The original Craig family ranch house, welcoming travellers for more than forty years at the heart of the conservancy their family helped build — one of Africa's great rhino conservation stories.
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Overview
Where the Conservancy Began
Lewa Wilderness was once simply the Craig family homestead — the same ranch land that, in the mid-1980s, became the founding ground of the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy's rhino protection work.
Just nine rooms make up the whole of Lewa Wilderness: six hillside cottages tucked into the slope above the Eastern Marania Valley, and three garden cottages set on the lawns near the main house. Every room carries the character of successive generations of Craig family management — stone-and-thatch architecture, log fireplaces, private verandas — rather than a single design brief. The 65,000-acre Lewa Wildlife Conservancy that surrounds the lodge is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Kenya's strongest populations of both black and white rhino, alongside the world's largest population of Grevy's zebra.
Owned and run by the Craig family since 1924. The Craig family has been on this land for a century, and Lewa Wilderness remains a genuinely family-run homestead rather than a branded lodge — guests are received, quite literally, as family.
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Rooms, Hill & Garden
65,000ac
Lewa Wildlife Conservancy
1924
Craig Family on the Land
90%
World's Grevy's Zebra
Cottages
Six on the Hill, Three in the Garden
Six hillside cottages look out over the Eastern Marania Valley with total privacy; three garden cottages sit closer to the main house, cozy and family-friendly.
Hillside Cottage — Valley View
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Hillside CottagesPerched along the hillside with expansive views and total privacy — each individually decorated, having changed in style across successive Craig family generations.
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Garden CottagesSet on the lawn near the main homestead, cozy yet spacious, and especially suited to families with young children.
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Log Fireplaces & Private VerandasEvery cottage comes with en-suite facilities, a log fireplace for cool highland evenings, and a private veranda over the grounds or valley.
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A Working Farm NearbyMuch of the produce served at the lodge is grown on Lewa's own organic farm, a short walk from the guest rooms.
Experiences
Walk, Ride, Fly or Drive
Lewa Wilderness goes beyond the standard game drive, with horse riding, camel safaris, scenic biplane flights and guided walks all part of the everyday offering.
Air
Scenic WACO Bi-Plane Flights
Flights over the conservancy in a classic yellow WACO bi-plane, or a Cessna 206 for private charters to and from Lewa.
On Horseback
Horse Riding Safaris
Riding safaris for all ages and levels, moving through the conservancy at a pace no vehicle can match.
On Foot
Guided Walking Safaris
Walks across the 65,000-acre conservancy, tracking rhino, elephant and the resident predators that frequent the valley below the lodge.
Slow Travel
Camel Riding & Fly Camping
Camel safaris and fly-camping trips further into the wilderness, carried by camel rather than vehicle.
Conservation
Rhino Conservation Visits
A firsthand look at the pioneering rhino protection work that began on this land and grew into the modern Lewa Wildlife Conservancy.
Family
Farm-to-Table Tours
A tour of Lewa's organic farm and kitchen garden, which supplies much of the produce served at the homestead table.
Dining
One Long Table, Fresh from the Farm
Meals are shared around a banquet table in the open-air dining room, built from produce grown on Lewa's own farm — the lodge even makes its own cheese.
01Communal dining around the banquet table
02A terrace overlooking the wooded river valley
03Farm-to-fork lunches after a tour of the kitchen garden
04Fireside evenings in the wood-panelled sitting room
The Homestead Table — Farm to Fork
Location
65,000 Acres, A UNESCO Site
Lewa Wildlife Conservancy sits between the Mount Kenya highlands and the semi-arid savannah to the north, at an elevation between 4,500 and 6,000 feet.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2013, recognised for its pioneering rhino conservation work.
Around 90% of the world's Grevy's zebra population lives across the Lewa-Borana landscape.
The conservancy grew from a private rhino sanctuary in the 1980s into a 65,000-acre protected landscape today.
Habitat here ranges from open grassland and acacia forest to riverine woodland, gorges and montane forest.
Fly
Scheduled flights connect Nairobi to the private Lewa airstrip, minutes from the lodge.
Drive
A roughly five-hour drive from Nairobi reaches the conservancy directly by road.
Arrive
A short transfer from the airstrip brings guests straight to the homestead and its welcoming Craig family hosts.
A Living Legacy
Four Generations of Welcome
The Craig family has welcomed travellers to this homestead for more than forty years — ask about combining a stay with Borana Conservancy nearby.