Top 10 Conservancies in Kenya

By Stuart Butler

Kenya is home to one of the most diverse and exciting collections of national parks and reserves in Africa. These government-protected areas have done much to safeguard Kenya’s extraordinary wildlife. But, with an estimated 70% of Kenya’s wildlife living outside of the protection of such areas, it was clear that something more had to be done if the wildlife was to flourish into the future. The answer was the conservancy.

Conservancies in Kenya

Put simply, a conservancy is a private or community-managed wildlife reserve, but the real meaning is more complex. First formed in the 1970s but not given official legal status until 2013, there are a few different kinds of wildlife conservancy in Kenya. Firstly, there are privately run ones that are often located on what were once private cattle ranches. The famed Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is a good example of a private conservancy. The second kind is a community conservancy, where local communities lease their land to safari-tourism and conservation groups. Members of local communities receive a monthly land-lease fee and the wildlife – and safari-goer – benefits from having a great swath of land to move across.

Travelers and Maasai looking at giraffe

There are also some conservancies that are a combination of both of the above. Whatever the model though, the advantages to humans and animals are clear. In the case of community conservancies, local communities benefit from a guaranteed monthly income through land-lease fees. While the lease fees don’t apply to conservancies based on private land, local communities receive financial benefits in other ways (which vary from conservancy to conservancy). Other advantages for communities include planned cattle grazing, health and education development projects, and the opportunity for paid work on the conservancies. The wildlife benefits through an increase in protected areas in which to live and breed, and safari-goers benefit from having exclusive access to what is probably one of the best safari experiences in the world.

Today there are more than 100 conservancies in Kenya, which together cover more than 60,000km²/23,000mi² of wilderness. So, how to pick the right conservancy for your safari? Well, our list of the top 10 conservancies in Kenya should help make that choice a little easier.

Sera Conservancy

Rhino in Sera Conservancy

The sunburned acacia scrublands of the far north of Kenya were once home to a thriving population of black rhino, but by the turn of the 20th century these had all been wiped out by poachers. Today though, the rhinos are back, having been recently reintroduced to the remote Sera Conservancy. The highlight of a visit to Sera is tracking rhinos on foot! Yes, you read that right. This is the only place in Kenya where you can do so.

Sera Tours

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

Buffalo on a grassy field in Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

This is the original Kenyan conservancy and probably the most famous. Lewa was once a large cattle ranch that was converted to wildlife conservation. It continues to lead the way in the conservancy field. The landscapes of Lewa, which are overlooked by Mt Kenya, are archetypal East Africa and the conservancy is home to all of the Big Five (lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant and rhino).

Lewa Tours

Nashulai Maasai Conservancy

Giraffes in Nashulai Maasai Conservancy

The first in a new breed of wildlife conservancy in Kenya, the award-winning Nashulai Maasai Conservancy safeguards a key parcel of wildlife-rich landscape fringing the Masai Mara National Reserve. Nashulai is the first conservancy to be created, governed and managed by the Maasai. Unusually, when the conservancy was created, the local people remained in their homes and on their land and were encouraged to live in harmony with the wildlife.

Visitors to Nashulai will find a strong focus on community activities and walking safaris, but there is plentiful wildlife as well. The somewhat bushy and wooded terrain is especially popular with elephant and buffalo, while the remote open plains in the west of the conservancy host the Loita wildebeest (as opposed to those that migrate into the Mara from the Serengeti), who come here in February and March to give birth. The variety of habitats here also makes this conservancy exceptionally good for bird watching, and specialist bird guides are available.

Ol Kinyei Conservancy

Lion yawning in Ol Kinyei Conservancy

Ol Kinyei was the first conservancy created in the Masai Mara region and is a partnership between Gamewatchers Safaris and Porini Camps, and local landowners. Over the years Ol Kinyei has won many awards thanks to its forward-looking attitude that combines wildlife conservation with community development. The rolling hills here have great concentrations of buffalo, giraffe and wildebeest, and there’s also a healthy lion population. You have to be a guest of a Porini camp to visit, but, unusually for a conservancy, it also caters for mid-range travelers.

Ol Kinyei Tours

Naboisho Conservancy

Safari vehicle and elephants in Naboisho Conservancy

Naboisho Conservancy, which covers more than 200km²/77mi², is one of the most celebrated of the Masai Mara–area conservancies. It’s known for having one of the densest populations of lions in Africa (as well as all the other cats). The landscape ranges from wide-open grasslands to light bush, both of which attract plenty of elephants. There are lots of activities on offer here, including walking and bush-camping safaris, that cannot be done in the nearby national reserve. Naboisho runs a highly regarded community-development program.

Naboisho Tours

Namunyak Conservancy

Workers feeding baby elephants at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in Namunyak Conservancy. Source: flickr.com/photos/robertmuckley/46163223195

Namunyak Conservancy covers a vast area of northern Kenya. The core focus of this Kenyan conservancy are the hot, elephant-filled scrublands north of Samburu National Reserve and the densely forested, jungle-like Matthews Range. Due to the way these mountains rise up out of the searing semi-desert, scientists have described them as ‘sky islands’.

Borana Conservancy

Horseback rider watching giraffes in Borana Conservancy

Borana is considered one of Kenya’s finest conservancies. What started as a private cattle ranch has grown into a successful 130km²/50mi² conservation area. It now teems with wildlife, including a substantial black rhino population and many elephants. The conservancy has a very impressive community-development angle supporting a number of education and health projects.

Borana Tours

Mara North Conservancy

Masai giraffes in front of the Oloololo Escarpment, Mara North Conservancy

This is Africa as you always imagined it. Much of the vast Mara North Conservancy, which curls around the northwest of the Masai Mara National Reserve, consists of gently rolling grasslands packed full with wildlife. The Mara River, site of the famed wildebeest river crossings, stakes out the conservancy’s western boundary, making this a natural place to go when the wildebeest flood in and out of Kenya.

Mara North Tours

Ol Pejeta Conservancy

White rhino in Ol Pejeta Conservancy

If you want to see the rarest large animal on Earth, then central Kenya’s superb Ol Pejeta is the place to come. The conservancy is home to the last two northern white rhinos on the planet. Unfortunately, both are female, which makes this creature functionally extinct. Ol Pejeta also contains the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary, which houses around 40 rescued chimps.

Ol Pejeta Tours

Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary

Impala in Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary

Encompassing forests, mountains, rivers and grasslands, the roughly 100km²/39mi² Taita Hills Wildlife Sanctuary lines up against the vast Tsavo West National Park and is a vital biodiversity hot spot. As well as classic game drives, there are dedicated bird-watching safaris and conservation programs that guests can join.

Taita Hills Tours

Conservancies Kenya Places To Visit in Africa

By Stuart Butler

Stuart is a travel writer and author of numerous Lonely Planet guidebooks, including 'Kenya', 'Rwanda' and 'Tanzania'.