Amboseli Eco Camp

We slept really well through a chilly, rainy September night. The place was quiet, with birds singing, and somehow we didn’t see any bugs or mosquitoes despite the nets. In the morning the ground was muddy, but still manageable to walk on. Our balcony had a lovely view of Mt. Kilimanjaro, and the room was spacious, with comfortable pillows and bed, plus sockets for charging. There’s no wifi, so bring enough mobile data, or enjoy the detox. The bathroom has no bidet, but getting a hot shower out there felt like a big plus. Food suited my taste and was tasty, though only breakfast is included and other meals need to be paid for in cash. Staff were polite and helpful, and check-in and checkout went smoothly. We arranged an airport pickup and a drop-off in naivasha for a fair price; the car wasn’t big, but it did the job. You might spot giraffee hanging out beside the road on the way. The road to Amboseli Eco Camp is bumpy, and Amboseli Eco Park is about a 30-minute drive away. I went in with low expectations after reading some poor reviews, but we had a decent, enjoyable night. It’s an eco camp, and I’d recommend it 😊

We’d booked and paid for three rooms months ahead, but when we arrived, our rooms had been given to someone else who paid more. They told us to try the neighbors. That’s a terrible way for a business to treat its customers.

The cottages are beautiful, but our tour operator had booked one for us and, after checking us in there, staff came back two hours later and moved us to the much smaller, dark room shown in the photos. It was a double room with a shared bathroom. The toilet and shower lights didn’t work, the shower wouldn’t close, and there was no power socket in the room. The shared sitting space only had broken chairs. It felt run-down and desolate. We asked our tour guide, who said he hadn’t booked that room, so I suspect they were overbooked. Oddly, the other roughly five rooms sharing that toilet were empty, even though the eco camp showed as fully booked online. If we’d chosen a very basic room ourselves, that would’ve been fine. Moving us out of the cottage into this room without an excuse or explanation was unacceptable.

The food was good, and the morning view of Kilimanjaro was great. But the lodge seemed poorly maintained, like it may have been much nicer years ago. Our room was clean, though the balcony chairs and table were broken, the mosquito net had holes, the bathroom handle was loose, and the shower pipe wasn’t secured well to the wall. The electrical connections near the shower head also made us uneasy about the water heater. When my wife suggested fixing the lodge, the manager didn’t seem very concerned.