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Borana Conservancy
Fence-free rhino country in Laikipia, best met on horseback.
- Type
- Private wildlife conservancy
- Region
- Laikipia, on the western edge of the Mount Kenya highlands
- Altitude
- High country, broadly around 1,900 m
- Best for
- Black rhino, riding and walking safaris, low-density exclusivity
- Key feature
- Fence-free with neighbouring Lewa as one rhino landscape
Borana is a private conservancy in the high country of Laikipia, on the western flank of the same Mount Kenya highlands that shape its better-known neighbour. Old ranching land turned over to wildlife, it rolls across open grassland, acacia woodland and rocky kopjes, with long views west towards the Aberdares and, on a clear morning, the jagged peaks of Mount Kenya to the east. It is a working conservation landscape rather than a busy safari park, and it feels it: low on vehicles, big on space.
What sets Borana apart is that it no longer stands alone. The internal fence between Borana and the adjacent Lewa Wildlife Conservancy was taken down, joining the two into a single, unbroken rhino habitat that animals — and especially rhino — range across freely. A founding population of black rhino was brought to Borana specifically to give the species more room, and that founding purpose still defines the place: this is one of the more important black rhino landscapes in Kenya.
Borana is also one of the best riding destinations on the continent. The terrain, the open country and the conservancy's long horse tradition make this a place where you genuinely meet the wildlife from the saddle rather than only through a windscreen — alongside walking, mountain biking and classic drives. It rewards travellers who want a quieter, more active and more personal safari, and who care about the conservation story underneath it.
What you come here for
Rhino across an open landscape
Borana was created to give black rhino more room, and you track them across open country rather than dense thicket — often on foot or horseback, which makes for an unusually intimate encounter with a famously elusive animal.
Riding among wildlife
This is one of Africa's premier riding conservancies. Confident riders can canter alongside plains game and approach herds far more quietly than any vehicle, covering ground that drives never reach.
Walking the fence-free corridor
Because Borana and Lewa share one unbroken habitat, walking here means moving through a genuinely wild, connected landscape with an armed guide, reading tracks and dung at ground level.
Low-density exclusivity
With very few beds across a large area, you rarely see another vehicle. Off-road driving, night drives and flexible timings — none of them possible in a national park — are all on the table.
Big-country views
The conservancy's ridges and kopjes open onto long views towards Mount Kenya and the Aberdares, with sundowners on a rock as the light goes gold a recurring highlight.
The wildlife of Borana Conservancy
Black rhino
The reason Borana exists; a founding population of black rhino was brought in and, fence-free with Lewa, the conservancy now forms part of one of Kenya's most significant strongholds for the species.
White rhino
The larger, square-lipped grazer is also present across the joined landscape, generally easier to approach out on open grassland than its browsing black cousin.
Reticulated giraffe
Its crisp, net-like coat patterning is unmistakable — a signature species of the Laikipia and northern circuit.
Grevy's zebra
The endangered northern zebra, taller and finer-striped with rounded mule-like ears, ranges across this landscape alongside the common plains zebra.
Elephant
Herds move through Borana and across protected corridors linking the highlands, part of a wider population that ranges well beyond the conservancy.
Lion
Resident prides hunt the plains game; predator viewing benefits from off-road access and the option of night drives.
Beisa oryx
A handsome arid-country antelope with long straight horns and bold facial markings, at home in this dry highland country.
Reticulated giraffe and gerenuk
Northern specialities turn up here too, including the gerenuk, the long-necked antelope that browses standing upright on its hind legs.
Ways to experience the park
Riding safaris
Borana's standout activity, run from a large stable of horses graded by ability — from gentle outings to long, fast days for experienced riders, moving quietly among plains game and rhino country.
Walking safaris
Guided bush walks with an armed ranger across the fence-free landscape, reading the smaller signs the vehicle misses.
Game drives
Day and night drives with off-road freedom and very few other vehicles, focused on rhino, predators and the wider Laikipia game.
Mountain biking
The open, undulating terrain suits cycling, a rare safari activity that lets you cover ground under your own steam with a guide.
Conservation visits
Time with rangers, the rhino-monitoring and anti-poaching teams, or community projects, giving the conservation story real substance.
Sundowners & bush dining
The kopjes and ridgelines make natural spots for drinks at dusk and occasional meals out in the landscape.
The best months, and the weather right now
Borana is rewarding year-round, sitting in relatively dry, high country that holds up well even in the wetter months. The drier spells from roughly June to October, and again from December to March, give the easiest driving and riding, thinner vegetation and wildlife drawn to water. The long rains around April and May bring greener scenery, lower visitor numbers and some muddy tracks, with afternoon downpours that can interrupt activities. Whatever the season, mornings and evenings are genuinely cool at this altitude — a warm layer is essential for early rides and drives.
Indicative pattern for Kenya's safari circuit. The long rains (around March–May) and short rains (around November) shift year to year.
Borana lies in Laikipia, on the western side of the Mount Kenya highlands and immediately adjacent to Lewa. By road it is a long half-day from Nairobi, on good tarmac via Nanyuki, often broken with a stop on the equator, then a final stretch on conservancy tracks. Most travellers prefer to fly: scheduled light-aircraft services and charters from Nairobi's Wilson Airport reach the local airstrips in around an hour, which spares you the long transfer and lands you straight into the bush. The conservancy combines naturally with Lewa next door — effectively one landscape — and sits on a wider northern circuit with Ol Pejeta and the road towards Samburu and Meru.
Camps and lodges
Accommodation on Borana is deliberately limited to a small number of high-end, low-density properties, which is what keeps the conservancy quiet. Choices run from intimate classic safari lodges to exclusive-use family houses you take over entirely, several of them designed around riding and the conservation story. This is a premium, small-scale destination rather than a place of budget options or large lodges — if you want low cost or high volume, this is not it. Many stays are built around an active, all-inclusive rhythm of rides, walks and drives rather than passive game-viewing.
Where Wildtouch puts you in Borana Conservancy
Hand-picked places, from honest-value comfort to the region's finest. Every stay is quoted as part of your safari — never a fixed nightly rate.
Laragai House
A whole, fully staffed private safari residence on a 3,000 ft escarpment with staggering Mount Kenya views, complete with private guides, vehicles, horses, pool and tennis court for a single party.
View this lodge →Ultimate luxuryLengishu
An architect-designed house built into the hillside from materials sourced on site, so it sits almost invisibly in the landscape, taken on a sole-use basis within one of Kenya's most successful rhino sanctuaries.
View this lodge →Protecting Borana Conservancy
Borana's whole purpose is conservation. Former ranch land, it was established as a conservancy and stocked with a founding population of black rhino to give the species more secure space at a time when every additional safe acre matters. Its most significant step was removing the internal fence with neighbouring Lewa, joining the two into a single, larger rhino habitat that animals range across freely — a rare example of conservancies actively dismantling barriers to create one bigger, more resilient landscape. Tourism revenue and partnerships fund the rhino-monitoring and anti-poaching teams, and support schools, healthcare and water projects in the surrounding communities, on the principle that wildlife must pay its way for the people who live alongside it. The result is one of the more important black rhino landscapes in Kenya, held together by people as much as by habitat.
Parks that pair well with Borana Conservancy
Questions about Borana Conservancy
- Is Borana worth the detour, and who is it for?
- Borana suits travellers who want a quiet, active, conservation-led safari rather than a tick-list of big sightings. If riding, walking and seeing very few other vehicles appeal — and if reliable black rhino in open country excites you — it is well worth it. If you want the lowest cost, big herds of a classic migration park, or a purely vehicle-based trip, the northern parks may serve you better.
- Do I need to be a good rider to enjoy Borana?
- No. Borana is famous for riding and caters to experienced riders with long, fast days, but rides are graded by ability and gentler options exist for novices. Riding is also entirely optional — walking, drives and biking stand on their own — so non-riders are well looked after.
- What does fence-free with Lewa actually mean for my visit?
- The internal fence between Borana and Lewa was removed, so the two are managed as one connected habitat that wildlife moves across freely. In practice it means a much larger landscape, healthier rhino range, and itineraries that pair the two neighbours naturally as a single area rather than two separate stops.
- Will I see rhino?
- Borana was created as black rhino habitat and, joined with Lewa, sits in one of Kenya's stronger rhino landscapes, so sightings are good — and often on foot or horseback, which is special. As always with wildlife, nothing is guaranteed, and black rhino in particular can be elusive in the bush.
- What should I pack for the altitude?
- Borana sits high in the Mount Kenya highlands, so mornings and evenings are genuinely cold. Bring warm layers for early rides and drives alongside lighter clothing for the warm middle of the day, plus proper footwear if you plan to walk or ride.
Build Borana Conservancy into your safari
Sketch a route around it with the Wildtouch Safari Designer, then hand your plan to Jacob to make real.