Budget & Midrange accommodation in Aberdares
The following accommodation must be booked through park headquarters
Public campsites basic sites with minimal facilities-some have hot water.
Tusk camp near Ruhuruini gate, these four cottages provide beds for eight to 10 people,a kitchen area (no pots utensils etc),toilets, hot water, a dining,/lounge area and great views.
Sapper Hut a simple Banda, with an open fire two beds and a hot-water boiler, overlooking a waterfall on the upper Magura River. You will need to bring everything from drinking ware to bedding.
Kiagondoro fishing lodge
Sitting in an excellent spot on the high moor by the Gura River, these two large cottages offer bathrooms, gas-powered kitchens, dining rooms and fireplaces.
Luxury Accommodation in Aberdare Park
Prices below include transfers (self drive isn't permitted) form Outspan Hotel in Nyeri (for Treetops) and Aberdare Country Club near Mweiga (for Ark).Children under seven are prohibited at both lodges.
Treetops (mid-Jul-Dec full board s/tw with shared bathroom, it was at this very floodlit waterhole in 1952 that a sleeping princess became queen Elizabeth after the death of George In 1957 after the Mau Mau guerillas turned the original into ashes a much larger rendition was built on the opposite side of the waterhole.
Today, with faded, peeling, bark siding and cast iron spiral staircases, treetops' exterior resembles a weathered shipwreck. The narrow lined hallways, miniature rooms, bench-seated dining halls and shared bathrooms are just as ship-like, but thankfully they don't scream nautical disaster.
Despite its quirks Treetops reeks of charm, and there is still one lone tree meandering its way, through the floors, ceilings, and walls near the reception. Besides a great rooftop, wildlife viewing area and photographic hides, there's an onsite naturalist who give talks and happily answers question.
ARK what this modern upscale version of the treetops lacks in history and charm, it makes up for in comfort and wildlife viewing. Sitting higher in the Aberdares Arks floodlit waterholes surrounded by grasses and mountain forests, which attracts a wider array of animals than Treetops.
Nightly visitors typically include elephants, rhinos, buffalos and spotted hyenas. Spotting a leopard is less likely, but still a real possibility. Like Treetops, they dubiously spread salt to attract wildlife, but here its confined to a smaller area, meaning there is less trampling of vegetation along the water line (crucial for timid species to approach).
Getting there and away
Access roads from the B5 hwy to the Wanderi's, Ark, Treetops and Ruhuruini gates are in descent shape, while the road from Nyeri to Kiandongoro is just horrendous.
Regular Nyeri-Mweiga pass KWS headquarters and the main park gate. Since trekking the Salient is inadvisable, most trekkers use the Wanderi's gate.
Nyeri's Outspan hotel charges for wildlife drives into the lower Salient, while the Aberdare Country Club charges per vehicle; both rates exclude park entry fees.
If you are lover of nature and forest sorroundings, we suggest you try either the Ark or the Treetops, favourably reffered to as the Africa Kenya tree house.
Enjoy!
