Destinations, Experiences & East Africa TravelChoose Ol Pejeta if you want the last two northern white rhinos, the Sweetwaters chimpanzees and a choice of budgets. Choose Lewa if you want Grevy’s zebra, walking and riding, and a quieter, lodge-led stay. Ol Pejeta is about 220 km from Nairobi, a drive of 4 to 4.5 hours, while Lewa quotes about four hours by road or a daily flight from Wilson Airport.
Both sit in the Mount Kenya region and both protect rhinos, so the choice comes down to what you want to do and spend. This guide compares them and ends with a straight verdict. For the wider picture, start with our guide to the Laikipia conservancies.
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Ol Pejeta vs Lewa at a glance
| Feature | Ol Pejeta | Lewa |
|---|---|---|
| Size | About 90,000 acres (about 360 sq km) | 62,000 acres (about 250 sq km) |
| From Nairobi | By road, about 220 km, 4 to 4.5 hours | By road, about 4 hours (Lewa’s figure), or a daily flight from Wilson Airport |
| Headline wildlife | The last two northern white rhinos, a large black rhino population, rescued chimpanzees | Black and white rhinos, Grevy’s zebra, elephant, lion, wild dog |
| Activities | Day and night drives, chimpanzee visits, tracking, bush walks, camping | Game drives, plus walks, night drives and horse or camel safaris through your lodge |
| Daily fee, non-resident adult | USD 110 (child USD 55) | About USD 165 to 183, usually through your lodge |
| Crowds | More vehicles; day visitors welcome | Fewer vehicles; mostly lodge guests |
| Best for | A first Laikipia stop, northern white rhinos, chimpanzees, flexible budgets | Grevy’s zebra, walking and riding, a quiet upper-end stay |
The short answer
- Pick Ol Pejeta for a first Laikipia stop, the northern white rhinos, chimpanzees, night drives or a tighter budget. It features in our 8 Days Ol Pejeta Masai Mara Amboseli Luxury Kenya Safari.
- Pick Lewa for Grevy’s zebra, guided walks, horse and camel safaris, and a quiet lodge stay.
- Do both if you have the time. Both are reached through Nanyuki, and they feel quite different.
Size, location and getting there
Ol Pejeta
Ol Pejeta covers about 90,000 acres (about 360 sq km) west of Nanyuki, between the Aberdare foothills and Mount Kenya. It is a not-for-profit conservancy that combines conservation, tourism, cattle ranching and community projects. The drive from Nairobi is about 220 km, or 4 to 4.5 hours depending on traffic, and that figure includes the stretch from Nanyuki to the gate. A 2WD can manage in the dry season, but a 4×4 is strongly recommended in the rains.
Lewa
Lewa covers 62,000 acres (about 250 sq km) on the northern edge of the Laikipia plateau, north of Mount Kenya. With neighbouring Borana it forms a connected landscape of roughly 90,000 acres, and in 2013 UNESCO extended the Mount Kenya World Heritage Site to include Lewa and the Ngare Ndare Forest. By road you pass through Nanyuki and Timau, and the turn-off is about 15 km past Timau. Not all vehicles are allowed in, so your lodge may meet you at the gate. The alternative is a daily flight from Wilson Airport to Lewa Downs with Safarilink or Air Kenya.
Wildlife: what you will actually see
Rhinos at both
Both are serious rhino conservancies. Ol Pejeta describes itself as the largest black rhino sanctuary in East Africa and holds well over 150 black rhinos; in 2025 the government moved 21 of them to Segera Rhino Sanctuary to ease crowding. Lewa reports more than 280 black and white rhinos across Lewa and Borana, says it holds 14 percent of Kenya’s rhino population, and reports no rhino poaching since 2019.
The last northern white rhinos
Only two northern white rhinos are left in the world, both female: Najin and her daughter Fatu. They live at Ol Pejeta under 24-hour armed protection, and Ol Pejeta lists meeting them as an experience in its own right, so confirm the price and booking rules when you plan. Neither can breed naturally, so a consortium that includes Ol Pejeta is working with embryos; its April 2026 update reported 39 and no pregnancy yet.
Chimpanzees at Sweetwaters
Inside Ol Pejeta, the Sweetwaters Chimpanzee Sanctuary cares for chimpanzees rescued from the illegal wildlife trade. Ol Pejeta calls it the only place in Kenya to see chimpanzees. Visits run from 8:30 am to 12:30 pm and from 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm, and they are included in the daily entry fee.
Grevy’s zebra and other wildlife
Lewa is the better-known place for Grevy’s zebra. It counts 264 across the Lewa-Borana landscape, the Ngare Ndare Forest and the Mount Kenya elephant corridor. Lewa also lists elephant, lion, giraffe, wild dog and more than 490 bird species. Ol Pejeta has all of the Big Five and more than 300 bird species.
Activities: what you can do
At Ol Pejeta
- An all-day game drive, 7:00 am to 7:00 pm, is included in the entry fee.
- Night game drives run from 7 to 9 pm and 9 to 11 pm, booked at least a day ahead.
- Other experiences include lion and dog tracking, guided bush or bird walks and Run with Rangers, a 5 to 7 km route. Horse riding and camel rides are not on its experiences page.
At Lewa
- Lodges offer guided walks, night drives, Ngare Ndare Forest visits and horse or camel safaris. At Elewana Lewa Safari Camp, 2026 extras per person include a 2-hour guided walk at USD 85 and a 2-hour horse or camel safari at USD 120 (minimum age 12).
- Next door, Borana adds e-bike rides, horse riding and fly camping.
Where to stay
These tiers follow the wording used by each lodge or a travel directory. They are not price bands.
| Tier | Ol Pejeta | Lewa |
|---|---|---|
| Camping and simple | Campsites (an armed ranger is mandatory, at KES 5,000 per ranger per night), Ol Pejeta Bush Camp, Porini Rhino Camp, and The Stables (no game-drive vehicle; USD 70 single or USD 140 double, full board, on its page) | No public campsite on Lewa’s own lodge list |
| Comfortable to upper | Sweetwaters Serena Camp, Kicheche Laikipia Camp | Elewana Lewa Safari Camp, Lewa Wilderness (nine fenced cottages), Lewa House, Kifaru House (five thatched cottages) |
| Luxury and exclusive | Sanctuary Tambarare (10 tents), Ol Pejeta Safari Cottages (four private cottages, each with its own driver-guide and vehicle) | Sirikoi (four luxury tents, a cottage and a private house); next door, Borana Lodge at USD 1,025 to 1,320 per adult per night, all inclusive, in 2026 |
Fees: what you pay and what it covers
- Ol Pejeta: USD 110 per non-resident adult per day and USD 55 per child (ages 3 to 11; under 3 free). The fee includes the chimpanzee visit and the all-day game drive. If you leave and re-enter, you pay again. A driver-guide vehicle costs KES 28,000 for a half day or KES 35,000 for a full day.
- Lewa: Lewa’s own site publishes no fee. Borana’s 2026 rates list USD 183 per adult and USD 92 per child for a visit to Lewa (USD 200 and USD 100 in 2027), and lodge pages quote about USD 165 to 183 per adult per day, either included in the lodge rate or charged on top.
Fees last verified: October 2026. Ol Pejeta’s page shows no effective date, so confirm the figure before you travel.
Two ways to build this into a Kenya safari
8 Days Ol Pejeta Masai Mara Amboseli Luxury Kenya Safari: for travellers who want Ol Pejeta’s rhinos as part of a longer luxury trip with the Mara and Amboseli. From USD 10,270 per person.
9 Days Untamed Safari to the Hidden Northern Kenya Circuit: for travellers who want to go further north than Laikipia. From USD 7,840 per person.
Prices depend on season, group size and lodge choice. Want Lewa in the mix? Tell us and we will price a tailor-made route.
Crowds and atmosphere
We have no visitor counts for either place, so read this as how each is set up. Ol Pejeta takes day visitors on a per-day entry fee, and self-drive vehicles pay from KES 1,000, so expect more vehicles at the popular rhino and chimpanzee stops. Lewa’s fee is mostly handled through lodges and not every vehicle is allowed in, so you will usually share it with fewer people.
Our honest verdict
For most first-time visitors, Ol Pejeta is the easier recommendation. It has the wider range of places to stay, the northern white rhinos and the chimpanzees you cannot see elsewhere in Kenya, and a published fee. Its weak spots are more vehicles and a less secluded feel. Lewa is the better pick if you have done a standard safari circuit before, want to walk or ride, and are happy to pay lodge prices at the comfortable-to-luxury end. Its weak spots are cost and fewer options for a tight budget.
Neither replaces the Masai Mara, a different kind of trip; see our Masai Mara safari guide. For more detail on each conservancy, read our Ol Pejeta Conservancy guide and our Lewa Wildlife Conservancy guide.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Ol Pejeta or Lewa better for a first safari in Laikipia?
For most first-timers, Ol Pejeta. It offers more types of lodging, a published daily fee, and the northern white rhino and chimpanzee visits. Choose Lewa first if Grevy’s zebra, walking and a quiet stay matter more than price.
Can I visit Ol Pejeta and Lewa on the same trip?
Yes. Both are reached through Nanyuki by road, and Lewa also has daily flights from Wilson Airport. Send us your dates and we will suggest a route and nights for each.
Which is cheaper, Ol Pejeta or Lewa?
On the figures we can verify, Ol Pejeta. It has campsites and simpler camps, and its non-resident adult fee is USD 110 a day against about USD 165 to 183 at Lewa.
Where can I see the last northern white rhinos?
Only at Ol Pejeta, where Najin and Fatu live. Ol Pejeta lists “Meet the Last Two Northern White Rhinos” as an experience. Lewa does not have them.
Can I visit either as a day trip from Nairobi?
Ol Pejeta sells a daily entry fee, but at 4 to 4.5 hours each way you would spend most of the day driving, so we suggest at least one night. Lewa is set up around lodge stays, so arrange access through a lodge or a flight.
When is the best time to visit?
Lodge prices follow seasons. Elewana Lewa Safari Camp, for example, treats 1 July to 31 October and 20 December to 3 January as high season, and 1 April to 31 May as its green season. At Ol Pejeta, a 4×4 is strongly recommended in the rains.
Photo: The Lewa Zebra – panoramio by Dave Barber, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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