Lewa Wildlife Conservancy - All You Need To Know

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is a 62,000-acre wildlife conservancy and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Kenya’s Meru County. Formerly a cattle ranch, it began to support endangered black rhinos in the 1980s and was officially established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1995. From protecting rhinos, Lewa’s work has expanded to the conservation of many other species, as well as catalyzing community-centric conservation across northern Kenya and beyond. In 2013, Lewa partnered with the neighboring Conservancy, Borana, dropping the bordering fenceline to incorporate a much larger landscape for wildlife, including rhinos, to roam safely.

Lewa Conservancy is home to some of the rarest species in the world, including 214 black and white rhinos – the most in any safari park globally. It sits as a sanctuary within a volatile region where banditry and poaching are prolific. Over 90% of all Grevy zebras found outside captivity can be found at Lewa as well as reticulated giraffes. Lions, cheetahs, wild dogs, leopards, and a range of birdlife can be found in the conservancy, making it one of the most ecologically diverse parks in the country. Lewa also sees an influx of animal activity during the migratory periods, with over 400 elephants traversing the grounds during each cycle. Visitors can witness the spectacle from a purpose-built Elephant Underpass.

Aside from wildlife, Lewa values community projects and has spearheaded several initiatives to support education, water improvements, and healthcare in the local community. The conservancy is home to the Big Five and has a high level of diversity. It is well-known for having one of the world’s largest rhino populations.

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy History

Lewa was founded by the Craig family and Anna Merz. The Craig family first arrived in the 1920s and used the land as a cattle ranch for 50 years after being given the land by the colonial government. Unlike other ranchers, they always valued the local wildlife and shared it with the animals as well as enabling tourists to visit.

In the 1980s, Anna Merz contacted the Craigs asking if she could build a place to protect rhinos, which were critically threatened and facing extinction due to poaching, with just a few hundred remaining. Starting with 5,000 acres of fenced land, the initiative was a great success with Rhinos breeding – guarded by an electric fence and security. The Craigs were then permitted to relocate many of the rhinos in the north of Kenya to protect them.

The breeding and conservation programs were so successful that tourists from around the world started to visit, leading the Craig family to devote the entire 40,000-acre ranch to form the Lewa Conservancy, a non-profit. The perimeter was fenced, with a few gaps being left to enable animal movements. Lewa has been home to many famous visitors – including HRH Prince William who worked here during his gap year. It’s rumored that he loves the place so much that he proposed in Lewa to Kate Middleton when they were on Safari together.

In addition to wildlife, Lewa is also home to the famous annual Lewa marathon with over 1500 runners. The marathon has raised over $8m in its 20-year history and weaves its way through the park, making it one of the most picturesque marathons in the world.

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy Activities

Lewa offers a variety of activities, including horseback riding, camel riding, and dawn hot air balloon rides. Most camps will also provide walking safaris, night drives, bush breakfasts, and sundowners in scenic locations. There are also waterfalls and walking trails in the Ngare Ngare forest.

Cultural tours of local Maasai villages are also available. These are fascinating and allow you to see how the tribes live – you’ll usually be greeted with a welcome ceremony that includes a dance (participation is often encouraged). Although it may appear voyeuristic, the villagers enjoy showing off their homes and the visits provide much-needed income for them, so please remember to tip generously and purchase souvenirs.

Lewa’s work with Neighbouring Conservancies

Lewa neighbors several other conservancies, and pioneering work has been done to try to interlink these areas to enable animals to roam. Lewa is part of the UNESCO Mt Kenya World Heritage Site and sits at the foothills of the mountain. There is a multi-kilometre ‘elephant corridor’ that runs between Lewa and the Mt Kenya National Park via the Ngare Ngare Forest Reserve. The creation of the 14km Corridor allows the free movement of elephants between these regions, to reduce human-elephant conflict and increase the genetic diversity of the whole elephant population. Countless wildlife species now benefit from the protection, safe passage, and habitat of the Corridor. Last year, over 1,000 elephants used the underpass. In addition, many other species of wildlife are frequently recorded, including leopards, zebras, serval cats, spotted hyenas, and warthogs. Even a lost rhino wandered in.

Lewa Wildlife Conservation Initiatives

Lewa has pioneered many conservation initiatives, including locally-led wildlife protection and community development programs – making it a hugely important and successful example of how conservancies can be run. Further initiatives include avian research, preventing poisoning, rhino ear notching, hyena monitoring, and studying lion behavior. Security is very tight in Lewa with a force of armed and unarmed rangers. The Conservancy works closely with surrounding communities and has seen very little poaching in recent years, although sadly 2 rhinos were killed in 2019, the first in 6 years.

Examples of working with neighboring communities include collaring elephants, building elephant exclusion zones (they can be very destructive) to enable trees to grow, reinforcing fence lines, and creating predator-proof livestock enclosures. In 2020, there were affordable healthcare schemes (which almost 50,000 people benefitted from), clean water, 1,800 microloans for small businesses run by women, immunization, and other health initiatives. Lewa has also trained 4,800 farmers in sustainable agriculture, built 24 classrooms, and reached 7,700 students and teachers each year.

Lewa Conservancy Support to Community Development

1. Education

Lewa supports 23 primary and secondary government schools with close to 10,000 children by building classrooms, dormitories, laboratories, boreholes, teachers’ houses, kitchens, and libraries across three counties.

2. Bursaries

Annually, Lewa provides education bursaries to more than 400 students.

3. Healthcare

Lewa’s four clinics provide affordable and accessible healthcare services to more than 50,000 annually.

4. Micro-enterprise

Lewa Women’s micro-enterprise program provides low-interest loans to more than 1,800 women to enable them to run their businesses and improve their families’ livelihoods.

5. Water

Lewa’s 17 water programs ensure that 20,000 people have access to clean and safe water for both domestic use and farming.

6. Forestry Conservation

Through the community development program, Lewa champions Community Forest Associations by providing technical, financial, and managerial expertise. These include Ngare Ndare, Marania and Muchiene Forests.

7. Employment

Across Lewa and the lodges, approximately 450 people are employed in various capacities, with over 90% coming from the neighboring communities.

8. Conservation Education

More than 5,000 children visit Lewa annually for a conservation education experience, which empowers them with the knowledge to become stewards of their natural world.

Lewa Conservancy Entry Fees

Kenyan Citizens and Residents

Overnight rates for Kenyan Citizens/ Residents are Ksh 2,800.
Day rates for Kenyan Citizens/Residents are Ksh 8,074
Children between 6-12 years of age are charged 50% of the rates.

Non-Resident

Overnight rates for non resident adults is 126 USD
Day Non residents is 198 USD
Zoo Group Lewa Conservancy Approved is 70 USD during January and October and 58 USD between March and June, November and December.
Agents rates are 38 USD.