Wellness Kenya: Cultures & Wildlife

Arrive in Nairobi and transfer to your boutique safari retreat, uniquely situated on the edge of Nairobi National Park. Designed to harmonize with the wild environs that surround it, the Emakoko features just ten rooms, each overlooking the mighty reserve and the animals that roam its plains and forests. It serves as the perfect hub from which to experience the magical blend of wildlife, culture, expansive vistas and starry skies found nowhere else that makes Kenya an idyllic choice for an A&K Wellness-Inspired journey.

Enjoy a leisurely start to your morning before departing for a series of inspiring encounters. Begin with a visit to Sheldrick Wildlife Trust to observe young elephants at play and learn about the program's success in raising and reintegrating over 150 elephant calves into the herds of Tsavo. Continue to the 15-acre Giraffe Center, also a conservation education center for local schoolchildren, where you hand-feed endangered Rothschild's giraffes. Next, visit the innovative Ocean Sole workshop to see how recycled flip-flops are transformed into incredible works of art. After lunch at a local restaurant, enjoy a restorative yoga class at a world-class wellness club, before returning to your relaxing lodge. Tonight, gather for a welcome dinner.

Transfer by air to the Masai Mara Game Reserve and check in to your modern luxury lodge perched on the Mara River in the heart of Kenya’s big game country. The Mara’s sweeping grasslands hold the highest concentration of species in Kenya and are home to Africa’s Big Five — elephants, leopards, Cape buffalo, rhinos and lions. A front-row seat to the action awaits on an adventurous game drive through this unparalleled reserve, one during which you stop to sip cocktails during a Scenic Sundowner experience.

Rise this morning for a game drive in the spellbinding Masai Mara, or choose instead to float far above the bustle of the plains on an optional hot air balloon flight (for an additional cost and weather permitting), experiencing the Mara at its most peaceful before touching down for a Champagne breakfast in the bush. Back at your lodge, enjoy time at leisure or indulge in your included spa treatment, choosing from three rejuvenating treatment options. Later, visit with a member of the local Maasai, who discusses the tribe’s culture and the importance of jewelry before leading a beading demonstration. An afternoon game drive across open savanna and woodlands is followed by a freshly prepared dinner.

Rise early for an exciting morning game drive, when resident wildlife in the bush is most active; you may be rewarded with views of leopards retrieving kills from acacia branches, elephants warding off opportunistic lions or hippos returning to the water. After breakfast, enjoy one these Design Your Day activities. Tour Your Lodge’s Sustainable Wetlands Project and organic gardens before joining a cooking demonstration. Visit a Local, A&K Philanthropy-Supported School, where you assist in serving lunch to the students. Run with Members of the Maasai, testing your stamina against their long-famed prowess in distance running. Enjoy your early afternoon at leisure, before embarking on a late afternoon game drive, when the savanna reveals a whole new view of its wildlife. This evening before dinner, learn the sacred importance of water in Maasai village life, and the extraordinarily positive impact a clean water source has on these communities, during a presentation on LifeStraw, an AKP-supported project providing villages with clean water.

Fly via Nairobi to 3,500-square-mile Tsavo National Park, where you transfer to your elegant tented camp situated on 35 acres of riverine forest set within the vastness of one of Kenya’s wildest destinations. Settle in with a sunset yoga class offered under the guidance of an Africa Yoga Project instructor, and delivered on an elevated deck overlooking the splendidly green Chyulu Hills. Your participation in the class speaks to the reciprocal nature of the wellness experience, receiving benefits from a project that in turn trains and employs hundreds of marginalized African youths. Later, gather for a locally inspired dinner.

Greet the day with another early morning game drive, this time with breakfast served amid the dense foliage and dramatic wilds of Tsavo West National Park. Return to camp for time to relax at leisure. Lunch is served during a Chef ’s Table experience, complete with a cooking class inspired by healthy recipes. Afterward, immerse yourself in the tribal traditions of the Maasai warrior, perhaps learning to throw a spear or rungu (dense wooden stick), or to defend yourself using a traditional cow-hide shield. Cap an inspiring day with a Scenic Sundowner backed by magical views of Mount Kilimanjaro and a specially arranged dinner under the stars.

Begin your day with an energizing sunrise yoga and meditation session. The gentle mountain range that encompasses the verdant Chyulu Hills boasts volcanic tubes and dense cloud forests. After breakfast, set off on a game drive through this landscape, and then explore the forests on a guided hike that crisscrosses animal trails. Return to camp for an afternoon at leisure, free to enjoy your tented camp’s luxurious wellness facilities, including a relaxing hammam, modern fitness center and outdoor infinity pool. As the late afternoon sun starts to set, depart for a final game drive in Tsavo West National Park, fully taking in its greenery, rocky peaks, natural springs and rolling hills. Tonight, gather with fellow guests to celebrate your Kenyan safari with a special farewell dinner.

Opt to rise early for morning yoga and meditation, before flying to Nairobi. Spend the afternoon at leisure in a reserved dayroom, perhaps taking time to relax by the pool or indulge in a massage, for an additional cost, before your international flight home.