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NOW In 1989 the
Norfolk Hotel was bought by the Lonrho Group of
Hotels who also own and manage Mount Kenya Safari
Club, Aberdare Country Club, The Ark, Sweetwaters
tented camp and Mara Safari Club. The Norfolk is a
member of the leading hotels of the world. Kimenyi
adds, "The land on which the Norfolk is built
formerly belonged to Lord Delamere who exchanged it
in 1927 with Abraham Block. Block was later to be
the owner of a wide range of five star hotels in
the country with the Norfolk becoming the jewel in
crown of his dynasty." The Norfolk is one of the
only places in the world that has cheated time and
remained for a hundred years to host yet another
generation of Hollywood stars, Presidents, music
legends, Royalty and authors. Calendar
of Events To
celebrate its centenary year the Norfolk Hotel will
host a series of events where guests and patrons
alike will relive and recreate each decade that the
hotel has lived through over the next six
months This site is sponsored
by the Africa Travel Association
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....THEN
What
does the UN Secretary General, Koffi Annan have in
common with the Emperor of Japan, the British
Monarchy, former US President Teddy Roosevelt, rock
star Mick Jagger, movie star Denzel Washington,
Harry Belafonte and renowned author Ernest
Hemingway? They have all at one point in the last
100 years stayed the famous Norfolk Hotel in
Nairobi Kenya. To celebrate its centenary year the
Norfolk Hotel will host a series of events where
guests and patrons alike will relive and recreate
each decade that the hotel has lived through over
the next six months. "History is alive and
breathing within the walls of the Norfolk," says
Richard Kimenyi, the General Manager of the Norfolk
Hotel. "The history of the Norfolk Hotel is
entwined with that of Kenya. Our Golden years are
the golden years of our national history. This
makes the Norfolk a national monumental heritage in
every aspect. As we mark our centenary
celebrations, we shall reminisce the bygone era of
the wondrous spirit of adventure on which Kenya was
founded." The celebrations which kick off from the
1st of July 2004 were heralded with the launch of
the Norfolk Telegraph newspaper - a complimentary
publication is printed and written in the classical
1900's format. 
The
calendar of events includes :- The famous Theatre
Nights at the Norfolk Hotel Gardens on the 24th
July and the 15th-16th October, the return of the
Vintage Car Rally on the 7th November beginning at
The Norfolk Hotel to the Nairobi Racecourse and the
classic Centenary Costume Ball on the 4th of
December at the Norfolk Hotel Ballroom. Since
Christmas Day in 1904, the Norfolk Hotel, with its
cool resting rooms and hot and cold baths, was
civilisation in the bush. With nothing in front of
it except the papyrus swamp with the frogs and
barren, open land behind it, the white railings of
the hotel's perimeter spelt civilization and
comfort for those early arrivals. Former US
President Teddy Roosevelt and his son Kermit,
launched their first great safari at the Norfolk in
1909. The entourage stepped off the front steps of
the Norfolk and into the marshy swamp, where they
were stuck for hours.
Throughout
the years, the Norfolk has hosted some of
Hollywood's greatest movie stars such as Virginia
McKenna and Bill Travers of the Born Free fame,
Robert Redford, Michael Caine, Meryl Streep, James
Earl Jones amongst others. Also adding his name to
the famous people's guest list is Hollywood star
Ralph Fieness and his film crew, who have just
recently been in Kenya, shooting the movie The
Constant Gardener, which is due to be released
later this year. <image.tiff>The first
authors to be taken in by the hotels grandeur and
patronage were Wilbur Smith and Ernest Hemingway,
who picked numerous tall tales from the adventurers
and settlers who frequented the Lord Delamere Bar.
"Ernest Hemingway was a familiar guest at the
Norfolk in those days," adds Kimenyi "He
would sit at the Lord Delamare Bar for hours
talking with Delamere himself and other settler
adventurers. It was here he picked some of his most
memorable yarns. 