A three star hotel on Gigiri Drive, in the diplomatic and UN quarter north of the centre, with a garden, a spa and parking. The one thing that decides whether it suits you is a car: this is a transport edge after dark, and you cross it by car rather than on foot.
01What it is
Bonsai Villa is a 3 star property on Gigiri Drive, and the list it publishes is the list of a practical, car-based hotel. There is a 24 hour front desk, express check in and express check out, a safe and luggage storage, free wifi, free car parking and a free newspaper. You eat and drink on site: restaurant or restaurants, a bar or bars, breakfast and a buffet, coffee. There is a business center and a meeting room, dry cleaning and laundry, a concierge, and a garden, a terrace and a picnic area. The list thins at the edges: a spa, a playground and horse back riding are named without detail, the wheelchair accessible line is unqualified, and one line reads only surcharge. Bonsai Villa is also a 3 star hotel, so treat the facilities as the substance rather than the room finish.
What that adds up to at Bonsai Villa is a place built around arrivals by car and days that start early. The free parking, the 24 hour desk, the express check in and check out, the laundry and the business room all point the same way: you are here for a stretch of work or a family stay, and you move by vehicle. The street outside is the reason. Bonsai Villa sits 6.23 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 78 minutes on foot in a direct line, and 5.56 km from Ngara and the Globe, which is the nearest of the ten quarters this site covers. The transport edge that makes the hotel easy to reach by road is the same edge that makes it a poor base if you want the centre on foot. Suits drivers, longer stays and anyone with business in the north. Does not suit a car-free visitor who wants the CBD at the door.
02The supplier's photographs
0326 facilities the supplier lists
Facilities are the supplier's list, not a check made on the ground.
04Standing outside the ten quarters
These hotels are not in Ngara and the Globe, and they are not in any of the ten quarters this site covers. They sit well outside the centre, in the inner suburbs. Of those ten quarters, Ngara and the Globe is only the nearest, and it is still a separate place: the northern edge of the grid, where the city loosens and the roads north begin. The quarter sits 0.81 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 11 minutes on foot in a direct line, and that is the quarter's own measure, not a walk from your door.
Treat the location as the wider city. Anything you want in the CBD means travelling in and out, and after dark this is a transport edge rather than an evening one, so cross it by car. The Globe Cinema roundabout is the CBD's northern hinge and the fruit market beside it opens at four in the morning, which makes the quarter best for early markets, and the walk up to the National Museum, if you are already there. Museum Hill is the next rise beyond. You are not.
Read the nearest quarter, Ngara and the Globe05Booking it
Book Bonsai Villa if your plans put you on Gigiri Drive with a car, and book early if you want one of the rooms with the garden or terrace side attached. Most rooms here can be cancelled free, and you book them through app.impt.io. Every confirmed booking removes one tonne of CO2, at no extra cost to you. Five percent of what you pay comes back as IMPT credit, out of the hotel commission rather than added to your bill.
Facts on this page come from the booking supplier's record: star class, address, photographs and facility list. Guest scores come from verified stays. Nobody from this site has stayed here; the quarter copy around it is this site's own.
06Questions
Where is Bonsai Villa?+
On Gigiri Drive in Greater Nairobi, in the northern diplomatic and UN quarter rather than the central business district. It sits 6.23 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 78 minutes on foot in a direct line, so plan on arriving by car or taxi rather than walking in.
What does Bonsai Villa list for guests?+
A 24 hour front desk, free wifi, free car parking, a restaurant or restaurants, bars, breakfast and a buffet, a business center, a meeting room, laundry, dry cleaning, a concierge, a safe, a garden, a terrace, a picnic area, a spa, a playground and wheelchair access. Several of these are named without detail, so confirm the ones you need directly.
Can I walk from Bonsai Villa into central Nairobi?+
Not realistically. The hotel is 5.56 km from Ngara and the Globe, which is the nearest of the ten quarters this site covers, and the area after dark is a transport edge rather than an evening one. Cross it by car. The hotel suits drivers and longer stays, not a car-free visit to the centre.
How do I check availability and cancel a room at Bonsai Villa?+
Availability and room types are shown when you search the dates you want through app.impt.io. Most rooms here can be cancelled free, and your booking is confirmed there rather than by the hotel directly. If you need a specific facility, such as the meeting room or the spa, request it before you confirm.
