Laikipia County safaris

About Laikipia

Laikipia is a 9,500 km2 (950,000 hectares) mosaic of wildlife conservancies, ranchlands, rangelands and commercial farms that bridge the gap between East Africa’s savannas to the south and the arid lands of the Horn of Africa to the north. Here, endangered species often roam alongside Boran cattle and camels across a conservation landscape unlike any other in Africa.

A Laikipia safari offers spectacular wildlife encounters - including the Big 5 (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo), striped hyena, gerenuk, Beisa oryx, Grévy’s zebra, reticulated giraffe, Jackson’s hartebeest, African painted wolves (wild dogs) and the breathtaking black leopard. The Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Ol Pejeta is also the only place in Kenya where visitors can see chimpanzees, as they do not occur naturally. Laikipia also hosts the second-largest elephant population in Kenya.

Laikipia offers a high-quality, low-density approach to safari tourism - including a wide range of experiences for safari visitors, such as accompanying ecological teams in the field to monitor endangered species, track lions or walk with baboon troops. Free from the rules and restrictions of national parks, the lodges offer expertly guided walks, night drives, quad biking and horse and camel safaris.

Laikipia is a luxury safari destination but there are a number of community lodges that offer more moderately priced options.

The climate is relatively cool and temperate - perfect for safaris. Like the Maasai Mara, there are two rainy seasons: the ‘short’ rains in October/November and the ‘long’ rains lasting from March until June.

The safaris below all include time spent in Laikipia