The Real Story of Born Free, and a Park Without the Crowds
Meru sits northeast of Mount Kenya, a mix of riverine forest, swamps, doum palms and open plains, fed by thirteen rivers and springs running into the Tana River. It’s less visited than Kenya’s famous parks, which is exactly what makes it worth going.
The Born Free story. Conservationists George and Joy Adamson raised the orphaned lion cub Elsa here and released her back into the wild, the true story behind Joy’s best selling book and the film that followed. Elsa’s grave still sits on the park’s southern boundary.
The rhino sanctuary. A fenced 84 square kilometre sanctuary inside the park protects around 40 white rhino and 20 black rhino, one of only a handful of places in Kenya where you can reliably see both.
Almost no other vehicles. Meru receives far fewer visitors than the Mara or Amboseli. It’s entirely normal to watch wildlife without another safari vehicle in sight.
Mount Kenya on the horizon. The peak is visible from parts of the park, a striking backdrop to game drives and river walks.
Wildlife You’ll See on a Meru Safari
Meru offers the full Big Five experience, plus a few species you won’t find further south.
- Rhino, both black and white, protected in the park’s dedicated sanctuary
- Elephants, large herds gathering near rivers and open plains
- Lions, roaming the savanna, with cheetah and leopard also present, though leopard are rarely seen
- Buffalo, some of the largest herds in Kenya
- Grevy’s zebra, Beisa oryx and gerenuk, northern Kenya species also found in Meru’s drier eastern zones
- Reticulated giraffe and lesser kudu, alongside common plains game
- Over 300 bird species, including the Pel’s fishing owl and Somali ostrich
The Landscape
Meru mixes Commiphora and acacia bushland, open plains, swampland and belts of tropical riverine forest, cut through by thirteen rivers feeding the Tana. Adamson’s Falls and the Tana River are popular stops for walks, rafting and fishing.
How to Get to Meru National Park
Meru is further from Nairobi than most parks on this site, worth factoring into your itinerary.
By road from Nairobi. About 5 to 6 hours, roughly 350 kilometres, via Meru town.
By air. Airstrips within the park, we can arrange charter flights from Nairobi on request, cutting the journey to under an hour.
Best Time to Visit Meru National Park
June to October and January to February. The dry seasons, easier roads and reliable wildlife viewing around rivers and waterholes.
March to May and November to December. The rains bring tall grass and lush swampland, harder game viewing in places, but excellent birdlife and far fewer visitors than even Meru normally sees.