Three Large Cottages - Each with a Double and a Twin Room
The property has a main building with a lounge and dining area, opening up to the charmingly furnished stretch veranda with its own special vista across the plains of Northern Kenya. There are three large cottages each with a double and a twin room, making the property suitable for up to twelve people. All the cottages have ensuite bathrooms, apart from the family cottage, which has a shared bathroom. The houses are rustic, with cooling `Sanje' (swamp grass) roofs and designed to mix the traditional relaxed ambiance with modern comfort. Each of the cottages has a private veranda where guests can sit in the cool of the evening to enjoy the starlit African skies. Lewa house is mainly used to house supporters of the Conservancy and now has been opened up to receive guests visiting Lewa. Lewa House is only booked on an exclusive basis. It is all yours!
Lewa Conservancy, Kenya
Local Info
Owing to its location in the private wilderness of the not-for-profit conservation success story, Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, guests at Lewa house have an almost exclusive access to an area teeming with a variety of exciting wildlife, of most note being the endangered species such as rhino (which Lewa is probably best known for) and the Grevy's zebra (we have 17% of the world's population). There are myriads of other animal species, which provide as much viewing pleasure as the famous big five, also found on Lewa. Bird enthusiasts marvel at the more than four hundred identified bird species, some rare, others abundant - all beautiful.
December-March and June-October
The best months for travelling to Kenya are June through the end of October and then December through the end of March. July, August and September, are the busiest times along with the Christmas holidays as this is when there are school holidays. If you prefer to travel when the game is still superb but it is not so busy then I recommend the following months, June, September, October, November, February, March, April and May!
Day and Night Game Drives, Guided Bush Walks, Horse Riding, Camel Safaris, Educational Talks, Visits to the Il N'gwesi Maasai Cultural Boma & Walking Safaris.
Guests to Lewa House have the opportunity to be involved in a living and dynamic conservation operation and are always encouraged to visit and engage in our conservation activities.
Among the activities available to visitors, who are accompanied by our trained and experience local guides are:
Day and night game drives, Guided bush walks, Horse riding, both for non-experienced riders and very advanced riders, Game watching up-close from secluded game blinds, Day or overnight camel safaris, Educational talks on the Conservancy and related issues, Visits to the Il N'gwesi Maasai cultural boma, Walking safaris, Flights to Lake Rutundu on Mt. Kenya for trout fishing.
Conservation orientated activities include visits to Lewa supported schools; visits to water schemes and other community development activities; days or half days out with the research department learning about Lewa's Rhino and Grevy Zebra projects; accompanying the tracker dogs on daily training/exercise; accompanying the lion trackers to get data on Lewa's resident lion project and trips to the adjoining Ngare Ndare forest to look for the elusive colobus monkey population and to learn about the indigenous flora and its local uses.
Owners & Hosts
Lewa was once a cattle ranch; it then became a heavily guarded black rhino sanctuary, and it is now the headquarters for a non-profit wildlife conservancy, which has gained a world-wide reputation for extending the benefits of conservation beyond its borders. The Craig/Douglas family first came to Lewa Downs in 1922, and managed it as a cattle ranch for over 50 years. Unlike many other ranchers in the area, they had always valued the wildlife that shared the land with the cattle, and developed wildlife tourism as an additional activity. By the early 1980s it was uncertain whether any black rhinos would survive in Kenya. Poaching for horn had reduced Kenya's rhinos from some 20,000 in the mid-1970s to a few hundred by 1986. It was clear that the only way to prevent their complete extinction was to create high-security sanctuaries. In 1983 the Craigs and Mrs. Anna Merz - who funded the program - decided to establish the fenced and guarded Ngare Sergoi Rhino Sanctuary at the western end of Lewa Downs. The rhino sanctuary was stocked partly with animals from other reserves and partly from isolated individuals from northern Kenya, whose likely survival in the wild was a matter of months at most. The black rhino that were caught settled down and bred, and white rhino were added. After ten years, it was clear that the rhinos needed more space, and the sanctuary was expanded to cover the rest of the ranch, and the adjoining Ngare Ndare Forest Reserve.
