A three star hotel on Upper Hill Mawensi Road, with apartments and a pool, built for the conference diary rather than a holiday. It is 2.71 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 34 minutes on foot in a direct line. That walk decides it. Drive and it works, walk and it does not.
01What it is
Nairobi Upperhill Hotel lists apartments, not just rooms, so the practical things come as standard: a kitchen or kitchenette with a microwave, oven, refrigerator and toaster, plus a washing machine, iron and board, and a balcony or terrace on some units. Breakfast can come to the room, and there is a restaurant, room service, a concierge, a 24 hour front desk, express check in and luggage storage. The leisure side is an outdoor pool and a sauna. The list is thin on three things: no gym, no meeting or conference rooms, and no airport transfer. Upper Hill is a conference quarter and the hotel supplies none of that itself. Note also that the pool, sauna and terrace appear in the facilities list alongside the apartments, so what comes with which unit is not something the list breaks down.
What that adds up to is a self contained base for someone whose day is already arranged elsewhere in Upper Hill, and who does not want to depend on the hotel for anything beyond sleeping, eating and a swim. The apartments and the kitchen cover longer stays and odd hours better than a plain room would. Nairobi Upperhill Hotel suits consultants, contractors and visiting staff on a car or a driver, and it suits anyone in town for a hospital, an embassy or an office on the ridge. It does not suit a first time visitor who wants to walk out of the lobby into the city. There is nothing to walk into, and after dark Upper Hill is safe and dull: hotel bars, and a ride anywhere else. Choose it deliberately, for the address.
02The supplier's photographs
0336 facilities the supplier lists
and 9 more on the supplier's own record. Facilities are the supplier's list, not a check made on the ground.
04Standing in Upper Hill and Community
Upper Hill and Community sits on the western ridge, not the CBD proper but the ridge immediately above it, and the place most of the CBD's office space has been moving to since the 2000s: the tallest towers in the country, the big hospitals, the aid agencies, and an expressway ramp to the airport. The street feel is new concrete on a ridge, built for the car and the conference room. The quarter lies 1.9 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 24 minutes on foot in a direct line.
It is best for meetings, a quiet night close in, and a fast run to the airport. After dark it is safe and dull: hotel bars, and a ride anywhere else. That suits people here to work and people who want their evening contained. It does not suit anyone expecting street life outside the door. The streets are built for the car and the conference room, so plan to move by vehicle once the working day ends.
Read the whole of Upper Hill and Community05Booking it
Book this one on the address rather than on the building, and check that the apartment and the pool come with the unit you pick. 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 exactly is Nairobi Upperhill Hotel?+
On Upper Hill Mawensi Road, in the Upper Hill and Community area. It is 2.71 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 34 minutes on foot in a direct line. The streets around it are new concrete on a ridge, built for the car and the conference room, so most people arrive by vehicle.
What does the hotel actually have in the rooms?+
The listing covers apartments and rooms with a kitchen or kitchenette, microwave, oven, refrigerator, toaster, washing machine, iron and board, bathroom, towels, toiletries, hairdryer, slippers, bathrobe, safe, TV and smoke detector. Some units have a balcony. The list does not say which amenities come with which unit.
Can I walk from Upper Hill and Community into the centre?+
The centre of Upper Hill and Community is 1.05 km from the hotel, but the wider central business district is not a walking proposition from here. Distances are long, the roads are built for traffic, and after dark the area is quiet. Plan on a car or a ride for anything outside the immediate quarter.
What does the guest score of 3.7 out of 5 mean?+
It is a middling score from 341 reviews, which for a three star property usually points to a workable stay rather than a standout one. Read the recent comments for what recurs, then weigh that against the location, which is the real reason to choose this hotel over another in the centre.
