Hemingways Nairobi Hotel

As your car pulls into the portico, you and your luggage will be whisked through the foyer and up the curved staircase to your private suite. When you're hungry, the elegant Brasserie serves the best steaks in Kenya, and its Seafood Fridays and Saturdays are pretty good too (try the Watamu prawn masala). Comfortable seating areas are plentiful, and the drawing room is formal enough to make you sit up straight and actually get some work done. And the whiskies at the bar are swirled to perfection. The gardens are beautiful, as is the pool.

Forty-five rooms (two are penthouse-style Presidential Suites) are set on a gentle hillside running down to a river. All are high-ceilinged and decorated in muted colours with brass, mahogany and leather accents echoing vintage East African safaris. The bathrooms are so huge they're the size of most hotel bedrooms. You'll enjoy the freestanding bath, rain shower, pop-up TV and balcony overlooking the bird-filled gardens. The main reason you'll be back though, is the impeccable service and care. And your private butler!

Hemingways lies in the peaceful Nairobi suburb of Karen. Wander around the city, with its exciting restaurants and historical sights, including the Karen Blixen Museum, the Giraffe Centre and shopping malls. Do laps in the pool and enjoy a treatment(or two!) at the spa.