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Laikipia, Kenya

Borana Safari Lodge

We have not gotten to Borana yet but can say that it holds a reputation in the industry for being one of the more prominent operations which work with the local community and environmental organizations to increase the areas potential.

With its truly Kenyan feel, this is an ideal stay if you are interested in Africas sustainability, managing wildlife and local communities.

 — Mango's view

Borana Safari Lodge lies on the edge of the Samangua Valley. It has panoramic views of Mount Kenya, across the Lewa Plains to the Ngare Ndare Forest. Borana Lodge was built is 1992 by local artisans. Only local building materials and dead wood from the ranch were used in its construction. The result is a supremely comfortable and luxurious lodge which is totally in keeping with its surroundings; it seems to have grown organically from the rocks on which it was built.

Borana Safari Lodge overlooks a dam which fills with the floodwater flowing off the surrounding hills. It is the local watering hole for all the wildlife in the area so there is constant activity for the guests to watch. There is also a game blind built right on the edge of the dam so that visitors may go down and see the activity at close range: elephants swimming is a favorite.

The Lodge is built primarily for privacy; each cottage is exclusively sited with its own special view, totally secluded from its neighbor. This ensures guests have a chance to appreciate the wilderness and loneliness of Africa. There is a central eating and sitting area: comfy leather sofas surround a huge fireplace with picture windows looking onto the valley below. A massive rosewood table in the dining room is where meals are served by friendly and attentive staff. Local artists paintings and sculptures decorate the lodge, and are also available for sale. All food is freshly prepared in the kitchen; vegetables and farm produce from the farm, freshly squeezed juice from our orchard and wines from around the world.

A stay at Borana is a unique opportunity for total immersion in the life and goings on of a working ranch where environmental and ecological considerations rank alongside the responsibilities felt towards neighboring communities be they pastoralists or agriculturalists, be it in the form of development partnerships and mobile health clinics, or the workings of the ranchs education trust.

Of course a visit to the high altitude rose farm or to our organic essential oil distillery is by no means compulsory; there are plenty of other ways to entertain you on Borana. Two strings of horses, mountain bikes, game walks, cross-cultural experiences and plenty of excuses for a night fly camping await visitors. Then again you could just put your feet up, sit back in your open 4x4 and be taken to the game, eat delicious home grown organic food and maybe muster up the energy to drag yourself away from your exclusively comfortable sleeping house for an afternoon massage overlooking Mount Kenya and, of course, the pool. Closed April, May, and December.

Includes: All meals, local drinks, laundry & safari activities