Tsavo East is huge with vast open landscapes. There are far fewer tourists here than in some other more popular reserves in Kenya, so it feels far wilder. Tsavo East is famous for its big herds of dusty red elephants, which make for iconic photographs, especially at dawn and dusk. Lodges tend to have their own waterholes and these prove very popular with the elephants. Predators are present, though with fewer game vehicles in radio contact with each other it makes sightings much harder. However, the advantage is if you do find big cats, you may have the sighting to yourself without being jostled by other vehicles. During our three-day visit we saw cheetah and lion – and our first ever striped hyena.