Olonana Lodge, an A&K Sanctuary — Hotel in Narok

We stayed here on a package through Abercrombie & Kent, and apparently they own this place.

Our driver & guide Anderson picked us up at the airstrip. Upon pulling up to the hotel we were greeted by the smiling face of Christina, the assistant manager, and a Maasai playing a flute-like instrument who played the entire walk down to the camp. Very nice touch.

ATMOSPHERE: The entry is heavily covered in trees, many of them planted by previous guests almost like "green" graffiti. The gift shop, main dining room & deck, and lounge areas are up front with quaint, thatched roofs, fireplaces, and a deck that overlooks the brown-colored Masai River where you can see hippos swimming and grunting.

The camp consists of 12 tents all lined up alongside the river with a spa at the end. There's a pool along the way that didn't look too appealing.

THE TENT: We were in #8 which is near some rapids in the river so it was very calming & soothing. Similar to the Tortilis Camp, the heavy duty canvas is supported by a permanent wooden structure above and sits on a wooden platform. The mosquito-netted two twin beds on platforms were firm & comfortable along with the pillows. There's only 1 power outlet that's on 24/7. The other 4 outlets are on only from 6:00am - 10:00am, and 6:00pm - 10:00 pm. There's a lot of geckos and droppings, dead gnats, and fortunately no mosquitos. The tent never felt clean & crisp like the Tortilis Camp. The burlap ceiling of the bathroom is old & dirty looking, as were the tent's canvas. The only positive attributes were the soothing sound of the river and the hot water bottles at night under the covers.

BATHROOM: Slate floors climb up the walls, 2 basins with old fashioned separate cold & hot water faucets, a shower with dark & moldy corners with very low water pressure and very little hot water in the morning, and a toilet that can only be flushed once every 10 minutes due to the tank filling up slowly. The cleanliness of the shower grossed me out. The corners are dark & moldy, and there was loose mold & gecko poop here and there. Our bath mats were a bit soiled to begin with and wasn't changed until 2 days later.

WIFI: Free with a very strong signal from anywhere on the property.

AMENITIES: A hair dryer that blew only cold air, a modern safe, and all the usual bath products which were subtlety scented, a positive to me.

LAUNDRY: Free! Thank you.

F&B: The sole restaurant has indoor and covered outdoor seating riverside.

CHECK OUT: No real check out needed as mostly everything was prepaid and inclusive.

SERVICE: All the camp staff were professional & courteous. They all have English first names, something they're asked to do I guess to make it easier for guests.

Christine, the assistant manager always greeted us upon arrival, whenever we left the lodge, and in the restaurant. She should be the general manager of the place!

Anderson, our driver and guide, was courteous and a skilled driver. But compared to our guides in Amboseli & Lewa, he wasn't nearly as strong in the information, service, and personality areas.

ODDITY: Our Air Kenya flight was delayed almost 4 hours so we were invited back to Olonana for lunch. Very nice of them.

OVERALL: Nice place situated in a tropical jungle along the Masai River, mostly wet and surprisingly no...

The property looks just as the images online, quite spacious and beautiful. Our room was located away from others (Room #15), which provided tranquility in the middle of the jungle and next to the Mara river. The hippos could be heard grunting throughout the day and night, but that’s a part of the jungle experience!||The food was decent, one thing that made it feel less personalized (for me) was the “continental style breakfast” offerings, though I’m sure this would appeal to others. Also, there is a menu to order from in addition to the other selections. Lunch and dinner follow the 3 course menu, so there were plenty of options available.||We were fortunate enough to have 3 game rides with the guide Nelson, who ensured that we saw plenty of elephants! We came across 2 big herds on separate days. The rain and bumpy roads were well worth the wait for the breathtaking views.||However, the bumpy road that is KenHa owned was extremely hard to navigate and not for the faint stomach. At times we felt like we didn’t even want to take more rides knowing we’d have to use that road, but our understanding is that the government will be paving that road in the next month or so.||Overall, the room has a unique design, located near the Mara river. The triple shower was nice to use and we left on the light as a night light. The tub was nice to soak in after a rainy day too. The bed was also very comfortable, but couldn’t quite get the temperature warm enough at night, felt a little chilly (as someone who is always cold). It is also located about 45 mins away from the airstrip, but tranquil environment once you arrive. We chose to do in room dining for most meals just to enjoy the room as we spent much of the days in...

We spent a part of our honeymoon here at Sanctuary Olonana in June 22. What a Sanctuary it is! Everybody made us feel very welcome, the staff were extremely warm and friendly. We were always greeted by a genuine smiley face. The room was spaciously designed and most importantly nice and clean - we had a great view of the Mara River and we could hear the hippopotamuses in the morning which was a special touch! The breakfast, lunch and dinner was good, our personal waiter Justus who served us each day was an absolute gem. One day they organised us to have a bush lunch out in the Mara, this was an experience like no other. Our ranger Joseph was extremely knowledgeable and a very personable person, we felt in safe hands with him whilst out on the exciting and exhilarating game drives in the Mara. He made sure we saw all of the animals, he never gave up - we were very lucky. Also, I had the most amazing massage ever here not just because of the expertise of the therapist but because of the sound of the Mara river, it made it even more relaxing and therapeutic. I would highly recommend this treatment. They organised us to visit a local school too which I would advise, as the children and staff at the school were so appreciative of your presence. I would truly recommend to stay at Sanctuary Olonana if you’re looking for somewhere relaxing to stay on your safari honeymoon destination in the Masai Mara! We would like to express our gratitude again for making our stay so special....