Sarova Stanley

The Sarova Stanley is where Nairobi's hotel history begins. It was founded in 1902 by Mayence Bent, an English businesswoman, as the Victoria Hotel above a general store, and took the name New Stanley Hotel when it moved to Delamere Avenue, now Kenyatta Avenue, in 1913. The Sarova Group bought it in 1978, and a renovation in 1998 restored the Stanley name. It describes itself as Nairobi's first luxury hotel and is one of the few in the city with a five-star rating.

The guest list over the years is remarkable. Ernest Hemingway stayed in 1933 and 1934 while recovering from amoebic dysentery, Winston Churchill visited in 1907 and gives his name to the Churchill Ballroom, and stars including Clark Gable, Ava Gardner, Grace Kelly and Gregory Peck passed through during Hollywood's safari years. Princess Elizabeth visited in 1952, and Sam Nujoma, Namibia's first president, used the presidential suite. The hotel had 217 rooms as of 2015.

The hotel's best-known feature is the Thorn Tree Café, built around an acacia tree where travellers once pinned messages for each other, long before email. The café still operates as part of the hotel today. The Exchange Bar takes its name from the stock exchange, as local shares were first traded in the hotel's earlier Long Bar. Rooms range from Stanley Deluxe Rooms, which the hotel says are the largest in their category in the city, to Club Rooms with evening canapés and themed suites. The Churchill Ballroom holds up to 250 people for conferences and events.

The Stanley suits travellers who want to be in the middle of the city, within walking distance of KICC, the Kenya National Archives, Jamia Mosque and the Nairobi Gallery, as well as business visitors with meetings in the central business district. It is a member of the Preferred Hotels and Resorts Lifestyle Collection.

The central streets around the hotel are very busy during the day and quieter at night, so use taxis or ride-hailing apps after dark rather than walking long distances. Ask the hotel to arrange airport transfers, and allow plenty of time for traffic when heading to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.