Activities and rules
Things to do in Tsavo
Game drives are the core, but Tsavo also officially offers walking safaris, night drives and balloon flights, all at published Kenya Wildlife Service rates.
Game drives
In Tsavo East the classic circuits run from Voi gate through Kanderi Swamp to Aruba Dam, and north past Mudanda Rock towards Lugard's Falls. In Tsavo West the drives loop around Mzima Springs, the Shetani lava flow and the Ngulia escarpment.
The rules are straightforward: driving between 06:00 and 18:00, no off-road driving at all, a 40 km/h speed limit, stay in your vehicle and keep twenty metres from wildlife.
Walking, night drives and balloons
Unusually for Kenya, all three are official activities with published fees. A walking safari costs $50 per person per day for groups of up to ten. A night game drive is $50 per person per trip. A balloon safari costs $80 per landing in park fees, on top of whatever the operator charges.
Animal tracking by prior arrangement is $20, and a warden's lecture $30 for a group, which is a genuinely good thing to book if you have children along.
The places to stop
- Mzima Springs in Tsavo West: a walking trail, hippos, crocodiles and an underwater viewing chamber.
- Mudanda Rock in Tsavo East: a 1,600-metre outcrop you can walk along, overlooking a dam that draws elephants all afternoon.
- Lugard's Falls: the Galana forced through a chasm narrow enough to straddle.
- Shetani lava flow and its caves, near Chyulu gate.
- Chaimu crater, climbable, and the Roaring Rocks and Poacher's Lookout viewpoints.
- Lake Jipe in the far south of Tsavo West, on the Tanzanian border: exceptional birding and elephants coming down to drink.
Rules worth knowing
- Gates open 06:00 and close 18:00 unless you are staying inside.
- Off-road driving is strictly prohibited and the 40 km/h limit is enforced.
- All Kenya Wildlife Service parks are single-use-plastic-free zones, so leave the bottled water behind and bring a refillable one.
- Drones need a licence from the civil aviation authority and cost $300 per drone per day per park.
- Prepay your fees online through KWSPay rather than assuming you can pay cash at the gate.