Kristin in front of Carnation Hotel.
We hadn’t booked a hotel in advance for our stay in Nakuru, so after returning from the excursion to Nakuru National Park, we had to find a place to spend the night. With its kitschy reception décor and the promise of “quiet rooms” Carnation Hotel stole our hearts immediately, and we handed over the 1500 schilling for a twin bed room. The room rate included breakfast and, as it turned out, even a cockroach on the floor…yack!
Unfortunately, the “quiet rooms” however, turned out to be far from quiet. Even though the location of the hotel was in a quiet area, the other hotel guests made sure that we were kept awake for most of the night.
The hot shower.
A very unexpected feature was the morning shower’s hot water. Really hot water is far from a matter of course at budget hotels alternatives in Kenya, so it was indeed a nice surprise.
The hotel’s restaurant.
The hotel’s restaurant was also very charming and the breakfast, which included fruit and omelet, was really good. Disregarding the noise, the cockroach and the shabby bathrooms, Carnation Hotel was actually a quite good choice in that price range.
Breakfast.
8 Comments
That is some serious mold on the ceiling of that bathroom.
I can inform you that it was also in the rest of the room:)
My wifey could never shower in that. We were in a hotel that was much cleaner than that, yet she still couldn’t bring herself to shower there – we had to go to her friend’s place to use her shower instead.
Well, maybe she just expected better from a first-world place like Perth.
And then you haven’t seen the toilet:) There are also nicer hotels in Nakuru, but since we just wanted a bed for the night, we decided to give it a chance. My mom/sister/husband could never stay at a place like this, but I find it quite enjoyable, and extremely authentic (and cheap) to stay at such places once in a while.It really makes you appreciate other nicer hotels even more.
I think so too. Sometimes, a safe bed is all you really need… the emphasis on “safe”!
Hi Mitzie,
Do you ever use hotel rating websites or forums in advance, Mitzie? It may be sometimes “contestable” if ratings are all true(yes, I would kind of doubt all 4 stars for example),but, it gives you a general idea.
I sometimes contribute my hotel experiences on Trip advisor. Because all views, both positive and negative are valuable info for someone who is deciding on a hotel.
Have a safe and happy day!
I sometimes check out the reviews at Hotels.com and Expedia, but I find it difficult to find reliable reviews. As for instance, the description and reviews of the hotel I booked in Nairobi was very far from the reality. Though, I am not very picky when it comes to hotels, when I’m traveling since most of the time, I will be away for the entire day and only need the hotel for sleeping. If I want a good hotel I go for some of the international chains such as Radisson, Kempinsky and Sofitel, which have never let me down:)
True, it all dpeneds on the time you will be somewhere. You can put up with some minor things a day, maybe two, but a perhaps not a week or more.
But, it is handy to be flexible when you travel but stand one’s ground when things are really bad.
Cheers!