The Camp

Location: Amboseli National Park / Chyulu Hills, Kenya
Number of Rooms: 7

Ol Donyo Lodge features six distinct pool suites built of stone, thatch and wood as well as one two-bedroom family unit. Each suite is unique, and positioned for the utmost privacy. With cathedral ceilings and glass doorways, the suites are opulent while retaining a sense of local character. Each suite has a private plunge pool as well as a romantic rooftop "star bed" with views of Mount Kilimanjaro, accessed via a winding stone staircase, for a fabulous “sleep-out” option. All suites include a lounge, veranda, indoor and outdoor showers, double wash basins, flush toilet and bathtubs. The main lounge and dining area are simply stunning, with rich earth tones, a soaring stone fireplace and grand wrought-iron chandeliers. A breathtaking infinity pool complete with private lounge and dining area offers views of the famous watering hole. Al fresco lunches on the flagstone veranda and candlelit dinners in the dining room offer attractive and flexible dining options at guests’ leisure.

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Facilities & Amenities

• En suite bathroom with tub and indoor/outdoor showers
• Hair dryer
• Room fan
• Fireplace
• Tea/coffee in room
• 220v charging outlets in room
• In-room safe
• Yoga mats and bands provided for guest use
• Private plunge pool
• Central swimming pool
• Star bed deck
• In-room massage (extra cost)
• Wi-Fi available
• Laundry included
• Local drinks included (house alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks)
• Credit cards accepted (Visa and MasterCard)

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Wildlife Viewing & Activities

Ol Donyo Lodge sits in the heart of the 275,000-acre Mbirikani Group Ranch, on the slopes of Chyulu Hills National Park between Amboseli and Tsavo West. Abundant wildlife and Maasai herdsmen live together as nature intended in this unspoiled corner of Kenya. Visitors to Ol Donyo Lodge are not only tourists, but contributors to the survival of the region's fauna and flora and the advancement of these noble traditional people. Ol Donyo Lodge boasts a staggering array of safari activities, including morning and evening 4x4 wildlife drives, bush walks with armed guides, horseback safaris, guided mountain bike safaris, visits to the open-air hide or “log-jam,” authentic Maasai cultural visits and wildlife tracking with bloodhounds. Rich wildlife populations surrounding Ol Donyo include rhino, elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, cheetah, fringe-eared oryx, gerenuk and giraffe. The entire area is reserved exclusively for lodge guests, offering a rare and remote experience of the Kenyan wilderness.

Amboseli National Park is known for its herds of free-ranging elephants that journey to drink from the marshes at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro. Chyulu Hills also has resident elephants and other big mammals. The chart below shows common sightings in these areas. Other typical sightings may include a number of small mammals, birds and reptiles. Exact sightings will depend on seasonality and wildlife movements.

Climate

Conservation

The Masailand Preservation Trust is Ol Donyo Lodge's link with the local people. The Trust maintains a series of important projects including predator conservation, education, water management, reforestation and livestock management training. For each four-night stay, Ol Donyo Lodge contributes $25 per person per night to the National Geographic Big Cats Initiative. Over the past 50 years African lion numbers have declined from 450,000 to nearly 20,000 as a result of human conflict including retaliation, safari hunting, commercial poaching and the disappearance of the lions’ habitat and prey. Today more than two-thirds are not protected in national parks, and none have official CITES protection. Lions are on pace for extinction within 10 years. These precious animals remain in viable numbers in very few places now. The film The Last Lions highlights their plight, and Ol Donyo’s associated campaign is taking action to stop the decline of this regal king of the beasts.

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