Reviews of Tawi Lodge

"Everything was great. The staff works hard to make you as comfortable as possible. Moses was an excellent guide. The game drives are a bit shorter here than at other camps that I visited. I saw Craig and many maternal herds. It was amazing! The only suggestion I have concerns the night game drive. I was uncomfortable that the spotter exited the truck at one point; it did not seem an ideal thing to do for his safety. He shined a light at a bush and flushed out a baby gazelle. It ran away and thus lost a safe hiding spot from predators. I would suggest a bit more training for the night drive spotters. I would still return to Tawi though I might skip the night game drives until improvements in training are made." See all these reviews: 14n in Kenya

"Tawi Lodge was a really excellent start to the Safari. My cabin was about 150 m away from the main lodge and had every immunity you could want, with a large double bed, a bath and shower and Wi-Fi and heating if needed. There was no need for an askari to accompany guests to and from the main lodge after dark.

The food was first class and the facilities in the main lodge equally so with a lovely view across the swimming pool down to a water hole other side. The staff were delightful and helpful. The Weaverbird nest being built right next to the lodge, were always a delight to watch.

With regard to wildlife, there had been a good deal of rain shortly before I arrived, and consequently the animals were hard to see, but the birdlife amazing particularly around the wet areas. The real highlight for me, was when my guide, Tom, found Craig, the famous tusker, as we were about to have our sundowner. Tom had a grown-up in the area and regarded Craig as a friend. There were no other vehicles around, and we got out of our vehicle, had our sundowner and took photographs of that magnificent elephant while we were in the foreground of the photographs.

I visited the local Massi village which was interesting but, I felt, slightly touristy, and as I was on my own was a little embarrassed by the show that they put on. Better done with a group of our guests in the camp." See all these reviews: 10n in Kenya

"A very nice and cozy lodge in Amboseli. Excellent view on Kilimandjaro (one day without fog). Lots of sightings in the National Park itself, lots of elephants, giraffes and a playful Cheetah family, excellent guides.

Some signs of traces of previous use throughout the lodge (built in 2009), but nothing impeding the overall experience.

We want to specifically highlight:
- excellent kitchen, one of the best we ever had on our various trips throught Africa (vegeterian choice, mainly locally grown)
- the garden in the main area with waterhole provides an impressing array of local plants and relaxing athmosphere" See all these reviews: 8n in Kenya

"A slightly bigger lodge than some. Excellent rooms, grounds and facilities. Food ok but not great. Not as intimate/personal as some lodges due in part to size." See all these reviews: 16n in Kenya

"The lodge itself very good and almost clean. The staff is friendly and hospitable. The food is pretty good.

The best thing there is the view of Kilimanjaro mountain.

The worst thing there is the game drives in Amboseli National Park that is full of cars and the only traffic there is on the roads (off-road is not aloud). One cat that comes out to the road attracts two dozen cars filled with people. Formally we saw a lot of animals from a distance and some of them pretty close but in fact we didn’t enjoy it." See all these reviews: 7n in Kenya; 3n in Rwanda; 3n in Botswana; 3n in Tanzania; 2n in South Africa; 2n in Zimbabwe

"Beautiful resort. The cottage was fabulous with great views of Kilimanjaro, even from the bath and toilet!!

The food was excellent, especially the salads. Elizabeth, the manager was very friendly as were all the staff.

The only downside to Amboseli is that you can't go off road but that didn't stop us seeing plenty.

We were however surprised that our guide didn't have any binoculars, he did have excellent spotting skills but should really have had a pair." See all these reviews: 12n in Kenya

"Tawi Lodge was just beautiful, the grounds pristine and the staff wonderful.

The cottage was lovely with all the needed amenities for comfort and convenience. The food was wonderful and the dining area beautiful with wildlife visiting the water hole within view. Many exotic birds were seen in array of colors.

Just an all-around beautify place and wonderful experience.

Our game driver/guide, Henry, was just amazing. He was masterful at finding the best wildlife sightings both in Amboseli National Park and within the Conservancy. He provided amazing experiences with every turn, and we saw more wildlife that we could have ever imagined.

Besides the wildlife, we had a clear view of Mt. Kilimanjaro, which was a dream come true.

Starting our trip in Amboseli was a perfect!

We were sad to say goodbye to Tawi Lodge - but left very energized and would recommend Tawi Lodge without hesitation." See all these reviews: 10n in Kenya

"We came here for two reasons: the big tuskers and the views of Kilimanjaro. Regarding the latter, we were incredibly lucky to have clear views of the mountain on two consecutive days lasting from sunrise until about 10 AM and again in the late afternoon. And we didn’t even have to leave the lodge: Our own cottage provided a clear view. The landscape here is totally different from any other place we have seen on this trip, and it is equally beautiful. When turning your back to the mountain, in certain areas Amboseli reminded us of the Etosha pan in Namibia. Very flat and dry plains and a big sky populated by fleecy clouds.

The lodge is located about 5 km outside the National Park, and all the game drives took place within the National Park. And most roads here are in an appalling state of repair. It’s very bumpy, to put it mildly, and our guide Moses had to drive very slowly in many places.

The wildlife here was phenomenal and, as expected, we did see elephants with huge tusks on several occasions. Other than that, there were large numbers of zebras, and plenty of giraffes and various antelopes. I should mention that encounters with predators came up short: This is largely because in National Parks off-road driving is prohibited. On two occasions we saw lions, once a lone male and the second time a whole pride. But in both cases, they were between 200 and 300 meters away, so it wasn’t really worth taking any photographs.

The lodge itself did not quite match the wonderful experiences we had previously. I realize that this is a complaint on a very high level, and we might not feel this way if we had started pour trip here. While the whole complex and the individual cottages were very attractive (they too, have a nice swimming pool), the food service was a bit slow and below the standards we have seen elsewhere in Kenya." See all these reviews: 20n in Kenya

"After coming from the remote Elephant Pepper Camp to relatively busy Amboseli (many more vehicles, also self drivers) we needed a short time to realise that this is normal - not what we've had in Mara North. The camp is beautiful and has an artificial water hole with almost regularly visit of different animals including the big tuskers. It has much more guests than we were used to and it was also the only camp where we had to share "our" game drive vehicle with another guest - really a luxury problem and totally normal at normal times!

If you go Lewa to see Rhinos, if you go to the Mara to see cats you go to Amboseli to see big herds of Elephants and the real big tuskers!! Tawi Lodge is located in a conservancy close to Amboseli National Park and this area is loved by big old males with really long tusks. We were lucky to meet Craig, a 52 year old bull with the longest tusks in whole East Africa - wow !!!

Amboseli National Park is very dry and dusty but has also some lakes (lots of flamingos and other water dependent birds) and marsh land. Every late afternoon the Elephant herds leave the swamp, cross the roads and move to the area with trees and bushes - and next morning way back!!! Because Amboseli is national park and the drivers have to stay on the few roads predators are not easy to find or in some distance to the road.

In the Conservancy where the lodge is located we saw some nice Gerenuks we wouldn't have expected so far in the south!" See all these reviews: 16n in Kenya

"Tawi is the loveliest lodge - the rooms are attractive and spacious, food is tasty, varied and plentiful and the chefs were happy to accommodate our off menu requests (nothing outrageous, things like turning down pudding for fresh fruit), guiding is excellent and the setting is verdant and beautiful. Highspot of Tawi itself if the watering hole which attracted zebra, giraffe and particularly elephants: one day a group of 9 turned up in the morning and stayed all day frolicking in full view of the open dining room, the lawn and lounging areas, as well as our bathroom and verandah. The grounds are carefully landscaped, the swimming pool is flanked by lily ponds, and the discreet electric fences allow the larger animals to come almost within touching distance without being a danger.

Resident wildlife is charming - acacias full of weaver birds, little monkeys (you have to keep the tenting zipped as they are partial to expensive night cream), superb starlings and the mongeese which live under the lounge. The area around the lodge was very lush when we were there (January 2022) and as soon as you left Tawi you encountered elephants, zebra, gazelles - there was never any time spent driving around not spotting anything, and you can of course go off road as it's a private conservancy.

Once you get into the main reserve there are spectacular herds of elephants: the guides know when they are going from morning grazing to waterholes and back again so you can just wait in the road and watch them file past - dozens, hundreds in a single sighting, with Kilimanjaro in the background - extraordinary photos. The elephant families of Amboseli have been much studied and our guide recognised and named many individuals, understood family relationships and histories, and explained how to distinguish them, and the conservation issues. There is a copy of the study, "The Amboseli Elephants, a long-term perspective on a long-lived mammal", Moss et al, University of Chicago Press at the lodge and it is fascinating reading. There was so much else to see - flamingo lakes, baboons, ostrich, but really the elephants were outstanding.

One last point, the staff were all friendly, interesting, gentle and very charming - they really went out of their way to make our stay very happy. The manager, Alphonse, made a point of speaking to guests in the evening to check that the day had gone well - he leads an exceptional team." See all these reviews: 14n in Kenya