Situated to the north of the city, the Mombasa Serena is a large hotel with 161 rooms, located on a lovely white beach and with many shady palms in the garden. A variety of room sizes and styles are available to suit all needs. The hotel is styled on a 13th century Swahili village with rooms in clusters with names such as Lamu and Shela. The main building has a very impressive huge white-washed entrance with Arabic style carved doors and a spacious reception and hallway, leading through into large airy bar and lounge areas. The feel of the hotel is one of a type of ‘Sultan''s Palace' with many Arabic furnishings and the warm sea breeze rustling through the palms at night. There are several restaurants and bars, one being the famous Jahazi Grill which serves fresh seafood and overlooks the beach.
Fair Trade / ResponsibleTravel:
The hotel was originally built and continues to be maintained using local materials and craftsmen. The interior decor also makes extensive use of local art, crafts and furniture whilst much of the woodwork and raffia-work has been made by the members of the Association for the Physically disabled="disabled" of Kenya. The majority of the hotel staff and the visiting entertainers are drawn from the local community, much of the fresh foodstuffs come from the local markets whilst all the seafood is bought from accredited local suppliers. The hotel also contributes towards local fund-raising projects and encourages the guests to visit local attractions such as the Bamburi Nature Trail and the Ngomongo Cultural Village.
The hotel cooperates with the Kenya Sea Turtle Conservation Committee on a rescue and conservation project that aims to protect the nesting and feeding sites of seven species of migratory turtles. The programme protects the turtles from poisoning by toxins or plastics, reduces the incidence of their capture by trawlers and fishing nets, curbs the exploitation of turtle meat, shells oil and eggs and protects the hatching cycle of the baby turtles.
The hotel has also recently set up an ambitious Butterfly Project, which aims to provide breeding areas for over 12 species of endangered forest butterflies. The butterflies are hatched as larvae, emerge into pupa and evolve into fully-fledged butterflies within the carefully constructed confines of the breeding houses, all of which are planted with foliage specific to the breeding and feeding habits of the various species. Once sufficient numbers of each species have been reared, selected="true" groups are released into the hotel grounds where they fulfill a much-needed ecological function, pollinating the flowering plants of the ecosystem and acting as an accurate indicator species as to the health of the coastal biosphere.
