Shimba Hills

Shimba Hills National Reserve rises behind the south coast, a band of coastal forest and open grassland high enough to catch the sea breeze. On clear days you can see the Indian Ocean from the escarpment.

What lives here

Shimba Hills is the reserve most associated with sable antelope in Kenya. Elephants move through the forest and the grassland, and the reserve also supports bushbuck, buffalo, colobus monkeys and a long list of forest birds. It is dense country in places, so sightings depend on the day.

Sheldrick Falls

A guided walk leads down to Sheldrick Falls, where water drops into a pool at the bottom of a forested valley. The walk is on foot with a ranger and takes a reasonable level of mobility in both directions.

A different kind of safari

This is not the wide-open plains people picture when they think of Kenya. It is forest: layered, humid, green, and much closer to the coast hotels than the big inland parks. For guests with a single free day it is the most realistic way to see elephants without a long drive.