Arrival to Nairobi

Welcome to Kenya! You will be met at your gate upon arrival, and assisted through immigration and with your luggage, and connect you with your private transfer to your hotel.

Get checked in and settled at your lodgings. Meals will be on your own for today and can be arranged directly with the hotel.

Overnight: Fairmont – the Norfolk

Touring in Nairobi

Today will be an opportunity to visit some of Nairobi’s most beloved highlights!

9:30 AM After breakfast at the hotel, meet in the lobby and head out to visit the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (SWT) to see their orphaned elephants. Born from one family’s passion for Kenya and its wilderness, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is the most successful orphan-elephant rescue and rehabilitation program in the world and one of the pioneering conservation organizations for wildlife and habitat protection in East Africa. To date, the SWT has successfully hand-raised over 150 infant elephants and has accomplished its long-term conservation priority by effectively reintegrating orphans back into the wild herds of Tsavo National Park.

Enjoy watching the young elephant orphans feed and play under the careful eye of their keepers, who stay with them until they are once again ready to be released into the wild.

Afterwards, we’ll make a stop at the workshop of Kazuri Beads, which has offered regular employment to local Kenyan artisans since its founding in 1975. Kazuri, which means “small and beautiful” in Swahili, was founded by two single mothers as a tiny workshop experimenting in handcrafted ceramic beads and has grown tremendously since then! Kazuri now employs over 340 skilled women to create unique, wearable works of art.

1:45 PM Visit Tin Roof Cafe for lunch.

Continue onwards to visit the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife in Kenya, also known as the Giraffe Centre. Founded in 1979 to save the endangered Rothschild giraffe, the Giraffe Centre offers a unique opportunity to support their work through your visit and to view these playful animals up close!

After an hour or so, transfer back to your hotel.

4:45 PM Return to your hotel in the late afternoon. You will have the evening free tonight.

Overnight: Norfolk Hotel

Conference with Teenseed Leadership

Today, meet with Winny Obure, Director of Teenseed, as well as other members of their team. You will have a conference room reserved from 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM, with a catered lunch onsite at 12:30 PM.

6:00 PM Tonight, share a celebratory welcome dinner together with members of Thistle Farms and the Isabel Allende Foundation.

Overnight: Norfolk Hotel

Site Visit to Teenseed Headquarters, Kiambiu Informal Settlement

9:15 AM After breakfast, transfer via private vehicles to Kiambiu Informal Settlement, where you will spend the morning with Winny and members of Teenseed. Today will be an opportunity to explore their important work with local teens firsthand.

2:00 PM In the afternoon, return to your hotel via private minibus transfer. Dinner is available at the hotel’s onsite restaurant, or the concierge can assist you with offsite dining arrangements.

Overnight: Norfolk Hotel

Visit to Kisumu – Port Victoria – Return to Nairobi

Today, Thistle Farms’ team, Winny, and Lucy will depart early for a flight to Kisumu. Upon arrival, drive to Port Victoria, about 2.5 hours away. You’ll have the use of a private vehicle for the day.

Return to the airport by 5:45 PM to connect back to Wilson airport in Nairobi. Transfer to your hotel, where dinner is available at the onsite restaurant.

Overnight: Norfolk Hotel

Charter Flight to Laikipia

8:15 AM: After an early breakfast, you will be transferred to Wilson Airport for your charter flight to Laikipia. You will be met upon arrival and transferred to El Karama Lodge via a game drive through Ol Pejeta Conservancy, where you are bound to see some impressive wildlife right away!

Please note that there are strict luggage restrictions on each of your domestic flights – the airline permits only 15 kgs / 3o lbs. per person inclusive of hand baggage and in soft sided bags.

Sandwiched between Mount Kenya and the northern deserts, Laikipia is where Kenya’s wild and semi-arid northern frontier country begins.

Arrive in time for a late lunch at the lodge. Enjoy a free afternoon to explore via game drive or relax by the pool — it’s up to you! The lodge’s primary purpose is to protect the wildlife within the conservancy’s borders. This habitat is home to four of the “Big Five” and several endangered and indigenous species to Laikipia including reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, gerenuk, and the Laikipia hartebeeste.

While at the lodge, all meals and house drinks are included. Gratuities to staff and your guides will be pre-paid on your behalf.

Overnight: El Karama Lodge 

Site Visit to Daraja Academy

Today after breakfast and an optional morning game drive, set out from the Lodge to visit Daraja Academy, located just 20 kilometers away.

Spend the day with the community of Daraja Academy, learning about their programs to support young female scholars from across Kenya and gaining a deeper understanding of their impact. Students are selected based on need, academic scores, and leadership potential. Daraja Academy provides a safe place for girls who would not have access to a high school education any other way. With each graduate, Daraja Academy is helping to close the gender gap in Kenya for this and future generations.

4:00 PM Return to your lodge in the late afternoon, with time for another optional game drive before enjoying a hearty dinner together at El Karama.

Overnight: El Karama Lodge 

Day at Leisure, El Karama Lodge

Today will be open to enjoy all that El Karama Lodge has to offer! Numerous activities such as walking through the bush and tracking wildlife by foot, fishing, enjoying fresh bush lunches under the African sky, and game drives in the mornings and evenings are available to you.

Overnight: El Karama Lodge 

Depart Laikipia – Return to Nairobi

After breakfast this morning, bid farewell to lodge staff and transfer to the airstrip. Return to Nairobi Wilson Airport via private charter fight, arriving . Upon arrival, you’ll have a vehicle and driver waiting for you, and can head out for touring in Nairobi. Your driver will be with you for a half day.

From here, continue on to the Four Points Sheraton at Nairobi Airport, where we have arranged rooms for you. Located just five minutes from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, it is a quick shuttle ride from your departure. The Four Points Sheraton offers a free shuttle service throughout the day and night.

If you would like to extend your travels in the region, please check out Extend your Travel for some ideas!