Private Wilderness

By air, almost always. Scheduled flights leave Nairobi's Wilson airport for Lewa Downs airstrip inside the conservancy, around forty five minutes to an hour depending on whether the aircraft calls anywhere on the way, and the drive from the strip to the cottages above the Marania valley is short. A private charter, usually a Cessna Caravan or a Pilatus PC-12, flies direct and lands to your own timing.

The light aircraft take soft bags only, fifteen kilograms a person including hand luggage and camera equipment. Driving up from Nairobi takes roughly five to six hours if you would rather watch the country change on the way.

Yes. Private Wilderness is five thatched cottages kept for one party of up to ten at a time, so there are no other guests to work around: no fixed mealtimes you did not choose, no shared vehicle, and no waiting for someone else's plans before the day starts.

That suits a family travelling together, or two or three couples, better than it suits a single pair, and it changes how the days run rather than simply giving you more space. Tell us the shape of the party when you enquire and we will say honestly whether taking the whole place makes sense for that number.

Rhino and Grevy's zebra above all. Lewa is one of Kenya's flagship rhino sanctuaries, holding both black and white rhino, and it protects the largest single population of the endangered Grevy's zebra anywhere, a species you will not reliably see in the Mara or further south. Elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog and reticulated giraffe are all here too.

It is also a working conservancy rather than a park, which is why walking, night drives and going off the track are all possible here and are not permitted inside a national reserve.

Yes, though it sits higher and drier than the classic safari country further south. TravelHealthPro, the UK's official travel health service, rates Kenya high risk and recommends antimalarial tablets for it, setting apart only central Nairobi and the highlands above 2,500 metres; the American CDC records transmission in all areas below 2,500 metres, game reserves included. Lewa's ground runs roughly from 1,370 to about 2,000 metres, so most of it sits below that line rather than above it.

We do not give medical advice. We are travel planners rather than doctors, so the choice of tablets, and whether they suit everyone in the party, belongs in a conversation between you and your own doctor or a travel clinic. What we can be useful on is the non-medical part: cover up once the light goes, and carry repellent.

Semi arid highland: warm to hot days, cool nights, and mornings that catch people out. Days typically run twenty five to thirty degrees, nights can fall to around ten, and the wind on an early drive makes it feel colder still. The driest and easiest months for game are June to October and January to February; the long rains fall around March to May and the short rains around November, greener and better for birds but with softer tracks.

Bring layers, long trousers, a warm jacket for the evenings and a hat, and keep to the fifteen kilogram soft bag limit on the flight in.