Wilderness In The City Experience
A Magical Kenya signature Experience By the Nairobi Tented Camp
Enjoy an eco-safari experience under canvas right in the capital city, at the Nairobi National Park, Kenya’s oldest park.
For those who only have a day or two to spare, an eco-safari under canvas right in the capital city is the way to go. Enjoy viewing wildlife, including 4 of the Big Five and often with the city skyline as a backdrop capturing a ‘bucket list shot’…the only place in the world to get this!
All this and so much more is only 7kms from the city centre, a few minutes away from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and Wilson Airport at Nairobi National Park. The Nairobi Tented Camp is the only camp within the Nairobi National Park set in an indigenous forest along a stream and hosted with warm Kenyan hospitality.
In our busy and non-stop lives with endless ‘noise’ and interruptions the luxury of being surrounded by nature is a recharge for our souls. The ideal location to reconnect with family and friends, sitting around a camp fire listening to the sounds from the wildlife in the indigenous forest and sipping on your favorite sundowner drink…all within the capital city!
Game drives
Your day in Nairobi Tented Camp starts with a freshly brewed hot drink bought to your tent before setting off for that famous safari tradition – an early morning game drive. Be lucky enough to catch the first rays of early morning sun as they burn off the nightly dusting of dew and stir the plains game gently to life.
After a morning filled with sightings of giraffe, buffalo, zebra, eland, impala and other antelopes, and an excellent chance of seeing rhino (both black rhino and white rhino are present in the park) as well as lion and if you very lucky, the elusive leopard, you return to camp for more warming cups of coffee, freshly baked breads and a hearty cooked breakfast.
All meals are carefully crafted to complement bush living without sacrificing on quality and you can relax after your three-course lunch in a swaying hammock under the shade of an olive tree.
As the day cools and the sun starts its journey West it will be time for another game drive – a chance to catch that evasive moment where a lion might decide it’s time to hunt. Return to camp to drinks and stories around the campfire, before dinner under the vast African starlit sky and ultimately retire to bed.
Staying at Nairobi Tented Camp offers more than just camping : Nairobi Tented Camp has plenty of its own attractions and part of the joy of the place is just enjoying the seclusion of the wilderness. But of course its unique location offers a whole host of things to do during your stay, such as the following:
DAVID SHELDRICK ELEPHANT ORPHANAGE – (must be pre- booked and is subject to availability )
The saying goes – ‘an elephant never forgets’ and this couldn’t be truer, particularly for the baby elephants that are fortunate enough to be rescued by the team at the Sheldrick Trust. So intense is an elephant’s upbringing that even when re-released into the wild the Sheldrick elephants never forget their keepers. Whilst staying at the Nairobi tented camp you can visit the orphaned elephants at Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and watch their keepers feed and interact with them. This is an incredibly inspiring and moving experience and is highly recommended for anyone that has the time. The orphanage here, is the world’s most successful orphan elephant rescue and rehabilitation programme and the life-saving conservation work they carry out is incredible. At the 11:00 am viewing visitors can watch the babies enjoy their midday mud bath and milk feed, tumbling over each other in the red earth or playing football with their friends!
AFEW GIRAFFE CENTRE
In 1974 Jock and Betty Leslie Melville adopted their first giraffe – Daisy. After Daisy came Marlon and before they knew it the Leslie Melville’s were single handedly contributing to the rescue of the rare Rothschild giraffe. Today their legacy remains in the form of the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife an education and breeding programme. In 1974 less than 100 Rothschild giraffe remained, today over 700 are in existence… eight of which can be visited at the giraffe centre in Langata. At the Giraffe Centre, visitors can get extremely up close and personal to the world’s tallest species! Up on the feeding platform the giraffes love to interact with visitors, reaching out with their long, inquisitive tongues in hope of a treat. Seeing their mascara-like eyelashes from just inches away, feeling the roughness of their dark tongues and witnessing their different personalities is fascinating.
KAREN BLIXEN MUSEUM
The story of Karen Blixen has been made famous by her book ‘Out of Africa’ which was later turned into a film featuring Robert Redford and Meryl Streep. The Karen district of Nairobi was named after this resolute woman and her house stands as a reminder of her incredible belief in Kenya and determination to make her life in Africa a success. A Step back in time at the Karen Blixen Museum offers a glimpse into Kenya’s history. The museum provides guided tours of the house and beautifully serene grounds and gives you a sense of the style of Karen Blixen’s home with a number of original pieces of furniture still in place. There is a small gift shop and stunning views over the Ngong Hills. This visit is short, but worth it!
NATIONAL MUSEUM
The Kenya National Museum was set up in colonial times by the famous palaeontologist Louis Leakey. It showcases many of the discoveries regarding human origins made by the Leakey family and their Kenyan helpers in many parts of the country where fossil remains may be found. The museum also has in its collections many artefacts garnered from Kenya’s diverse peoples and the beautiful paintings of them by Joy Adamson of “Born Free” fame. The museum alos contains a fabulous and extensive collection of stuffed birds, so worth a visit for any budding ornithologists.
BOMAS OF KENYA
Bomas of Kenya offers a small-scale glimpse of the entire country and emphasizes the wonderful diversity of culture, lifestyles, crafts, music and dancing found across the many tribes throughout the nation. There are model villages showcasing different styles of traditional African homes, as well as cultural artefacts and information about the way of life of different tribes. An enchanting traditional dance and acrobatic show takes place here from 02:30 pm to 04:00 pm every weekday and from 03:30 pm to 05:15 pm on weekends and public holidays.
KAZURI BEADS
Kazuri Beads in Karen was set up by Lady Susan Wood, the wife of the founder of the Flying Doctors of Africa. A pottery, it is a great place to buy attractive ceramic beads and crockery as gifts to take home. Visitors can also enjoy a tour round the workshop and see all the woman at work.
MARULA STUDIOS
Marula Studios was recently set up by Julie Church to showcase her incredible array of household accessories made from flip-flops washed up on the beach in the Kiunga Marine National Park on the North Kenya Coast. A part of the sales revenue is sent back to support Community Conservation projects in this beautiful but poor part of the country. It is a great place to buy unique, hand-made gifts (which supports Marine Conservation) and also now houses some other great gift items such Bakuli Blu pottery.
UTAMADUNI
Utamaduni was set up to support local craftsmen by giving them a place to show and sell their hand-made artefacts such as carvings, kikois, khangas, shoes, sandals and other gift items, which are unique to Kenya. You can find almost anything in this warren of little shops, whilst for those a little less retail focused the Veranda restaurant next door, serves perfect ice cold passion juice and good Kenya coffee.
It is the first accommodation of any sort to be allowed in this unique safari destination. There isn’t anywhere else in the world like it; a wilderness escape where you can savour the thrill of camping in the heart of thick bushland right on the doorstep of Nairobi.
