Elewana Sky Safari: Kenya 10-Day

Arrive Nairobi, Kenya 

There’s no other capital quite like Nairobi…a city where giraffe and zebra roam right in the city limits. The hubbub can seem overwhelming, but we’ll ease your arrival, fast-tracking you from airport to Hemingways, an enclave of sophisticated calm.

This five-star all-suite retreat sits at the foot of the Ngong Hills, in extensive bird-flittered gardens; it’s the perfect spot for sinking into holiday mode, enjoying a delicious dinner, toasting the start of your SkySafari with a cocktail or two.

1 night: Hemingways, Nairobi

• Tranquil retreat, perfectly placed on the edge of the city  
• Elegant plantation-style rooms with far-reaching views
• Dedicated butlers, to ensure everything is just as you like it
• Relaxing gardens, pool and spa
• Exquisite dining options, including the classy Hemingways Bar 

Amboseli is Africa at its most iconic. This vastness of open plains, swampland, thorn bush and fever trees unfurls below snow-capped Kilimanjaro, the world’s highest free-standing peak and an unrivalled safari backdrop.

And what a safari: part of a two million acre ecosystem, crossing from Kenya into Tanzania, Amboseli is one of the best wildlife-viewing locations around. Most notable are its 100-strong herds of elephants – including big old tuskers – but there’s an abundance of other species too, from buffalo and hyena to lion and cheetah as well as over 600 types of birds.

The opulent thatched tents of Elewana Tortilis Camp, your Amboseli base, nestle in a private conservancy, gazing across at Kilimanjaro. An ecotourism award- winner, Tortilis delivers high comfort with a low environmental impact. It also employs some of the best guides in the business, who will reveal both Amboseli’s star attractions and its minute, magical details.

Set your alarm to early for the morning game drives. This is when the plains stir, the animals are most active, the big cats are returning from a night of hunting. These are also the golden hours for photographers, as dawn light rose-tints the savannah and Kilimanjaro is most likely to be free of cloud. A lavish breakfast, devoured out in the bush, more than makes up for the early start.

Your days don’t end there. Head out on afternoon drives for more encounters – maybe elephants up- close, giraffes drinking at the waterholes and raptors swooping above. Or stride out on a walking safari for a fresh and exhilarating perspective: follow animal tracks, taste bush herbs, meet the Small Five and be amazed by the antics of insects, while completely (but safely) exposed to the bush.

As the day draws to a close, raise a classic African Sundowner: nothing says safari like an ice-cool G&T, sipped as the sun disappears.

2 nights: Tortilis Camp Amboseli

• The finest views of Kilimanjaro, away from the crowds
• Best-of-both location in an exclusive conservancy, on the edge of Amboseli National Park
• Jaw-dropping wildlife encounters, including huge elephant herds
• Game walks, bush breakfasts and off-road game drives
• Luxurious camp with a Gold Eco-rating and community-conservation focus

Great game, good looks, high adventure, an exclusive feel and a groundbreaking attitude to conservation make the Loisaba Conservancy one of the most exciting destinations in Kenya. Sitting within Northern Laikipia, it’s a ravishing landscape of rolling river valleys, rich forests and open plains, home to the Big Five, endangered rarities like wild dog and more than 260 species of birds.

As the wildlife is varied here, so are your options for getting out among it. The contemporary-luxe Elewana Loisaba Tented Camp – perched on an escarpment, with unhindered views to Mt Kenya – offers excellent game drives, of course. But you can also ride through the bush on horse-back – a thrilling way to get unusually close to wild animals. Or you could bound down the ridges and take a sunset trek by camel.

Or witness Loisaba’s cutting-edge conservation first- hand. Visit the conservancy headquarters to see the extraordinary work being done here and meet the sniffer dogs and the anti-poaching team to find out how they safeguard the wilderness.

For the ultimate unwind, sink into the camp’s infinity pool before a very special night’s sleep... Roll a four- poster Elewana Starbed out onto your decking and drift off to the tweets, snaps, howls and bellows of the bush, with nothing between you and the galaxies above.

3 nights: Loisaba Tented Camp

• Set on one of Kenya’s most cutting-edge wildlife conservancies
• Remarkable animal encounters – from the Big Five to rare wild dog
• Spacious tents set on the edge of an escarpment
• Diverse activities, from camel treks to bush walks and mountain biking
• Spectacular wilderness of rolling hills, river valleys and open plains

Optional: 1 night: Loisaba Star Beds (replaces one night at Loisaba Tented Camp)

• Set on one of Kenya’s most cutting-edge wildlife conservancies
• Magical four-poster beds that can be wheeled out for nights under the stars
• Remarkable animal encounters – from the Big Five to rare wild dog
• Diverse activities, from camel treks to bush walks and mountain biking
• Spectacular wilderness of rolling hills, river valleys and open plains

Nowhere in Africa is wildlife more abundant than the magnificent Masai Mara. Creatures galore roam these sweeping, acacia-dotted plains. And while the seasonal migration of two million wildebeest, zebra and gazelle crossing from the Serengeti is one of Mother Nature’s greatest spectacles, the profusion of wildlife here – from 450 species of bird to the Big Five – makes it one of the best safari spots year round.

The Mara will never disappoint. The animal encounters – often so close you hardly dare breathe – are just too good. But at Elewana Sand River Masai Mara, it goes above and beyond. You’ll feel a little bit movie star at this opulent 1920s-style camp, with its dark wood, draped four-posters and antique furnishings adding bygone glamour to the bush.

Even better is the camp’s location, on the banks of the serene Sand River: you might spot herds of ungulates crossing from the comfort of your own verandah. Head further afield, in the camp’s custom-designed 4WDs, with expert Maasai guides, to look for roaming elephants and lions on the hunt. Then return to base for the most dazzling of endings: a private table, set up in the wilderness, for dinner under the stars.

3 nights: Sand River Masai Mara

• Right on the route of the Great Migration
• Lavish 1920s style camp – movie-star glamour in the bush
• Exquisite tented suites, where wildlife can be spotted right from the veranda
• Exclusive location, tucked away from other lodges in the Masai Mara
• An abundance of game year-round

Relax over breakfast before jetting back to Nairobi, where cocktails at Hemingways await – whether you’re about to fly home or continue your journey, you’ll want to toast this sublime Kenyan adventure.

Look out for breakfasting beasts and birds while driving back to the airstrip for your final SkySafari flight to Nairobi.

Rather than hang around the airport, we’ll deliver you to the tranquility of Hemingways, where you can freshen up in a day room and enjoy that last ice-cold Tusker before flying home.