Travel reviews by Ryan & Carly from Edmonton

"Lewa Safari Camp was an incredible experience. The manager, Kieth, coordinated an unforgettable three nights for my wife and I in the Lewa Conservancy. Our stay was coordinated to perfection, with many minor and simple touches that made our stay exceptional. We were always greeted after game drives with a warm or cold towel. A bush breakfast was arranged for the entire camp at a beautiful location in the bush with chefs cooking the food in front of you, as well as breakfasts packed to go for the two of us. “Sundowners” were arranged for us nightly, including beer/wine, soft drinks and snacks. We were brought coffee and cookies in the morning before our game drives.

Wilson, our guide for our stay, met us at the airstrip with cold beverages and some snacks, which were much needed after a bumpy ride from Nairobi. We can’t say enough about Wilson, he was informative, kind, welcoming and was a master at finding wildlife. Wilson always seemed engaged and it was easy to tell how passionate he was about the animals. Wilson never seemed in a rush, with our game drives averaging three - four hours. Wilson was always willing to stay out a little later if we found some animals we wanted to see. Wilson always made sure we had snacks on the drive, blankets and binoculars if needed. Wilson facilitated some unbelievable experiences, including time with numerous animals where it was just us and the animals, no other humans or vehicles in sight.

Wildlife was plentiful, seeing lions, lionesses, many rhinos, elephants, giraffes and much more. The only other safari experience we’ve had was in the Maasai Mara. There wasn’t as much volume of wildlife in Lewa Conservancy compared to the Mara, however, we still saw a great deal, and made it that much more special when we found an animal and were able to spend as much time as we wanted with no other people or vehicles within sight.

The camp itself was incredible, beautiful tents in the bush. Our room was kept up to the highest standard. Our server, Andrew, always provided top notch service. The bartender, John, was always ready to pour us a drink and have a chat. All staff were incredibly friendly, including all the above as well as Ruth, always willing to chat about how your day was going. The food was some of the best dining we’ve experienced, with the chefs checking in with you nightly. If we had one recommendation, not at all a criticism, would be to have a few more traditional Kenyan dishes as options on the menu for tourists like us to try and sample some dishes of the area. I would also highly recommend getting a massage at the spa if you have a chance, best massage I have ever gotten!

Overall we had an unbelievable positively experience at Lewa and couldn’t recommend this camp enough. Thank you Lewa for an amazing safari adventure!"

"Ilkeliani Camp was an overall amazing experience! The manager, Eric, coordinated a 4 night stay with us that was in our opinion, the epitome of service. From the moment we arrived we were provided a detailed overview of the camp and all the services they provide. The camp itself has a beautiful observation deck, where we saw giraffes multiple times across the river. The camp also has a swimming pool, campfire pit/lower observation deck, and a very large and comfortable lounge/lobby area. Our tent was luxurious, having everything we need and more, along with views across the river to the Maasai Mara Reserve.

The staff at the camp were incredible to say the least. Our waiter, Molindo (John) provided us with top notch service during our meals, always making sure we were taken care of to the highest standard. Our housekeeper, Robin, kept our room immaculate, always asking if we needed anything above and beyond the high standard he was maintaining. Other staff including Mercy and Natasha, always took time out of their duties to have a conversation with us and shared about their lives, which we truly appreciated. We even got the opportunity to get to know our night time security, Lasiamon (Tom), who was assigned to our tent at night to keep the many animals away. Getting to know Tom was a pleasure as well and we appreciated the work he and the other night Maasai did which would often go unnoticed.

The manager, Eric, took the time out of his duties to escort us to the local Maasai Village (highly recommend if you have the chance). The food was absolutely amazing, with the chefs checking in with us every meal. On our last night, the staff sang and danced and made a cake just for us saying “welcome back again” for a future visit. Our only recommendation, and definitely not a criticism, would be to have a few options for some local traditional dishes to be served on the menu. Overall, the staff made this camp above and beyond what we could have ever expected in terms of luxury and service.

Our game drives were incredible. Our driver, Jemlik (spelling?) was a master at finding an enormous amount of wildlife. We saw plenty of lions/lionesses, elephants, giraffes, buffalo, and even a few cheetahs, among a ton of other animals every where you looked. The amount of wildlife is enormous within the Maasai Mara reserve. The only other place we can compare it too is the Lewa Conservancy in the Laikipia region where the wildlife wasn’t as plentiful (still saw an incredible amount in the conservancy as well). That being said, there was many more safari jeeps in the Maasai Mara compared to the conservancy, so it doesn’t feel as private of an experience. We also felt like the game drives were a little more time oriented (ex. Once 6:30pm hit we felt like we were rushing back to camp) compared to our drives at the Lewa Safari Camp. Jemlik arranged a breakfast in the bush for us, as well a sundowner (evening drinks and snacks watching the sunset in the bush). We were in awe of the amount of wildlife we saw and what we call the “national geographic” documentaries playing out right in front of our eyes. Lastly, if you have a chance and can bend the budget to include a hot air balloon ride, it was worth every penny and we had an amazing experience!

Overall we had an unbelievable positively experience at Ilkeliani and couldn’t recommend this camp enough. Thank you to everyone at this camp for an amazing safari adventure!"