Free
Children allowed

Facilities

Offsite parking discounted rates available
Nightclub
Guest education on local ecosystems and culture
Non-smoking rooms
Air conditioning
Swimming pool
Restaurant
Terrace
Family rooms
Luggage storage
See all facilities

Review Highlights

Pros:
Spacious rooms
Friendly staff
Nice swimming pool
Cons:
Poor cleanliness
Unresponsive service
Quality of food

Categories

Cleanliness
6.09
Several reviews highlighted unacceptable cleanliness standards, including blood stains and unclean rooms.
Service
8.56
Some staff were friendly, but there were numerous complaints about unresponsive service.
Location
9.6
Location appreciated, with several guests noting convenience.
Room Quality
8.05
Rooms described as spacious but suffering from poor maintenance and poor lighting.
Amenities
9.58
Swimming pool and facilities were praised.
Value for Money
7.54
Complaints about room conditions and service led to concerns over value.
Food and Beverage
7.09
Quality of food did not meet expectations, cited as poor and lacking variety.
Overall Experience
9.06
Mixed overall experience; some aspects were pleasant, but significant issues were reported.
* This sentiment is summarized by AI based on user reviews.
Updated at: 2026-01-08 20:05

Property Description

Luxurious Stay with Multiple Pools: The Lawford in Malindi offers a lavish experience with 2 common swimming pools, 5 private pools, and a beautiful garden.

Comfortable Accommodation: Each unit is equipped with modern amenities including air conditioning, a fridge, and a flat-screen TV. Guests can also enjoy the convenience of room service and a 24-hour front desk.

Convenient Location: Situated near popular attractions like the Portuguese Chapel and Supermarket, The Lawford provides easy access to key points of interest in Malindi. Book now for a relaxing getaway with top-notch service and facilities.

Important information:

Please inform of your expected arrival time in advance. You can use the Special Requests box when booking, or contact the property directly using the contact details in your confirmation.
Guests are required to show a photo ID and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all Special Requests are subject to availability and additional charges may apply.
This property does not accommodate bachelor(ette) or similar parties.

Check-in and check-out hours:
Check-out: 11:30 AM

Property Policies

  • Parking

    Free private parking is possible on site (reservation is not needed).

  • Internet

    No internet access available.

  • Pets

    Pets are not allowed.

  • Children and extra bed policy

    Children of any age are allowed.
    Children up to and including 2 years old stay for free when using an available cot.
    You haven't added any extra beds.
    Any type of extra bed or child's cot/crib is upon request and needs to be confirmed by management.

Location

Guest Reviews

8.2
Based on 82 reviews
Cleanliness: 6.09
Service: 8.56
Location: 9.6
Room Quality: 8.05
Amenities: 9.58
Value for Money: 7.54
Food and Beverage: 7.09
Overall Experience: 9.06
T
Teigist • extended_group • be
1
2026-01-30 • via Nuitee
N
Nancy • extended_group • ke
6
Abit disappointing
Pros:

The room were quite spacious

Cons:

The walls are dull,Not painted, some staff treat the white guests better than the black guests, a very noisy club/ restaurant in the hotel premises and no free water in the rooms.

2026-01-26 • via Nuitee
N
Noah • couple • us
8
Our stay was great. Love this historical resort. But leave the smoking and pets outside.
Pros:

The food was the best. Everything we ordered was prepared perfect and the variety was great. The chef was spot on and the servers were so polite and helpful. 10 out of 10. The grounds are beautiful and well kept. The pools were always ready for relaxing with someone to assist you if needed.The beach is a little walk but worth every step. Quiet and beautiful with few people and no one bothering you. A bar and grill on the spot with a cooling pool mad relaxing very easy and the food was also very good. Friendly staff and music on certain nights. Excellent !!

Cons:

The only complaint I have about our stay was the dining experience at the restaurant. As mentioned earlier the food and service was excellent. However, smoking is apparently allowed in the outdoor restaurant even though it ic covered and confined. To our dismay it was discovered it was the manager Franchesica that smoked openly while having her dinner each night. She also brought her dog along each night which continually barked for food from her. We found this surprising and very annoying along with the smoking especially from management.

2026-01-24 • via Nuitee
H
Hinga • solo_traveller • ke
8
I would recommend it for short stays business and also family holidays
Pros:

Calm and amazing environment, Thoughtful and engaging Manager , pleasant staff too.

2026-01-22 • via Nuitee
Y
Yvonne • family_with_children • gb
8
iconic place at Malindi
Pros:

I had a fantastic stay at The Lawford! The hotel is gorgeous and surrounded by breathtaking greenery. Our room was incredibly spacious, spotless, and provided a perfect place to relax. A huge thank you to the staff, who were so kind and attentive throughout our visit.

The location is perfect- right next to the beach. If you’re looking for a vibrant spot, Lost Beach is right next door with great music and a fantastic ambiance.

Cons:

I stayed during the busy Christmas season, the service felt a bit rushed. There were noticeable delays during breakfast and when requesting ironing services. While I understand it was peak season, I expected the hotel to be better prepared for the high occupancy they had on the book.

2026-01-21 • via Nuitee
V
Victoria • family_with_children • gb
1
2026-01-20 • via Nuitee
1
1234 • couple • ke
2
One of my worst experience ever!
Pros:

Very bad service!!

Cons:

We complained about the Air-conditioning not working from the moment we checked in. First of all it’s a very old rusty machine and clearly looks like it needs to be replaced

Requested for a fan as the heat was unbearable. I was not attended to after reminding them 4 times (8am at 11am at 2pm and 9pm)was told the the house keeper is bringing it. After 16 hours of waiting at 12 mid night I have been told the fans are not available. Clearly they were not bothered.
Mosquitos everywhere!!!
Staff very unhelpful and unprofessional.
Bathroom smelling of sewage (room 203)
Kettle rusted from inside , very unhygienic
Broken furniture
Rooms far from the reception with no phones to contact the reception

This has been by far my worst experience in a hotel in malindi. Very disappointed to start my new year like this.

2026-01-15 • via Nuitee
A
Aleckie Ronald • extended_group • ke
7
I enjoyed the quiet environment.
Pros:

Spacious Rooms, Friendly staff, Spacious Balcony, Good Environment

Cons:

The towel policy, changing towels after three days is not ideal considering Malindi is a very hot place and people shower almost three times a day. The Breakfast is very limited.

2026-01-10 • via Nuitee
M
Massimiliano • couple • it
3
Pros:

L’unica nota positiva é Enrico. Gestisce in maniera egregia lo spazio per fare colazione, pranzo e cena.

Cons:

Vecchio, sporco e senza un briciolo di assistenza.

2026-01-09 • via Nuitee
M
Mathilde • extended_group • fr
9
Really a jewel
Pros:

Goregeous place, the villa we had was really beautiful, with a lot of vintage and unique touches of decoration, functionning AC, spacious, in a gorgeous garden... the staff was very attentive, management was excellent and very attentive to customers. It was very hard to leave !

Cons:

Would recommend improving the food at the restaurant. But service was great.

2026-01-06 • via Nuitee
S
Salim • couple • gb
1
Need a full refund
Pros:

Nothing everything was so bad.

Cons:

Throughout our stay, we experienced a number of serious issues. We did not receive room service at any point, nor were we adequately supported by staff when concerns were raised. The air conditioning in our room was not functioning properly, with power repeatedly turning off. This caused significant discomfort, particularly as my wife was unwell during our stay.



Despite requesting towels on multiple occasions, none were delivered, and our room was not cleaned throughout our stay. The cleanliness of the room was unacceptable; we discovered blood stains on some of the pillows, which is extremely concerning. Additionally, the mosquito net provided was already open, allowing mosquitoes into the room and making it very uncomfortable to rest.



The quality of the food was also poor and did not reflect what was advertised. Overall, the experience fell far below reasonable expectations and caused us considerable distress.



I raised these issues with reception and was informed that they had spoken to you. However, no action was taken, and we felt ignored. As a result of these unresolved issues and what we believe to be false advertising, we were forced to leave earlier than planned, despite having paid a significant amount for this stay.

2025-12-31 • via Nuitee
A
Andres • extended_group • ae
9
2025-12-31 • via Nuitee
A
Alphonsine • couple • rw
10
2025-12-30 • via Nuitee
S
Svetlana • family_with_children • ke
5
Generally the stay was pleasant but the cleanliness and service need a lot of improvement
Pros:

The swimming pool and facility are nice. The staff is welcoming and kind.

Cons:

The rooms were quite run down, dusty. Thing kept breaking, like a fan or water heater. The trash was not removed from the rooms daily, towels weren't changed timely. We had to remind the staff to do it. The floors were dusty, the cleaning was not done properly. There was no way to get in touch with a reception, the phone didn't work. The breakfast had no variety, we had the same items for 6 days.

2025-12-27 • via Nuitee
P
Pauline • couple • de
7
2025-12-26 • via Nuitee
K
Kaneesha • extended_group • ca
4
Pros:

The staff were very friendly and its location was quite convenient.

Cons:

Cleanliness and bugs, the initial room I was assigned to was dirty and the bed had bugs. After changing rooms, the other room had so many huge ants despite not having food in the room.
Also the selling of water. Having water in the fridge only for it not to be free was a bit deceiving.

2025-12-24 • via Nuitee
C
Christopher • couple • ke
7
Below average experience
Pros:

The gardens are excellent, swimming pool very clean & rooms very spacious.
Room service staff were very friendly and did their work exellently.

Cons:

The receptionists were unfriendly. Breakfast was scanty, cold, very few choices offered, and monotonous. Internet is unstable. Finally, there is a club within the premises that plays round music on thursday and saturday nights, thus making guests stay unbearable on those days.

2025-12-23 • via Nuitee
V
Vooijs • couple • ae
8
Pros:

Huge private terrace. Lovely pool and restaurent.

2025-12-10 • via Nuitee
P
Peter • couple • ca
7
2025-11-14 • via Nuitee
S
SANSASENDRA • couple • es
7
A very good place to stay. A pity about the mattress and the poor lighting in the room.
Pros:

The staff were very attentive and professional. The room was very spacious and the restaurant service was excellent, especially the breakfast. The gardens and the swimming pool were spectacular and very well maintained.”

Cons:

The room had very poor lighting, especially in the bathroom. The bed was excessively hard. The bathroom was very small in relation to the size of the room, and the toilet was very badly positioned opposite the shower.

2025-09-07 • via Nuitee