really apologize. Your experience is certainly not representative of the high quality standards and principles that we stand for as Serena Hotels; the frustration and inconvenience caused to you is highly regrettable so kindly accept our most sincere apologies. We hope that you can give us another opportunity to be of better service to you in the future Regards, Gilbert Toroitich- Serena Sweetwaters Camp.
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Our family had the pleasure of staying at Sweetwaters during our tour of Kenya. We spent 2 nights in the Morani Wing while self-driving safari on Ol Pejeta. The camp's location is within the park for maximizing your time for game viewing. We loved the immediate access to the park, and the camp's grounds continue the experience of being among wildlife. The main lodge has a fabulous view of one of the many watering holes in the park and we were entertained by all the animals taking their turn throughout the day to come get a drink. One minute you're eating breakfast, the next you are ringside to a herd of elephants. There is an expansive lobby with bar for after game drive cocktails as well as comfortable seating outside. The dining room is expansive and beautifully furnished. Cuisine was ample, varied and delicious. All meals were buffet style and you could always find something new to try. We had a dedicated dining steward, Anne, who took fabulous care of us and it was joy to see her each day. Our private tents were located in the Morani wing which are semi-permanent canvas tents on platforms with permanent glass doors and porch overlooking the savanna and water hole. Tents were beautiful, well appointed and beds comfortable. Tent stewards serviced twice a day to clean up, bring fresh bottled water and turn down service includes hot water bottles so you can open your tent windows and let in the sounds and smells of nature. We thoroughly enjoyed our experience at Ol Pejeta and Sweetwaters was a huge part of it. Highly recommend staying here if you're planning to visit the park and it's famous rhino.
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Date of stay: June 2022
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:Recommend the tents in the Morani wing which are newer
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Jun 21, 2022
Dear Jennifer, Thank you for giving us an opportunity to host you during your recent safari. Our main goal is to meet as well as exceed our guest expectations, it is, therefore, delighted to read that we have succeeded in providing you with an all-round well-being Safari where you could enjoy nature in our prime location and comfortable luxurious accomodation. It is a delight that you enjoyed the compliments of our prime location in the conservancy and overal Serena customer care We look forward to welcoming you back soon. Kind Regards, Chahenza Dan|Camp Manager
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We have stayed at 4 Serena lodges on our safaris and this was the only one with tents rather than rooms. But not to worry, the tents are as clean, comfortable and well-equipped as the rooms. They even have solid roofs over the canvas to make sure that no water gets in. The highlight of this lodge is the water hole which is immediately adjacent to the lodge. After having searched for rhinos at a dozen lodges (and catching a distant glimpse of one through binoculars), we were amazed to see a large rhino saunter in for a drink while we were checking in. The Ol Pejeta Conservancy (where Sweetwater is located) is full of black and white rhinos and has a chimp sanctuary as well. The food was served buffet style which is not our favorite, but it was one of only 3 lodges we stayed at that had more than 3 rooms occupied. The food was good and the choices varied. Another excellent Serena experience.
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Date of stay: June 2021
Value
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Jun 27, 2021
Dear Meridith, Thank you for sharing your experience at Serena Sweetwaters Camp with other readers. We are also delighted to know that you enjoyed your stay and in your own words Great Game watching We thank you again for staying with us, and praising our offerings. The entire team looks forward to welcoming you for another memorable excellent Serena Experience the not-so-distant future. Warm regards, Chahenza Dan Camp Manager
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We have stayed for one night at Serena Sweetwaters camp but it was enough to make a comprehensive review. When you arrive there will be always somebody waiting for you to pick up your luggage. We have arrived early for check-in, just before lunchtime and the camp did their best to accomodate us as soon as possible. We were offered a glass of juice just before heading to our tents. We opted for tents on stilts which are in the second line of tents. The tent had enough space for us, with shower and toilet, space for storing the clothes and complimentary coffee and tea facilities which you can find them also at the bar. You get also 4 complimentary bottles of water in your room. We were FB here so we paid for the drinks during lunch and dinner. Prices are reasonable 450 KHS for one beer and 150 KHS for a coke. Nights during August can be quite chilly and the hotel is providing flasks of hot water to warm your bed during the night. The food in the restaurant is buffet style and it was generally ok. It was a good variety of dishes, the hotel is not great in preparing the deserts, very dry and not very tasty something that we have experienced all over Kenya. We were dissapointed by the fruit selection with watermelon, sour mango and not so sweet pineapple were the only options during our stay. We were expecting passion fruit and tomato tree fruits but no luck for us during our stay. Customer service was generally above average except the dinner night when the staff in the restaurant were spending their time entertaining the american guests with no interest in serving us. After 20 mins of waiting I had to approach them and to ask them to give us some drinks, needless to say they were no worthy of any tip from our side. The highlight of our stay was the sunrise which was to die for as you can see from my photo. And of course we loved Ol Pejeta Conservancy which is in my opinion one of the best conservancies in the world with more than 250 black and white rhinos roaming around and with the chance of spotting the big5. We were not able to see the big5, the one we have missed was the elusive leopard but we have completed the big5 in Masai Mara where we have seen 3 leopards in 3 different days. There is also a chimp sanctuary, the only one existing in Kenya where you can see the chimps rescued from captivity. We have seen chimps in the wild in Uganda in Kibale Forest so this experience was not the best but we appreciate all the effort that the conservancy is doing to give these chimps a better life. During our safari in Ol Pejeta we have visited also Baraka a blind male black rhino which you can pet and feed during safari. I can conclude by saying that our stay was nice but not exceptional. There are many things that hotel needs to improve to become a top hotel in Kenya.
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Date of stay: August 2022Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Aug 26, 2022
Dear Miki, Thank you very much for your positive feedback about your visit at Sweetwaters Serena Camp. We are very delighted to hear that you enjoyed food,Olpejeta park has to offer as one of most unique conservancies in Kenya we have taken arrears of improvement highlighted above and do wish to assure you management has taken note and we agree its the little small things that make the difference. We sincerely appreciate your recommendation and it would be our pleasure to welcome you once again. Kind Regards, Chahenza Dan|Camp Manager
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When you arrive at this camp, you are immediately struck by the luxurious atmosphere in reception, lobby and bar area’s. All built on a large scale, with comfy seats everywhere. Restaurant has lavish buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Friendly waiters. We had a standard tent. But this is still quite a big room, with beds, desk and seating area. At the end a part with stone walls, housing: shelves & clothes rails, handbasin with shower cubicle to one side, toilet cubicle on the other side. Water and electricity available at all times, as is very good wifi. We were lucky, with a front row tent overlooking the watering hole where lots of animals come.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from SerenaHotels, Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Feb 17, 2020
Dear TinekevB, Jambo Greetings from Sweetwaters Serena Camp, We say thank you for taking your valuable time to review us on trip advisor. We really appreciate your detailed positive review about us, keeping in mind we as Serena Hotels, we always ensure our guest get a good and relaxing environment to meet and surpass our guest needs and expectations, we hope we will have an opportunity to be of your services in the neat future. Karibu tena! Regards, Gilbert Toroitich- Sweetwaters Serena Camp.
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Sweetwater is a really nice camp inside Ol Pejeta conservancy. The rooms are very nice (some have a view to the water hole), the service is really friendly, a small but pretty pool and the restaurant is big and mostly have a buffet including Kenyan dishes or a barbeque. The highlight of the camp was the view to the water hole. It was absolutely spectacular as we saw black rhinos, elephants, buffaloes, warthogs, many birds, zebras, giraffes and many antilopes from the view of the hotel. In the hotel itself we saw waterbucks, bushbucks and a hyrax. That was fantastic! From the camp you could book some tours like a chimpanzee sanctuary and understand the conservation of the almost extinct northern white rhinos (both really cool and informative). But there where also tours to see a blind rhino or a camel ride which made it more an American amusement park, instead of caring for animals. Sometimes the camp was a bit pushy for booking a tour, although we mostly wanted to see animals in the conservancy. We booked a safari for a week through Kenya and some tours were included (Chimpanzees and Northern white rhino). The only thing we booked were 2 night safaris, which were extremely cool. They were private with a guide and a driver. Over 2 drives we saw lions, hyenas, elephants, rhinos, antelopes, white tailed mongoose, bat eared foxes and many more. For me the absolute highlight was an aardvark!!! Overall the camp is really good and I would recommend it!
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Date of stay: August 2021
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Sweewtwaters Serena, General Manager at Sweetwaters Serena Camp
Responded Nov 17, 2021
Dear Thomas, Thank you for giving us an opportunity to host you and proving us with feedback. Our main goal is to meet as well as exceed our guest expectations, it is, therefore, delighted to read that we have succeeded in providing you with an all-round well-being Safari where you could enjoy nature and comfortable accomodation. It is a delight that you enjoyed the compliments of our Night safari excursion, Friendly Staff as well as our prime location in the conservancy. We look forward to welcoming you back soon. Kind Regards, Chahenza Dan|Camp Manager
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We were there with our guide, but I remember that you can book seperate game drives. On their website : .../sweetwaters/experiences/night-game-drive, you can find up to date info.
Day Game drive = $ 65 per person
Night Game Drive = $ 80 per person
We were there this past May and found the weather to be in the low 70’s during the day and into the 50’s at night. We had some rain intermittently, but it didn’t seem to last too long.
We had some laundry done at Sweetwaters Serena Camp and it wasn't very expensive. We took it to reception one morning and it was delivered to our room the next day.
Ipswich, United Kingdom201 contributions94 helpful votes
We were there in January and didn’t see much evidence of mosquitoes but we still took anti malarial medication which is advised for the whole of Kenya. There were mosquito nets over the beds but I would still advise you to take the appropriate anti malarial tablets. Don’t forget it only takes one bite.
There are more places to choose from in the Nanyuki Town area.
PRICE RANGE
$369 - $523 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
sweetwaters tented camp hotel nanyuki
LOCATION
KenyaRift Valley ProvinceLaikipia CountyNanyuki MunicipalityNanyuki Town
NUMBER OF ROOMS
56
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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