White Elephant Sea & Art Lodge

My family recently stayed in this fantastic art hotel/resort in Malindi. At first, we were a little hesitant when the hotel almost seemed abandoned but then it just got better and better. This is a fantastic art hotel, a true gem, which you should not miss when staying in Malindi.

We stayed in a very spacious triple room, with own nice bathroom and air-conditioning. The room was very beautiful by its interior and its nice traditional African furniture (made on the premises).

The hotel has two nice pools, located just at the beach and in addition the hotel has its own beach strip, towels are provided for free and the staff is constantly available to serve you drinks/food. The breakfast is served with great views over the pool and the beach. There is a constant breeze from the sea so you can always sit outside and eat even if the sun is out.

The place is spectacular. The whole hotel is a open-air museum which shows art by the Owner Armando Tanzini, who is a famous Italian artist. There are huge elephant and horse sculptures everywhere. The level of detail is simply astonishing.

We stayed at the White Elephant for 5 nights in between Christmas and New Years Eve, and from the very first moments at the hotel we were blown away by the atmosphere. The amount of art everywhere, in all common areas and in the rooms made the green jungle-like atmosphere come to life. The rooms are spacious, with nice finishings. We felt very safe while there - there is always 3 Masai men roaming around the hotel, not to mention other guards. The beach is great, the pool is inviting. In my mind one of the best things about the hotel is the staff - from the beginning we felt welcome, and had a good contact with the staff, but it all become more concrete when we had a unfortunate incident while at the hotel. I will not dwell on the details of said incident, but will say that the help and care offered by the whole staff (not just management), who went above and beyond what we expected from your 'average' hotel, blew us away. I am appreciatory and grateful for their help!

However, there are a few areas on which they could work on - so as to make this a balanced review. The Wifi can be improved (did not always work in common areas and rather spotty in the rooms - important for people who have to work while on holiday), the breakfast and dishes at the restaurant could use more vegetables (although it is a good very breakfast - but many Europeans prefer more veggies and salad options).

Apart from that - it's a splendid hotel, and I will gladly recommend it to others!