Things to do in Samburu National Reserve
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Samburu National Reserve
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Long dry season. Game concentrates on the Ewaso Nyiro, tracks are passable and the Special Five are easiest to find.
Short dry season. Hot and dry with good viewing and strong birding early, and March heat is severe by midday.
Long rains, peaking around April. Difficult tracks, dispersed game, a river that can rise fast, and lower prices.
Short rains and green up, with newborn animals and migrant birds, fewer visitors, and festive prices in late December.
What's on
- Maralal International Camel Derby August, dates vary by year
A camel racing and cultural festival in Maralal, Samburu County, west of the reserve, not inside it.
Best things to do in Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve
Dawn and dusk drives along the Ewaso Nyiro River for the Special Five, elephants, leopards and riverine forest.
Buffalo Springs National Reserve
Samburu's twin across the river, with springs, lava terraces and the same Special Five on a separate Isiolo ticket.
Shaba National Reserve
The quiet third reserve, with volcanic country, springs and Born Free history, and very few vehicles.
Umoja Women's Village
A women founded refuge village near Archer's Post, visited on residents' terms, with beadwork funding its school.
Save the Elephants Research Camp
The elephant research base in the reserve, visited by arrangement through partner camps, not as a walk up.
Koitogor Hill
The rocky landmark hill by the river lodges, the orientation point for the central river sector on a drive.
Where to stay in Samburu National Reserve
Samburu National Reserve river
first Samburu trip and game drives from the door
Camps and lodges on the Ewaso Nyiro inside the reserve, minutes from the Special Five country.
Buffalo Springs
a second reserve on the same trip and polished mid range bases
South bank camps across the bridge, driving both Buffalo Springs and Samburu on separate county tickets.
Shaba
quiet, springs and Born Free country
One lodge in a spring fed oasis, far fewer vehicles, and Samburu reached as a day drive.
Kalama Conservancy
walks, night drives and top guiding
Saruni and Basecamp sit in Kalama, gaining conservancy activities and driving into the reserve by day.
Westgate Conservancy
the ultra splurge and camel and community activities
Sasaab's conservancy west of the reserve, with the widest activity list in the area.
Sabache and Archer's Post gateway
cheap nights, the Ololokwe climb and road arrivals
Sabache Camp sits at the mountain foot and Archer's Post camps serve the road, but neither is a walk in safari base.
Think twice about
- Archer's Post as a safari base
Simple gateway beds work for a late arrival, but without a vehicle, a driver guide and a daily gate plan you pay reserve fees to commute and miss dawn and dusk.
- Kenya-Somalia border counties
Mandera, Wajir and Garissa and the border area are no-go zones. They are a different journey from Samburu and not a northern extension of it.
Best restaurants in Samburu National Reserve
Sasaab
Guest only lodge dining with Moroccan and Swahili influence, served in the main area, on decks or in the bush.
Elephant Bedroom Camp
Guest only full board camp dining on the river, with bush breakfasts and sundowner setups.
Ashnil Samburu Camp
A riverside restaurant and deck in Buffalo Springs, the most conventional restaurant format in the reserves.
Sarova Shaba Game Lodge
The Shaba lodge restaurant and bar overlooking the springs grounds, the only table for guests in Shaba.
Lions Cave Camp
A camp with a restaurant at Archer's Post, the simple gateway meal for road travellers outside the reserves.
Outdoor things to do in Samburu National Reserve
Reteti Elephant Sanctuary
A community run sanctuary for orphaned calves, visited from a platform at morning and midday feeding times.
Mount Ololokwe
The sacred flat topped mountain north of Archer's Post, climbed at dawn with authorised Samburu guides from Sabache.
Sera Community Conservancy
A community conservancy with a black rhino sanctuary, where guests track rhino on foot with rangers.
Singing Wells
Dry season wells where herders sing family songs their own cattle recognise, visited only by arrangement.
Kalama Community Wildlife Conservancy
The conservancy north of the reserve where camps can offer guided walks and night drives the reserve cannot.
Westgate Community Conservancy
Sasaab's conservancy west of the reserve, for camel walks, fly camping, walks and night drives.
Best hotels in Samburu National Reserve
Elephant Bedroom Camp
Fourteen river tents with plunge pools inside the reserve, where elephants regularly walk through camp.
Soroi Larsens Camp
The rebuilt Larsens on the river, reopened in 2024 with star bed suites and a photographic hide.
Samburu Intrepids Tented Camp
A long running family camp of raised tents in riverine forest, with a pool and a children's programme.
Samburu Sopa Lodge
A large lodge on high ground inside the reserve, the lowest priced full lodge, without river frontage.
Soroi Samburu Lodge
The former Samburu Game Lodge on the river, reopened by Soroi in 2025 with lodge rooms and a spa.
Samburu Elephant Lodge
A small Samburu run lodge on the river inside the reserve, with villas, a pool and its own drives.
Samburu Public Campsite
A basic riverside public campsite inside the reserve, the honest budget floor with an operator and your own kit.
Surana Buffalo Springs
A newer luxury camp above the rivers in Buffalo Springs, with plunge pool tents, an infinity pool and a spa.
Is Samburu National Reserve expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | KES 24,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | KES 58,000 a person |
| Splurge | KES 195,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Save the Elephants Research Camp: weeks ahead
- Reteti Elephant Sanctuary: weeks ahead
- Mount Ololokwe: a few days ahead
- Sera Community Conservancy: months ahead
- Singing Wells: weeks ahead
- Kalama Community Wildlife Conservancy: weeks ahead
- Westgate Community Conservancy: weeks ahead
- Elephant Bedroom Camp: months ahead
- Small dry season camps sell out months ahead, and Reteti feeding slots are capped, so book the camp and Reteti together.
- Confirm the enforced Samburu County and Isiolo County reserve fees and each conservancy fee in writing before paying.
- Tell camps dietary needs when you book, because remote kitchens resupply from Isiolo or Nairobi on a schedule.
Is Samburu National Reserve safe?
- Northern roads have a history of sporadic banditry, so travel in daylight and take current local advice from your lodge or operator.
- Malaria risk is lower than the coast but present, rising after rain. Take medical advice on prophylaxis and use nets and repellent from dusk.
- Heat over 30 degrees, dust and distance from hospital care are the daily risks. Carry water and evacuation insurance that covers safari.
Samburu National Reserve travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Do not buy Samburu as a cheaper Masai Mara. It is a drier, quieter safari with a different animal list and no rhino in the reserve.
- One night pays the full transfer and fee cost for one dawn drive. Two nights in one camp is the minimum that works.
- Never swim in the Ewaso Nyiro River, and never accept a guaranteed Singing Wells, village or rhino promise for a named day.
Getting around Samburu National Reserve: public transport and more
- Drive Nairobi to Archer's Post in five to six hours on tarmac via Nanyuki and Isiolo, in daylight, then dirt roads to the gates.
- Fly from Wilson Airport to Buffalo Springs or Kalama airstrips in about an hour with Safarilink or AirKenya, and let the lodge meet you.
- Inside the reserves your lodge or operator vehicle is your transport. Walks and night drives happen only in the conservancies.
Who Samburu National Reserve suits
| Solo travellers | OK |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Samburu National Reserve your trip
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