Lolldaiga House

Lolldaiga Hills, Laikipia

Lolldaiga House

Lolldaiga Hills, Laikipia

“What an astonishing place! It’s a secret treasure and altogether lovely”

A really charming, secluded and off-the-beaten-track safari house, Lolldaiga House is elegantly decorated and furnished in farmhouse-chic style and enjoys glorious views and excellent wildlife viewing in one of Kenya’s loveliest and least visited private conservancies – the 49,000-acre Lolldaiga Hills.

Lolldaiga House accommodates up to 12 guests in 6 ensuite bedrooms

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All About Lolldaiga House

Lolldaiga House is a much-loved private home discreetly tucked away amid some of Kenya’s most dramatic scenery. Built by a British family as their Kenyan holiday retreat and completed in 2016, it offers a welcoming and exclusive safari experience in a beautiful, off-the-beaten track setting.

From its lofty ridgetop setting the house looks out across the conservancy and ranch towards the mountainous Northern Frontier District. Authentic, expansive and built with thick straw-bale walls, it is furnished and decorated with bespoke charm, its walls hung with paintings and photographs by some of Kenya’s most talented artists.

If you’re looking for a safari adventure, a well-earned rest, a new perspective, or a fun and carefree holiday with family and friends in wonderful surroundings both inside and out, then Lolldaiga House is the perfect spot.

With a vast and comfortable drawing room, a well-stocked wood-panelled library and television room, an inviting 18-metre heated infinity pool and deep verandas filled with easy chairs, sofas and swinging beds, there are plenty of spaces in which to recline and relax.

The house has six spacious double bedrooms – two in the main house and two in each of the adjacent guest cottages – all have huge and well-appointed ensuite bathrooms. Each bedroom opens up through wide French windows to tremendous views of mountains and bush from wrap-around verandas.

Breakfasts and lunches are usually eaten alfresco out on the terraces overlooking the gardens and swimming pool, and dinner in the rather more formal setting of the beautiful high-ceilinged dining room, complete with enormous fireplace.

An attentive yet discreet team of staff are on hand to ensure that every stay is a relaxing escape from the demands of everyday life. Guests can spend long and peaceful days doing exactly as they please, secluded and undisturbed in house and grounds. While the opportunities to kick back and take it easy are many and tempting, so too are the opportunities to explore and experience this beautiful and rugged corner of Kenya.

Enjoy an early morning game drive to see the sun rise over the ranch followed by a bush breakfast, or an afternoon drive ending with sundowner drinks. Exploring the bush on foot is highly rewarding too – armed rangers lead guests on walking safaris, sharing their expert understanding of the landscape and its wildlife.

Laikipia has long attracted avid birdwatchers from around the world and its varied terrain is home to hundreds of species of bird. The house and its surrounds are a paradise for avian enthusiasts; home to Yellow-billed Egrets, Booted Eagles, Eurasian Scops Owls and over 400 other recorded species, with nearby dams offering rewarding bird viewing.

Summary

Lovely and luxurious family home built in traditional style
Sprawling, stylish, welcoming and comfortable accommodation
A really undisturbed and away-from-it-all bush location
18-metre heated infinity pool and dramatic vistas
Explore the magnificent Lolldaiga Hills by vehicle or on foot
Experience diverse landscapes and a wealth and variety of animal and bird life
Enjoy the services of a super team of staff and delicious cuisine
Accommodates up to 12 guests in 6 double ensuite bedrooms

Destination - Laikipia

Straddling the Equator and stretching from the snow-capped peaks of Mount Kenya to the eastern rim of the Great Rift Valley, the Laikipia plateau is one of Africa’s most exciting and exclusive wilderness safari destinations – with abundant wildlife, spectacular scenery, extraordinary cultural and bio-diversity and some of East Africa’s most successful nature and game conservancies.

Ranching, conservation and high-end tourism go hand-in-hand, with few of the constraints that often apply in Kenya’s national parks and reserves. Night game drives, bush walks, bike tours, horse-riding, camel treks, scenic flights and helicopter safaris are a few the exhilarating pursuits on hand in the extensive private ranches and conservancies that make up much of the region.

Laikipia hosts a wealth and diversity of wildlife second only to the Masai Mara in Kenya. It has significant populations of predators and the “Big Five”, with over 50% of Kenya’s rhinos, thousands of elephants, about 25% of the world’s endangered Grevy’s Zebra, and an increasing population of rare Wild Dogs. The region is home to more at-risk species than anywhere else in East Africa.

Location - Lolldaiga Hills

The Lolldaigas consist of 49,000 dramatic and uncrowded acres 20 kilometres north of the Equator and 40 kilometres north of Mount Kenya. A well-managed combination of wildlife conservancy and commercial livestock ranch, they are home to a huge variety of wild animals and birds, as well as 4,500 cattle, sheep and camels. Despite their proximity to more widely visited areas of Laikipia, limited visitor numbers and a total absence of commercial tourist accommodation ensure that the Lolldaigas feel remote, untouched and firmly off-the-beaten-track.

The Lolldaigas are home to large herds of Elephant and Buffalo, together with Lion, Leopard, Hyena, Jackal, Cheetah and plentiful plains game. Larger antelope species include Hartebeest, Oryx and Eland, while Grevy’s Zebra and Wild Dog are among several rare and endangered species. With such varied topography, landscapes and habitats, the conservancy’s roads range across hilltops, up and down steep valleys, around dams, and across open savannah plains, ensuring that game drives and excursions here are always diverse, scenic and rewarding.

Ranging in altitude from 1700 to 2300 metres, the Lolldaiga Range is an ancient land form, comprising of a series of magnificent high folding hills, cedar forests and steep wooded valleys, interspersed with open grassland and bush. A well-documented series of archaeological finds, cave paintings and burial mounds show that the area was home to early mankind several thousand years ago. Over the last five centuries the region has been inhabited by the nomadic Laikipia Maasai, from whose language the name “Lolldaiga” comes, “Daiga” meaning braid.

In Detail

Main House

2 double bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms
Drawing room
Dining room
Library / office with tv
Entrance hall
Kitchen & pantries
50-metre veranda with living, dining and lounging areas

Guest cottage 1

2 double bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms
20-metre veranda with sitting and lounging areas

Guest cottage 2

2 double Bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms
20-metre veranda with sitting and lounging areas

Outside Places and Spaces

18-metre heated swimming pool
Poolside pergola
Enclosed gardens and grounds

Activities

Game drives with safari vehicle and driver/guide
Guided bush walks with armed ranger
Farm visits
Cave walks

Optional extras include

Horse riding,
Scenic flights
Helicopter excursions

Connectivity

Wi-fi internet
Television
DSTV and streaming services
Reasonable cell phone signal

Management and staff

Key members of the team include –
Manager and host – Camilla
Chef – Stephen
Waiters – Philip & Robert
Housekeepers – Beatrice & Nancy
Driver/guides – Julius & Samia

Visitors' Book

“What an astonishing place! It’s a secret treasure and altogether lovely.”

“Thank you so much for a magical stay. It was perfect in every way. The house is wonderful, the staff a delight and the landscape and its inhabitants breathtaking.”

“How very lucky we are – this really has been the most incredible and spoiling week. I don’t think any holiday will ever top it. Thank you for the most amazing hospitality.”