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Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley
Kicheche Valley

Reviews of Kicheche Valley

Wildlife sightings and reviews

65 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Kicheche Valley and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa

Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in Jan-2019, 56 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Kicheche Valley.
Lion

100% success

Leopard

76% success

Cheetah

96% success

Wild dog

9% success

Giraffe

100% success

Wildebeest

100% success

Zebra

100% success

Buffalo

98% success

Spotted Hyena

96% success

Hippo

96% success

Elephant

95% success

Eland

94% success

Striped Hyena

9% success

Black Rhino

6% success

Aardvark

5% success

Pangolin

2% success

Showing 41-50 of 65
Duration
Arrival date
Mr V
Texas

"Kicheche Valley review"

1 night Arrived 30 Jan 2022
"Until this trip, Kicheche Valley was the only Kicheche property with which we were not familiar. This was also our first experience in the Naboisho Conservancy. Due to some late-occurring changes to our itinerary necessitated by airline schedule changes and revised COVID testing regulations, we had to extend our trip, which led to our adding a single night at Valley before returning to Nairobi. How I wish we could have had more time here!

Valley is the most posh of the Kicheche camps, but, still, it’s not over-the-top luxurious (which would not have been to our taste). To our delight, guest-manager Rachel (whom we had befriended at another camp on a previous trip) was at the helm, and she provided a generous and gracious welcome to all visitors in camp. At our request, she arranged for a quiet tent-side dinner for us on our last night in the bush.

Fortunately, Valley still has that Kicheche vibe that emphasizes wildlife viewing. And what viewing we had in our 24 hours here: a magnificent male leopard on our drive in; an afternoon drive with a pride of 18 lions and a celebrated female cheetah with 5 approximately one-month old cubs engaging in all sorts of antics; and a last morning drive with a lioness and 2 tiny cubs, a den of bat-eared foxes, and then, to cap it all off, the aforesaid celebrated cheetah mother embarking on a successful gazelle kill to keep her young family alive for one more day.

Our guide, Bernard, was very engaging and did a superlative job of positioning our vehicle for optimal photographic opportunities. We definitely would like to return to Kicheche Valley in the future for a longer stay." See all these reviews: 17n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

1 sighting

Cheetah

Multiple sightings

Eland

1 sighting

Giraffe

1 sighting

Leopard

1 sighting

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

1 sighting

Lucy & Richard
London

"Big cats and more"

3 nights Arrived 13 Jan 2022
"This lodge is untraditionally furnished - all pale furniture and floors, public space a bit limited, but very comfortable.

I was struck, as I was elsewhere on this (just) post-Covid trip, by just how calm and pragmatic and sensible everyone working in the camp was and how pleased they were to see us after a couple of hard years - it was a great relief and comfort coming from Europe. Minnie in particular who managed it had a lovely sense of humour as well and that filtered down to the staff.

Food, as elsewhere on this trip was excellent.

Guiding was really good - Kicheche is at the junction of three different prides' territories and one dominant male lion had been taken down by rivals from another pride the night before we arrived and the fallout 'politics' were really interesting. This is spectacular big cat territory - lots of sightings of leopards and cheetahs as well as dozens of lions - including many cubs of different ages - and the guide knew where to find them.

We also saw (practically) every sort of gazelle, elephants, hippos, birds, hyenas, sunsets, sunrises. The land was parched after a long drought, and it began to rain on our last day which didn't diminish the game drive - they provided huge lined cagoules and by the following morning green shoots were appearing." See all these reviews: 14n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

Black Rhino

1 sighting

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Cheetah

Multiple sightings

Eland

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Leopard

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Ms D
Ireland

"Kicheche Valley review, my favourite camp on this trip "

5 nights Arrived 31 Dec 2021
"A very pleasant and professional welcome by Manager Minnie! Joyce as front of house is a joy. The tents are very spacious and comfortable. I loved the location of the camp with permanent wildlife around it.

What really made my experience memorable at Kicheche Valley was the outstanding guiding by Mika. Extremely knowledgeable, he listens and observes every details in the bush and proves to be very skillful at spotting all sorts of wildlife. He is modest when saying he can identify "a few birds", I would call him an expert!

Having our bush breakfasts in the vehicle while observing a cheetah and her 2 cubs was delightful.

I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of my stay!" See all these reviews: 13n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Cheetah

6 sightings

Eland

10 sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

10 sightings

Leopard

1 sighting

Lion

10 sightings

Spotted Hyena

10 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Miss G.
Newark

"Kicheche Valley review"

3 nights Arrived 28 Dec 2021
"We had an amazing time at KV. We received a lovely welcome from Minnie and her team who are extremely friendly, accommodating and attentive. It was nice to have female staff in the camp. Minnie was always on hand to help with any questions and went the extra mile and helped us book our Covid tests in Nairobi.

Its very exciting that the camp is totally unfenced and one night a giraffe was killed by a pride of lion within sight of our tent.

The room was very spacious, clean and comfortable.

The food was good and plentiful and it was nice to eat looking out over the valley. The portable fires were a nice touch.

As we have come to expect at a Kicheche camp the drives were top notch and the guide was excellent. Bernard was extremely knowledgeable, easy to spend time with and was very considerate and tried really hard to make sure we saw the animals we wanted. He was very reassuring when the animals got close and was conscious to make sure everyone felt safe and comfortable. Its nice that he was from the local area and was happy to share his life experiences. Bernard is a great photographer and gave us some good tips.

The night drive was excellent with a lovely clear sky and very bright stars. Within the space of half an hr we saw lions eating a kill, bush babies and an AARDVARK! It has been wishfully put on our 'to see list' but we didn't really expect it to happen (neither did Bernard). It was a great experience and we got to spend quite a bit of time following him as he went about his evening forage.

The bush walk was surreal when you consider what animals could be lurking nearby. We felt very safe with Bernard and the ranger and thoroughly enjoyed seeing things that might be missed from a jeep.

The trip to the local village was a very interesting experience and it was very nice to be able to buy a few of the handmade gifts. Mark who showed us around his village was very friendly and let us have a go to try to make fire. It was a lot harder than it looks. There was no hard selling and all the price negotiation was done through Mark.

We would 1000% return to KV." See all these reviews: 11n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Aardvark

1 sighting

Buffalo

7 sightings

Cheetah

5 sightings

Eland

10 sightings

Elephant

7 sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

6 sightings

Lion

10 sightings

Spotted Hyena

10 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Lola
Canada

"Kicheche Valley review"

4 nights Arrived 10 Nov 2021
"Fabulous camp in Naboisho, which for me is the most beautiful of the 3 conservancies I regularly visit.

Game is not always as prolific as with Olare and Mara North, but we had great cheetah sightings, good lion and some wonderful elegies at sunset, so no complaints.

The conservancy was in dire need of rain." See all these reviews: 12n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Cheetah

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Leopard

1 sighting

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Mrs. K
Minnesota

"Kicheche Valley review"

1 night Arrived 16 Aug 2021
"We visited Kicheche Valley a bit unintentially. We were originally booked for 3 nights at Kicheche Bush, but due to rescheduling our whole trip from 2020 to 2021 due to covid, we ended up with 1 night at Kicheche Valley. This is a more upgraded camp than Kicheche Bush. If you're looking for more amenities, this camp is excellent!

Our host was phenomenal and kind. She was sweet enough to offer me a free massage as a treat for my husband and I being on our honeymoon. That was a nice suprise! She also set up a little private romantic dinner for just my husband and I. I really felt like our host and this camp went the extra mile to make a romantic experience for my husband and I while we were there.

The rooms here were lovely and comfortable, and we had a phenomonal view. The food was delicious too of course.

We highly recommend staying here, and we hope to be able to do so for a longer period of time in the future." See all these reviews: 7n in Tanzania; 5n in Zanzibar; 5n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Cheetah

1 sighting

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Ms H
Maida Vale

"Kicheche Valley review"

25 nights Arrived 23 Feb 2021
"Another wonderful camp from the Kicheche family. Fabulous staff who couldn’t do enough for me. Great wildlife sightings including from the deck of my room." See all these reviews: 56n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Dr W & Dr D
Leeds

"Kicheche Valley Camp - our first visit"

4 nights Arrived 14 Feb 2020
"This was our first visit to Valley Camp and we were not disappointed. The tents were large with a beautiful view across the valley. As with all Kicheche camps, the service and food were excellent.

We enjoyed the night drive which doesn't happen at the other camps." See all these reviews: 15n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

2 sightings

Cheetah

10 sightings

Eland

10 sightings

Elephant

4 sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

2 sightings

Lion

10 sightings

Spotted Hyena

10 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Mr M.
Montreal

"Kicheche Valley Camp"

3 nights Arrived 24 Jan 2020
"I had an excellent Safari experience at the Valley Camp. The facilities are great and the camp staff were very friendly and helpful. The game drives were very productive with a good variety of sightings including very interesting Leopard, Cheetah and Lion sightings." See all these reviews: 11n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs LN
London

" Lovely Kicheche Valley"

3 nights Arrived 9 Jan 2020
"The Mara was suffering from unseasonable rain which meant the plains animals were plentiful in Naibosho. This meant the grass was short which made spotting animals easier. In the Valley the roar of lions, cries of hyenas and other small animals were heard most nights not to mention the thundering footsteps of a herd of zebra stampeding through. Wonderful!

The camp is unfenced so you are escorted by guards in the evening and early morning. One of the guards found a lion dozing between two of the tents on his early rounds and encouraged him to leave!

The camp tents have recently been replaced. We thought the tents were lovely although there are a few finishing touches that are still going on. A lot of the tents have hyrax in and around them which are entertaining.

Our driver, Benjy, was a knowledgeable, kind guide and a great driver. He was aware of where to place the vehicle for the best photographs. The morning drive began early and usually lasted until 11-12 The evening drive began at 3:30 and back at camp by 7.

Coffee/tea/snacks were provided for pre-drive. Packed breakfast was tasty and varied. Lunch and evening meals were served with all guests at a shared, hosted table. For lunch there was usually a served first course, a delicious salad buffet and then dessert. Dinner was a 3 course plated meal with no choice unless you were a vegetarian or had special requirements. The evening food was tasty but not refined and it would not take much to change this.

We did not take part in any of any of the other activities. We know others enjoyed the walk. The night game drive takes place after dinner which is unusual in our experience and a great idea but ours was, unfortunately, rained off.

The staff were lovely and went our of their way to help with any problems and questions. Andy was a wonderful host.

There was a mix of people: honeymooners, visitors who were new to safaris, experienced travellers, solo travellers and returning clients

We would gladly return!" See all these reviews: 13n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

4 sightings

Cheetah

4 sightings

Eland

10 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

10 sightings

Leopard

1 sighting

Lion

10 sightings

Spotted Hyena

10 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Showing 41-50 of 65
99%
65 reviews of Kicheche Valley by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
61
4
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0
0
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