Meru County, eastern Kenya
Meru National Park
Thirteen rivers, doum palm and open grassland east of Mount Kenya, with very few vehicles and a rhino sanctuary within the park.
- Best for
- Solitude, repeat visitors, birding
- Best months
- June – September, January – February
- Suggested stay
- 2 – 3 nights
- From Nairobi
- 1-hr flight or 6 hours by road
Why go
Meru is greener than you expect. Thirteen rivers run off the Nyambene Hills through the park, so there is water and therefore grass and therefore game, even when the country around is dry. Doum palms line the watercourses and the Tana river forms the southern boundary.
It is best known as the place George and Joy Adamson released Elsa the lioness, the story behind Born Free. The park suffered badly from poaching in the 1980s, was rebuilt from close to nothing, and is now well protected and genuinely lightly visited. You can go a whole morning without meeting another vehicle.
Who Meru suits
Meru is not a first safari. Wildlife is spread across a large area and the vegetation is thick in places, so you work for sightings. What you get in return is solitude of a kind the Mara cannot offer at any price.
It is ideal for a second or third trip to Kenya, for photographers who want landscape as well as animals, and for anyone whose idea of a bad day is queueing at a leopard sighting.
The rhino sanctuary
A fenced sanctuary within the park holds both black and white rhino and is the reliable part of a Meru game drive. Elsewhere in the park, sightings are earned.
What you will see
- Black and white rhino in the park’s fenced sanctuary
- Elephant, lion, leopard and cheetah, at lower density and harder won
- Reticulated giraffe, Grevy’s zebra, Beisa oryx and lesser kudu
- Excellent birding along thirteen permanent rivers
Where to stay
- A small number of lodges and tented camps, several of them riverside. Choice is limited, which is part of why it stays quiet.
- Simple bandas and campsites for travellers on a tight budget.
We do not publish camp names as recommendations
Which camp is right depends on your dates, your budget and how you feel about other vehicles — and availability changes weekly. Tell us those three things and our Kenya specialist names specific camps in your quote, with the reasons.
Getting there
- Fly: about an hour from Nairobi Wilson.
- Drive: around six hours from Nairobi, or a shorter hop from Laikipia or Samburu.
Questions
Meru: common questions
Is Meru safe to visit?
The park is well protected now, and camps operate normally. As with anywhere in Kenya, check your own government’s current travel advice for the region before booking — northern and eastern Kenya advice varies by county and does change.
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