Castle Forest Lodge – Mount Kenya National Park
Castle Forest Lodge is a luxury accommodation ( 3 star) found in kimunye inside the thick forest on the slopes of south of mount Kenya. The lodge is standing on the natural landscape of rain forest areas, fresh water river with falls and in the center of mount Kenya national park. It takes approximately 193 km (2-3 hours) drive from Nairobi to the park and 30 minutes to fly from Nairobi to the closest mount Nanyuki airstrip, then 64 miles from the lodge. The lodge is convenient and friendly to guests staying in mount Kenya national park with its stunning view of the forest, valley on its side , mount Kenya the tallest mountain in Kenya and surrounding areas.
Castle forest lodge is comprised of 15 well designed and elegant rooms that reflects African traditional building style with local woods and modern comfort . Rooms are well decorated and furnished with private en suite facilities like flushing toilets, hot and cold showers/Bathtubs , mosquito nets, satelites, Flat screen TVs , extinguishers, hair driers , private balconies and sitting areas ,you relax while enjoying the spectacular view of mount Kenya , rain forest, valley and surrounding area . Rooms are equipped with comfortable clean bedding containing king and queen sized beds and wooden ceiling fun. There are campfires in the living room that provides warmth to visitors in cold days . Rooms are in different categories and sizes; single ,double and triple rooms and rooms cost 300$ per night and above ( note that high season rate is different to low season rate.)
Castle forest lodge offers more services and facilities which include; A restaurant in the main building that serves different food both international and local meals that meets guests choice ; breakfast ,lunch and dinner while facing the waterhole front dining room served by well trained, friendly and organized staff ,they also serve bush diners , A well stocked bar with variety of drinks , local ,cocktail , wines, spirits and international beers , Outdoor round pool that cools off the hot afternoon ,you relax and sip the cocktail or monktail while overlooking the breathtaking view of mount Kenya ,valley in the distance , rain forest canopy and surrounding area , Free parking space available, Laundry services available , Wifi available at the lodge that enables visitors to keep in touch with their families and friends, business centers with wedding meetings , honey moon package etc. ,Health and fitness centers with gyms, sauna, steam bathe , massage etc, Excellent and comfortable beddings, Craft shop available at the hotel with more African style gifts like shoes, safari essentials , Recreational areas available at the lodge like ;hiking , climbing , nature walks playing , and many others.
Mount Kenya national park is found in Kenya country in the eastern side of the Great rift valley . Mount Kenya is the second tallest mountain in Africa. The park is in the place where kikuyu the father of the tribe used to meet with gods. The park covers the total area of 715 square kilometers (276 sqare miles) of which the above is 3000 meters contour line and the forest reserve is 705 square kilo metres. The park was formed in 1949 to protect mount Kenya , wildlife and surrounding environment. Mount Kenya national park contains large number of animal species which include; Buffaloes, elephants, leopards, white tailed mangoose, black rhinos, elands to mention but few and over 160 bird species like eagles, African grass owl, waterbucks, long tailed window birds and many more others. The park is the great habitat for wildlife especially animals and birds.
There are several accommodations in mount Kenya national park ; budget , mid range and luxury accommodation which are a friendly and convenient to guests visiting the park. There are different activities to do while in Mount Kenya national park; Game viewing since the park has various animals to spot , hot air ballooning riding, bird watching/birding since the park contains more bird species in the forest, nature walks in the forest ,visiting waterhole, flying safaris, cultural visit in the local kikuyu homes, hiking and climbing mount Kenya since it attracts more hikers and climbers in a year , forest canopy and many more activities.
