Safari of the Senses Retreat: A Journey Through Sight, Sound, Taste, Touch, and Smell
Photo credit: The Safari Collection
Sometimes a vacation means relaxation, rejuvenation, a chance to gain perspective and replenish your soul’s energy. At other times, it’s about new experiences, adventure, and discovery.
But if you’re VERY lucky, it can be all those things.
Introducing the Safari of the Senses Retreat from Pick A Safari, eight days and seven nights in one of the most beautiful and dynamic countries on earth.
Pick A Safari has crafted an experience that will change how you see the world and create memories that last a lifetime. It’s an immersive retreat interweaving quiet time for tranquility and reflection with an itinerary that stimulates and educates, introducing you to the vibrant majesty of Kenya as you partake in the serenity with which you are surrounded.
Photo credit: The Safari Collection
While Pick A Safari has many child-friendly, family-oriented offerings, the Safari of the Senses Retreat is geared toward adults. This retreat is an escape from the clamor and the complex demands on your time that you experience in your everyday routine.
You and your retreat companions on this co-ed adventure (your choice of shared or private rooms — couples are welcome!) will experience a land of incomparable wildness and beauty. You’ll spend your days there taking in the sights, sounds, scents, and tastes of Africa. Your schedule will include times of discovery, as you reach out to grasp all that Kenya has to offer, and tranquil moments of reconnection and peace as you relax and reflect.
See and hear elephants, big cats, and other wildlife, some of which can’t be found anywhere else on Earth. Taste and smell the cuisine of the land, touch intricate beadwork and carvings, feel the gentle nudge of a curious giraffe. The Safari of the Senses Retreat will take you beyond the confines of your day-to-day life into a culture and landscape you must experience firsthand to truly understand.
On this incredible journey, you’ll stay at Giraffe Manor and meet its four-legged residents, take game drives to see animals you’ve only ever read about before, have meals in the bush with dedicated guides, go on a hot air balloon ride, luxuriate on a gorgeous beach, and more.
From the moment you arrive in Nairobi, Pick A Safari will be there, ready to care for you after your long journey to reach Africa. You'll be picked up by a private car for the relaxing drive to Giraffe Manor, where you'll be greeted with a welcome drink. Then you can unwind further, perhaps have a massage or take a dip in the infinity pool. You've begun your retreat — this time is for you, a time to luxuriate in the loveliness and peace of your surroundings.
You’ve ventured outside of your everyday world into a magical place of breathtaking sight, sound, scent, taste, and touch. You have set foot in a land of rich culture and unmistakable natural splendor. And now you have the chance to reset, to relax, and to be renewed.
Giraffe Manor: Your First Destination
Your stay in Kenya begins at Giraffe Manor, built in 1932 to resemble a Scottish hunting lodge and now well established as a boutique hotel. Located on 115 acres stretching to Nairobi’s southern border along the Mbagathi River, this estate has been a sanctuary for endangered Rothschild’s giraffes since the 1970s. Its then-owners, Betty and Jock Leslie-Melville, relocated these gentle giants to provide them with a safe habitat and began a tradition of conservation that continues to this day.
Here, giraffes freely wander the estate—and may even join you at your breakfast. These lovely, quiet animals are safe and content here in their beautiful sanctuary. To learn more about Giraffe Manor’s history, read Raising Daisy Rothschild by Betty Leslie-Melville, which chronicles the story of baby Daisy, the first giraffe adopted by the estate. (This book also inspired the film The Last Giraffe.) Today, Daisy IV, born in August 2009, continues the legacy.
Photo credit: The Safari Collection
But there’s more to Giraffe Manor than its iconic residents. Giraffe Center, within walking distance of the Manor, is ideal for day visitors and will educate and illuminate with information on Kenya and the efforts to conserve its unique wildlife. A raised platform provides you with the opportunity to meet the giraffes up at their level, to touch, hand-feed, and interact with them. You can also explore a 2-kilometer nature trail for an immersive walk that showcases the beauty of this precious place of preservation and conservation. Don’t miss the tea house and restaurant for a taste of Nairobi’s culinary delights and a sampling of popular Kenyan food.
For ultimate relaxation, The Retreat at Giraffe Manor offers hot tubs, an infinity pool, a gym, a sauna, and a range of spa treatments, from massages to body wraps. This exquisite escape, just eighty meters from the main house, will let you luxuriate in the feeling of being pampered and refreshed.
And you’ll have plenty of time to savor the quiet during this blissful escape from ordinary life, relishing the natural environment and reveling in the chance for journaling, meditation, or yoga — or just to unwind and soften the edges that your day-to-day routine has carved.
Photo credit: The Safari Collection
During your three-night stay, enjoy the estate’s tranquil setting, play croquet, savor afternoon tea, and immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, tastes, and scents of this unique haven. Giraffe Manor is an unforgettable experience and just the beginning of your Safari of the Senses Retreat.
David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage: A Heartwarming Interlude
Before continuing on to your next destination, make a stop at David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage in Nairobi. Witness baby elephants being bottle-fed, playing with abandon, and thriving under the care of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, the world’s most successful orphan elephant rescue and rehabilitation program. This vital sanctuary preserves one of Earth’s most majestic creatures, and your visit supports their mission.
The Adventure Continues: Solio Lodge and Aberdare National Park
Next, you'll head to The Safari Collection's Solio Lodge, where early morning game drives offer the chance to see Kenya’s precious wildlife. Spot lions, leopards, elephants, East African wild dogs, giant forest hogs, bushbuck, mountain reedbuck, waterbuck, Cape buffalo, suni, side-striped jackals, eland, duiker, olive baboons, black and white colobus monkeys, and sykes monkeys. Rarer sightings include those of the African golden cat and the bongo.
Sundowners and breakfasts in the bush allow you to decompress while enjoying the serene landscape. These moments in nature celebrate the tastes, scents, and textures of the land, and allow you time to bask in its serenity and reflect on your place in it.
Visit the Aberdare National Park, 766-square-kilometers of mountain range with peaks and valleys ranging from 6,600 ft to 13,000 ft. As well as containing diverse waterways: The Chania river is known for its scenic Chania Falls. The Karura River flows through the forested areas of the park. The Gura River is home to the stunning Gura Falls, one of the tallest waterfalls in Kenya. The Magura River is a lesser-known river flowing through the park. And the Amboni River contributes to the park's unique ecosystem.
You'll explore this vast terrain by walking, horse riding or mountain biking, taking in the feel of the breeze and the smell of the local flora and fauna as you go. Then you will wrap up your excursion with a local farm tour or school visit which will provide insight into African agriculture and a way of life rooted in centuries of history.
Further Adventure Possibilities: Diani
Would you like to turn your eight days and seven nights into eleven days and ten nights? Pick A Safari offers an optional extension to your time in Africa on the Safari of the Senses Retreat: three days in Diani, where the breathtaking sight of the coast will entice you. You’ll head to Diani Beach and relax on the shore with the scent of the ocean breeze and the touch of the sun on your skin providing an atmosphere of relaxation and serenity.
During your stay, you’ll have time to swim in the Indian Ocean, explore coral reefs, take a tour of the Marine Park, visit the charming town of Ukunda, peruse the local crafts, and savor the amazing coastal cuisine.
Imagine having more time for the peace and stillness you crave, more moments of peace and repose. This is a precious chance to be renewed and restored.
A Journey That Stays With You
You cannot remain untouched after the Safari of the Senses Retreat. Immersing yourself in Kenya’s culture, landscape, and serenity will leave you with a newfound love for the land and its wonders. This journey offers a rare glimpse into a vibrant, precious world vastly different from your own.
Join us for the Safari of the Senses Retreat and step into the most deeply engaging adventure you’ve ever had.
Written by Tina Harmuth
