Your hosts
The family behind Nguge Hills, who turned a degraded hillside into a living forest and a lodge that funds it.
Our story
A forest worth coming back to.
Nguge Hills Lodge & Wellness Retreat exists to restore the land around it, for the community and the wildlife that depend on it.
How it started
We asked our neighbours first.
Before a single cottage went up, we sat down with the communities around Nguge. They told us about the forest that was disappearing, the valleys that flooded in the rains, and the monkeys raiding crops because their habitat was gone.
So the lodge was designed around one commitment: to preserve and restore the local ecosystem for the benefit of the community and the wildlife. Twenty-five acres of degraded rainforest became the lodge, and every stay pays for the work of bringing it back.
Today we are an Ecosystem Restoration Community, track our progress on the Restor platform, and welcome volunteers in forestry, herbal medicine, regenerative farming, renewable energy and teaching.
Three pillars
What your stay supports.
Ecosystem restoration
Reforestation with indigenous species, an on-site tree nursery, seed balls from Seedballs Kenya, erosion control and food forests that give monkeys a home away from village farms.
Education & empowerment
Support that keeps young people in school and away from early marriage, support to the local school soccer team and climate lessons for local stakeholders.
Livelihoods
Permanent and seasonal jobs at the lodge, market access for women and youth artisans, and a menu that buys from local farmers first.
Sustainability, in numbers
Progress on the hill.
- 2016Tree planting begins on the degraded 25-acre site, with a rule of five trees planted for every tree cut.
- 2022More than 5,000 trees planted and 2 acres fully restored. Nguge Hills joins Ecosystem Restoration Communities.
- Today6.8 hectares under active restoration. The lodge is fully off-grid on solar, cooks on LPG and sources food from zero kilometres.
- 2032Our goal: 300 acres restored across the Nguge Sublocation landscape with our neighbours.
How we run the lodge
- 100% solar power, energy-saving bulbs throughout.
- LPG cooking instead of firewood or charcoal.
- Separated waste bins across the grounds and a no-plastic policy.
- Farm-to-fork menus from the lodge garden and nearby farms.
- Every team member trained in sustainability practices.
- Tree species chosen for shelter, food, medicine and harmony with native vegetation.
The people
Meet the team.
Almost everyone who looks after you grew up within a few kilometres of the lodge.
Kitchen team
Cooks Western Kenya classics and farm-to-fork plates from what the garden and neighbours harvested that morning.
Guides
Trained in rope-access safety and raised in Gem, they run the zipline and know every bird call on the hill.
Plan your visit
Come for the zipline. Stay for the silence.
Tell us your dates and who is coming. Our reservations team replies within 24 hours by email or WhatsApp.