Reservations · Open year round
Plan your stay
Write to us, and we'll write back.
Three, above Lake Naivasha — each taken whole by one party, or the estate entire.
Ninety minutes from Nairobi by road; under an hour by charter to our own grass airstrip.
Comes with the villa — your own chef, butler and housekeeper, already there when you arrive.
Read and answered personally by Jenetta Barry, General Manager, within twenty-four hours.
The questions that come first.
What kind of place is O'Leleshwa?
A private estate, not a game lodge. There are no Land Cruisers at the gate, and the wildlife our guests see most often is the wildlife that walks past the gardens at dawn. Game drives, hikes and the rest of the Circuit are arranged on request — but the centre of the stay is the estate itself: the table, the gardens, the fire, the long afternoon by the pool.
Who comes here?
Multi-generational families, groups of close friends, and small private gatherings — engagements, anniversaries, milestone birthdays. The largest villa sleeps eight and the smallest four; booked together, the estate sleeps eighteen. Corporate offsites and small creative residencies are welcome too — tell us what the group needs.
When to come
The estate sits at 1,884 metres, which gives it a climate cooler and clearer than the coast or the low-lying conservancies: days of 22–26°C, nights of 10–14°C. Warm and bright, then a sweater, then a fire.
The two long dry seasons run January to March and June to October. April, May and November bring the rains — and with them the greenest country, the most dramatic skies over the Rift, and the quietest calendar. December is festive, and busy.
What does a stay include?
The run of an entire villa, with the estate's people and facilities at your group's disposal. All meals, and drinks from the house bar. The heated pool, the wood-fired hot tub, the pool house, the e-bikes and mountain bikes, the gardens and the grow house. Transfers from the airstrip or from Loldia Field. Wi-Fi throughout.
Not included: international and charter flights, premium spirits beyond the house bar, and arranged off-estate excursions.
Children
Children are welcome — multi-generational families are much of who comes here. The pool is heated year-round, which matters more than it sounds at 1,884 metres.
Rates
Rates are shared on enquiry — per villa, or for the estate entire. We work closely with travel agents and tour operators; depending on how you reach us, your rate may come through them or directly from us. Either way, the same villa waits and the same team receives you.
Three ways from Nairobi.
By road, by charter, or by scheduled flight — we help arrange whichever suits.
By road
Most international guests arrive at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. From there the drive west takes you over the Rift Valley escarpment — one of the great views in the country — then down into the valley and along the lake to the estate.
By charter, to the estate's airstrip
Charter flights from Wilson Airport, in Nairobi, land on a grass airstrip that crosses the estate's boundary and runs on into open country. The strip is five minutes from the villas on foot.
By scheduled flight, to Loldia Field
Safarilink flies a scheduled service from Wilson Airport to Loldia Field, a five-minute drive from the estate. We collect you at the field.
The shape of the days.
The rhythm of the day
There is no schedule. Coffee at first light, breakfast when you are ready, lunch when you want it; dinner is the evening's centre. Spa treatments can be arranged in the villa, at whatever hour suits the day. The full account of a day here is on The Experience.
The country beyond the gate
Crescent Island, Hell's Gate, Mount Longonot, Crater Lake, the flamingos at Nakuru — most of it within an hour or two, and all of it described on The Place. Excursions are usually arranged with the team after you arrive, in conversation about what the group is in the mood for that day. A few — day trips to Lake Nakuru, balloon flights over the Mara, specialist guides for birding mornings — reward advance notice.
The pool house
Beside the pool, the pool house folds its timber doors back until the room and the deck are one space: a brick-walled bar with a coffee station, a pool table and a table tennis table, and a fireplace indoors for the cold end of the evening. A wood-fired pizza oven runs most nights.
How the estate is powered
The estate runs on solar power. You are unlikely to notice: the lamps come on, the pool stays warm, the Wi-Fi holds.
Accessibility
The estate is built into a hillside, and its indoor-outdoor architecture means a fair amount of moving between rooms happens outside, over steps, paths and uneven stone. Some of this is beautiful and some of it is challenging. If anyone in your group has mobility needs, write and describe them — we will work with you, and we will be honest about what is possible and what isn't.
Two things we hold to.
One party to a villa
We do not mix groups within a villa, whatever the size of the booking. The estate's quietness is a function of this.
How far ahead to write
For festive periods — Christmas through New Year, Easter, the summer school holidays — write as far ahead as you can. For the rest of the year, four to eight weeks is usually enough.
A short note is enough.
Rough dates, the size of your party, and anything a friend would mention — a milestone being marked, a preference, a child with allergies. Whatever you leave out, we will ask about.
Tell us your dates and your party.
Prefer to book directly? Live availability is at Book now.
Whatever the stay is for, say so when you write. The rest is ours to arrange.