A four star conference hotel on the Upper Hill ridge, a short way above the central business district. Its weight is in meeting rooms, a pool, a gym and a spa. If you are here to work or to sleep before an early start, it does the job; if you want street life at the door, this is not that.
01What it is
The Sarova Panafric Hotel Nairobi Upper Hill lists the full apparatus of a four star business hotel: a 24 hour front desk, 24 hour security and concierge, a business centre, currency exchange and free wifi. You also get a restaurant and bars, a pool with a pool bar, a fitness centre and gymnasium, a spa with massage, free car parking and valet parking, laundry and dry cleaning, family rooms, wheelchair access and shuttle service. Rooms run to air conditioning, a desk, a safe, a minibar, a bath and a shower, bathrobes, slippers, toiletries and a balcony in some cases. What the list is thin on is anything beyond the building itself: it tells you the hotel is self contained, and says nothing about what sits at the gate.
For someone staying at the Sarova Panafric Hotel Nairobi Upper Hill, that adds up to a sealed, working hotel on a ridge above the centre, where the day is arranged inside the compound and the evening is arranged by car. Upper Hill and Community sits 0.72 km from the centre of Upper Hill and Community, and the address is a junction of Kenyatta Ave and Valley Rd. The setting is new concrete built for the car and the conference room; after dark it is safe and dull, hotel bars, and a ride anywhere else. It suits a business traveller, a conference delegate and anyone who wants a pool, a gym and a quiet room at the end of the day. It does not suit anyone who wants to step out of a lobby into the city on foot.
02The supplier's photographs
0336 facilities the supplier lists
and 33 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 for the facilities and the quiet rather than for the address, because the centre is a short ride down the hill and the hotel is set up to keep you in. 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 the Sarova Panafric Hotel Nairobi Upper Hill?+
It stands at the junction of Kenyatta Ave and Valley Rd in Upper Hill, on the ridge above the central business district. The hotel is 1.57 km from Kenyatta Avenue at Moi Avenue, which is 20 minutes on foot in a direct line, so most people make the trip into the centre by car.
What does the hotel actually have on site?+
A restaurant and bars, a pool and pool bar, a fitness centre and gymnasium, a spa with massage, a business centre, free wifi and free car parking, plus laundry and dry cleaning, luggage storage, family rooms and wheelchair access. Rooms include air conditioning, a desk, a safe, a minibar, bathrobes and slippers.
Can I walk into the centre from Upper Hill?+
You can, but the walk is uphill on the return and the immediate streets are built for cars and conference traffic rather than people. The area is safe and dull after dark, with hotel bars and little else, so plan on a ride for dinner or an evening out.
What does the guest score tell me?+
The property holds a score of 4.5 out of 5 from 7357 reviews, which is a large body of guest feedback at the upper end for a four star hotel. Read it as consistency across the rooms and facilities rather than as a judgement on the location.
