Reviews of Giraffe Manor

"I first contacted Expert Africa 15 months in advance of the holiday and was hoping we could stay on a specific night to tie in with leave from work and the rest of our holiday. Even that far in advance there was no room on that day but Claire at Expert Africa managed to secure a room which giraffe come to in the morning for a few days later and emailed me to say the room was being held for me if we wanted to go ahead with it. This was great work and by shifting our holiday by a few days we managed to stay in a fantastic room. The lesson to be learned is that, for one of the better rooms, booking need to be made as far in advance as possible, certainly well over a year in advance.

We were transferred from the airport hotel to Giraffe Manor in the late morning in a comfortable mini-bus. The hotel is stunning and perfectly blends modern twists with original features. The terrace is great for drinks or just sitting and enjoying the view. It is slightly raised so giraffe can't enter it apart from when a gate is opened for them in the morning when guests are still in their rooms.

The room was huge with a massive bed under a four poster mosquito net. The bathroom was very large. This is a luxury room. Wifi is available throughout the building. Our room had a small balcony that giraffe come to early in the morning. Top tip: wake up 10 minutes earlier than is suggested and before the other guests and all the giraffe will come to your balcony first. We were feeding three from our balcony at one stage.

The food is fine dining style with delicious wines. Lunch and dinner were outside on the dining terrace with individual tables due to covid. Breakfast was inside the breakfast room. Once guests have eaten the windows are opened to allow the giraffe to put their heads through and eat pellets from the breakfast tables.

High tea was served on the terrace and was a highlight. The giraffe all come to the terrace and the hotel staff show guests how to feed them either from the hand or by holding a pellet between your lips for a giraffe to take. The staff are happy to take lots of photos. Tea, cakes, scones, cookies etc were also served but were a side show compared to the giraffes!

This hotel is very expensive but for us on our honeymoon was absolutely worth it. It was a special way to start our holiday. Some other guests were staying for 2 nights although I don't see the need to stay for more than 1. Once all meals and high tea along with the giraffe feeding has been done then I feel you have taken advantage of all the hotel has to offer. If a guest is planning to take part in other activities around Nairobi I would question why they need to spend so much money on a hotel like this if they are not going to be there to take advantage of it. 24 hours was just right." See all these reviews: 7n in Kenya

"The Giraffe Manor exceeded expectations.

While the giraffes of course were a sight to behold, it was the service and warmth of the staff that blew me away. The service we received was impeccable. We were treated like royalty. Morris (our Butler I suppose) made sure sure that we were all taken cared of. He went out of his way to make sure that we were safe around the giraffes and that we were able to mingle and take pictures with them.

Accommodation was clean and spacious. Totally worth the $$$." See all these reviews: 5n in Kenya

"What an amazing special place ! Tea and breakfast with giraffes I will remember forever!

Very beautiful house with unique furnishing!

Professional staff is also very good in photography and very helpful, especially Katrin!" See all these reviews: 8n in Kenya

"One of the main reasons we picked Kenya as our destination for our Africa trip was because I was fascinated by Giraffe Manor and really wanted to stay there. The experience was very well orchestrated, and despite how highly produced it is, it was still absolutely magical.

We had Peter as our server during lunch and he stayed with us throughout the duration of our stay. Peter was absolutely wonderful! He took great care of us and has been at Giraffe Manor 6+ years (if I’m remembering correctly), so he is a pro at taking the best photos, ensuring you get enough time with the giraffes, and overall just making the experience memorable. One night’s stay consists of lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and then the famous morning breakfast with the giraffes. The food was great, and every single meal was special.

The rooms are nice, although it’s clear you are paying for the experience, as you are in a historic home so the bathrooms could probably use a bit of updating, but it didn’t take away from the experience at all. As I mention above, the stay is very well orchestrated, but I believe it’s done to ensure that every person gets the most out of their stay. We were so grateful for the organization behind the day and to have Peter’s guidance throughout our time.

We have the most incredible memories and great pictures to match. I would highly recommend a one night stay at Giraffe Manor to anyone." See all these reviews: 9n in Kenya

"Giraffe Manor is a dream. Of course I was the only, literally the only guest!

So that definitely made the experience remarkable. I had all the giraffes to myself.

I suspect it can be a slightly touristy, instagram stop in more normal times. But I loved it.

The staff, food, drivers, everything was absolutely heavenly." See all these reviews: 10n in Kenya

"The welcome was very warm abd it was one of my best stays in my life, the room was amazing, the giraffes extraordinary. The food absolut delicious. It was wonderful. The waiter were very kind and took a lot of pictures but sometimes 200 from the same motiv :-) - this is a very small thing, that I would criticize." See all these reviews: 9n in Kenya

"The Giraffe Manor was a very special experience with many hands on, up close and personal experiences with the Giraffes in combination with a fantastically warm, professional team of personnel.

Room: Jocks Room 10/10
Getting up at dawn each day to feed the up to 3 giraffes that visited our bedroom window was spectacular.
The room itself was nicely presented and of good size for our needs. The bed was very large (2x queen beds pushed together) and very comfortable. The bathroom was also nicely presented. A negative if nit picking- it was a little cold. On one rainy night in particular, we asked for a small fire to be lit in the lovely old fireplace in the room after our wonderful private dining experience. This was arranged with a team member during lunch. Unfortunately the message must not have gotten through during shift change over and no fire was made. The water pressure in the shower was a little challenging when it came to washing my hair, water was wasted as it took a while to rinse.

Personnel: Warm, friendly, professional and so quick to offer any assistance or advice. The team at the Giraffe Manor, together with the Giraffes, make this such a special experience.

Food/Beverages: 10/10 Fresh, fine dining experiences. Delicious food served with care and attention. Being invited to make use of the private dining room in the outdoor Orchid House was an honour and a very special experience. It was raining cats and dogs on that evening & as such made the service to that outdoor facility so much harder, but our wonderful waiter, although drenched by the end of dinner, was never without a smile, took photos for us and was a step ahead of us topping up wine and taking care of the courses expertly. We felt very special." See all these reviews: 3n in Kenya

"What can we say???? Everything about Giraffe Manor lived up to, and exceeded, our expectations. The house and grounds are lovely, the staff were delightful, and endlessly patient with over-excited guests, and Tony, the manager, was welcoming, helpful and enthusiastic.

The food was delicious (creative and very well cooked), and as for the giraffes, it was love at first sight! Breakfast seems very mundane without them.

It was very easy to get to other places and we went to the Giraffe Centre, the Karen Blixen house and the elephant sanctuary - even though we had already booked a foster parent visit for our last afternoon in Nairobi, we opted to go on the public morning visit as well, and are glad we did so as we able to see the elephants in different circumstances on the two visits.

We understand that they might build a pool and that’s would be a welcome addition - exercise might help counteract the large meals!" See all these reviews: 12n in Kenya

"Giraffe Manor is an experience which could not be equalled. I had a ball. A visit though that I am glad I did at the beginning of my holiday as although they say the giraffe are wild, you really can't call it wild if you can feed it pellets from your mouth (kissing it), not as repulsive as it sounds!!! Again all the staff were wonderful, and nothing was too much trouble.

They surprised me at breakfast my first morning by having baked me a birthday cake in the shape of part of the giraffe's neck, and lots of the staff came out and sung happy birthday to me. The cake was delicious, as was all the food there, I took photos of it and sent home to make the family jealous!!!

Tony the manager also organised for me go firstly go to the elephant orphanage, where I adopted an elephant, and later to a children's home, where I took some teddies, colouring books tennis balls etc . I was humbled by their living conditions, there were youngsters and 18 months -2 yrs, and they didn't know what a teddy was. The colouring books were a great hit, as were the balls." See all these reviews: 11n in Kenya; 2n in Zimbabwe

"Giraffe experience exceptional in terms of ability to be close to them and feed them. Personal time with them at afternoon tea etc pleasing in a busy hotel. Kelly Room wonderful for feeding them from the bedroom window.

Strongly approve of the breeding / reintegration programme objectives.

Actual hotel experience disappointing. Room very nice. Bar area lovely. However, check in - waited 15 minutes outside to even be acknowledged having been dropped from the airport and told to take a seat. Took another 10 minutes to actually be seen to. As such, 25 minutes sitting about outside on arrival from airport. Not a premium experience.

Food at lunch good, staff at lunch a bit diffident. Practised some amateur Swahili on them, which anywhere else in Kenya elicits an enormous smile, got a deadpan response - was understood as we got our two coffees, but no warmth whatsoever.

At dinner we elected to dine privately rather than with the group. We were told our table was ready and made clear we were going to sit down immediately. Waited 20 minutes with no staff anywhere. Went to find someone, told them we were at our table, waiting. Nothing happened for a further ten minutes, we then had to go into the main, group dining area and ask a member of staff to come and serve us - so a 30 minute wait for dinner before we got any service whatsoever (we had been forgotten about). Food average.

Felt very like a 'conveyor belt' hotel who could pull guests in and 'wow' them with the environment, overlooking any service touches.

Francis was an exceptional member of staff and twice looked after us, including at breakfast - if all the staff were like him it would have been a different experience.

Would not return and would encourage friends who are keen to go to consider saving the cost and spending the money on a proper, authentic safari experience with a few hours at the giraffe centre to support the initiative instead." See all these reviews: 4n in Kenya