We have just returned from an 11 night stay at Papillon Lagoon Reef booked via Virgin Holidays. We were supposed to fly on Christmas Day but a Kenya Airways aeroplane problem delayed us by 16 hours and we spent Christmas night in the Hilton at T4, Heathrow. Kenya Airways weren't brilliant at their communications at the airport but one of their female members of staff was excellent and really did do a terrific job. Our onward flight from Nairobi to Mombassa was reorganised by Kenya Airways (along with 33 other) and one of the benefits was rapid transit through immigration as the Mombassa flight was held pending our arrival from London. Not a good start but everything just got better and better and better.

Virgin found out that we had been delayed and re-organised our transfer from Mombassa to the hotel (about 90 minutes), together with armed police presence for safety and security. The police told us that there were no problems but tourism is important and they wanted to make sure that we were completely safe given the 1.30am departure from Mombassa airport. The transfer was smooth and the hotel reception is open 24 hours and they gave us a drink and a sandwich whilst we went through the booking in process. We had booked a sea facing room (an extra) and we were not disappointed. The accommodation was first class, though the bathroom was a bit dated. It was, however, spotlessly clean. Our room was air conditioned, quiet and very comfortable. There is a safe in the room (an extra cost of £1 a day) but worth it.

The food was very good and with much variety. The fresh fruit was excellent and there was always plenty of choice. Having been to Egypt on an all inclusive basis previously, I would say that the food at PLR was significantly better in comparison. The service levels were very good whether at room, at table, at bar, at pool or at sunbed. Sun beds and towels are provided free of charge. The public areas were clean and well kept. The drinks were exactly as you would expect with local spirits but the beer, G&T and brandy worked for me. The red wine was from cartons but you have the option to buy bottled wine if you felt the need. You can buy bottled water on site and it is not expensive. The evening entertainment was not great but I didn't expect it to be great having read other reviews. We were happy with a drink in hand, sitting looking out to sea and chatting the evenings away.

The staff were all incredibly friendly and welcoming. Unlike Egypt where I sensed that everything was in expectation of a tip, in Kenya, I sensed that it was because of a genuine desire for you to enjoy your holiday and to encourage your return. We did tip our room boy at the end of our holiday, he talked with us every day, he kept our room spotless and made sure that we had clean towels every day and he was always polite.

The beach was white and long. Great to walk along apart fro the beach boys trying to get you to buy/book activities. We chatted with them but they were undoubtedly a nuisance. Security was evident around the hotels but we did not see any issues whilst we were at PLR. the monkies are cheeky and adept at gaining entry to rooms and bags if you give them the slightest opening!! The sea was warm and safe.

We also booked a two night/three day safari to Tsavo East and Tsavo West with JT Safaries (Julius Nzumbi) staying at Ashnil in East and Kiliguli in West. This cost the two of us around £800 (excluding drinks) in total. We booked this all over the internet direct with Julius (jtsafaris@yahoo.com), paid a deposit in sterling and the balance in cash. You ca also book via your rep but Julius will look after you. Two very different parks and we were glad that we did both though arguably seeing animals in east is a lot easier than in West but the geography and topography in West is different and you get to see Kilimanjaro in the distance. Our driver, George, picked us up at 6.30am on the first day and returned us at about 5pm two days later and was just fantastic at giving us a first class experience. There is a lot of travelling involved, getting through Mombassa is a pain, but the safari is worth it. Ashnil is a relatively new lodge in East but very comfortable, excellent service, good food and no complaints from us. Kiliguli in West is just the best with Kilimanjaro in the distance, the water hole in front of the lodge, well appointed rooms. All of JT's safaris are tailored to your requirements, we went largely with his recommendations and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. George was a safe driver at all times but when the CB radio chatter indicated a particular animal (lion, cheetah, leopard) he didn't hang about and made sure that we had the best sighting opportunity possible. We tipped George well, he deserved it and our friends, who also booked with JT, experienced the same level of service from their driver, Sam.

This is one of the few holidays (>7 days) that I really did not want to end. It was totally relaxing and what I wanted from the holiday. Above all, the staff, without exception, were helpful and interested in our holiday experience. They wanted us to have a good time and we did.

The negatives for me were obviously the delayed start and the transfer time from Mombassa at the end of a long journey from London. Would it stop me from going back, no. Would it stop me from recommending PLR, no.

The positives are too many to list in summary, it was just an excellent holiday.

This was my first exposure to a true package holiday resort, and I think I'll know to pass in the future.
The hotel itself is lovely with a beautiful swimming pool and grounds. The beach is quite beautiful, too.
The monkeys here are very cheeky; one took a banana right out of my hands whilst another jumped on the table to grab parts of our meals. Clearly, someone's not really sticking to the "Do not feed the monkeys" policy.
The food was mediocre with most everything done on the cheap. Not to the point that it wasn't enjoyable, to the contrary, there was always a dish or two (mostly the local African dishes) which were pretty good. Drinks apart from beer seemed to be of the cheaper kind, too with wine coming from cartons and the fanta leaving a suspiciously orange mustache on kids faces...
What was quite disappointing was how forward the staff were in offering their company etc. My sister and I were traveling with my young son, so we knew we'd encounter the odd proposition, but this was bordering on serious nuisance. We expected this from the beachboys, but not from the staff. They were however friendly helpful all the same.
Rooms were lovely sized and very quiet (we stayed in garden view rooms and were able to enjoy a pretty quiet night's sleep even on New Year's Eve). They were quite damp which left everything smelling pretty musty.

All in all, it was an ok stay brought down by the propositioning - shame.

After spending 5 days in the Masai Mara my friend and I spent 12 nights at Papillon Lagoon Reef. The rooms, gardens, reception and dining areas are all wonderful and the people who work there are truly wonderful. They are so friendly and love to practise their English with you. It was my 40th Birthday on Christmas Day and I couldn't have found a better place to spend it. Christmas Eve was a truly magical evening with the pool area being converted into a wonderful dining area and a surprise visit from Santa Clause on a camel on Christmas morning around the pool was wonderful. I do hope that one day I can afford to return. The amount of effort that went into the food, keeping the hotel clean, maintaining the garden and pool area was absolutely amazing. Thank you to everyone for making my holiday so special.

I and my girlfriend stayed seven days at Papillon first time . After visiting some destinations we could mark Papillon as most relaxing place that we visited.
Food very delicious, efficient variety and so god taste.
Staff excellent and friendly.
Place very relaxing , pool large, monkeys made fun but we could respect them.
Rooms nice, clean but small negative note - hard mattress.
we return in future and recommend to others .