andBeyond - Ngorongoro Crater Lodge – Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania
Located deep inside the heart of Masai land, the colour palette played a huge role along with the fantastic views of this World Heritage site.
THE BRIEF
In 1995, we were part of a team that partnered with Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens to reimagine the iconic Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. The lodge, built in the 1920’s, had become outdated and hadn’t kept up with the needs of the modern luxury adventure traveller. Our brief was primarily to focus on the interior design in partnership with the architects.
THE INSPIRATION
The design was centred around a fictional European Explorer who travelled the African continent with a caravan full of European finery and trinkets which would then adorn a traditional Masai inspired Manyatta. The space was to be raw on the outside and luxurious on the inside. For this project, we coined the term “Masai Versailles”.
Located deep inside the heart of Masai land, the colour palette played a huge role along with the fantastic views of this World Heritage site. Zanzibar carvings also played a role in bringing together this rather eclectic and exciting mix of styles and textures.
THE RESULT
The result is a multi-award winning project that changed the face of safaris in East Africa. Twenty years later, she still commands her position as an iconic East African property.
