Women Only Safari in Kenya: The Complete Guide

A guest lands at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in the early afternoon, and Hellen Asiko, our Director and Guest Experience Curator, is waiting for her at arrivals. By the time she has checked in to the Wangari Maathai Wing at Sarova Panafric, unpacked and had a moment to breathe, the light is already turning gold outside. Before dinner, she walks out to the hotel gardens to plant a seedling, a small, quiet ceremony that opens every one of our women’s journeys. The Wangari Maathai Wing sits one floor above the lobby, six ensuite rooms, a female-only staff running from housekeeping to security, named for the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Most guests do not expect the ceremony. Most guests remember it years later.

We built our women only safari program because we kept hearing the same question from women travelling alone or in small groups: is Kenya safe for me? The honest answer is that Kenya’s licensed safari vehicles and camps are safe for all travellers. But safety is not the only thing a woman is weighing before she books a two week trip across an unfamiliar country. She is weighing comfort, ease and whether she will spend her holiday managing other people’s expectations of her instead of watching elephants beneath Kilimanjaro.

A women only safari removes that calculation entirely. Every driver-guide, every camp host and every hotel floor in our program is staffed by women. It is not a marketing label. Our guides hold the same KPSGA certification as Kenya’s top male guides, and being female is additional to that standard, not a substitute for it. This guide covers what a women only safari actually is, why women choose one, what it costs and what to expect, and it walks through three of our own itineraries in detail so you can see exactly what a week or two on the road with an all-female team looks like.

QUICK ANSWER | What is a women only safari? A women only safari is a Kenya safari staffed entirely by women, from driver-guides to camp hosts to a dedicated women-only hotel floor in Nairobi. It suits solo female travellers and private groups of friends who want a fully female service chain throughout their trip, not a mixed-gender group tour.

AT A GLANCE:

• Operator: Afrikan Accent Adventures, Nairobi-based, KATO and TRA-registered, established 2015
• Guiding: All-female, KPSGA-certified driver-guides throughout every featured itinerary
• Nairobi stay: Wangari Maathai Wing, Sarova Panafric, Kenya’s first hotel wing reserved solely for female guests
• Group style: Private, 2 to 6 guests, for the solo female traveller or your own group of companions
• Destinations covered: Amboseli, Samburu, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru and the Masai Mara
• Duration range: 7 to 8 days across the three featured itineraries
• Best season: Year-round for resident wildlife, July to October for the Great Wildebeest Migration
• Pricing: On request per person, priced individually against route, camps and group size

Key Highlights:

• An entirely female guiding and hosting team, from Nairobi welcome to final farewell
• A night on the women-only Wangari Maathai Wing before every safari begins
• Direct meetings with women driving conservation on the ground: Team Lioness rangers in Amboseli, Reteti’s Milk Mamas in Samburu, Maasai women-led enterprises in the Mara
• Three route options across Kenya’s best-known safari circuits
• A symbolic tree-planting in Nairobi honoring Wangari Maathai, Africa’s first female Nobel Peace Prize laureate

What Is a Women Only Safari?

A women only safari is a Kenya safari built around a fully female service chain. That means a female driver-guide for the entire trip, female camp and lodge hosts, and, in our program, a women-only floor for the Nairobi night that opens the journey. It is different from a general small group tour that happens to be popular with women, and different again from a ladies-only tour where the group is female but the guiding team is not.

The term covers a range of formats across the industry, from set-departure group tours with a fixed date and a busload of strangers, to fully private journeys built around one traveller or one group of friends. Ours are private. Your vehicle, your guide and your pace, entirely yours from start to finish, whether you are travelling alone or with three friends from home.

It is not a marketing label. Every guide is KPSGA-certified, the same professional qualification held by Kenya’s top male guides.

Why Choose a Women Only Safari in Kenya?

Women choose this format for reasons that go beyond a single safety concern. A trip built entirely around women changes the texture of the whole journey, not just who is holding the steering wheel.

• A female guide who reads your pace and adjusts the day without being asked
• Camp staff and hotel security who are themselves women, at every point of the trip
• Direct access to women leading conservation work on the ground, not just wildlife viewing from a distance
• Travelling companions self-selected by the format, other women on a similar journey for similar reasons
• A trip that can be built for one traveller or scaled for your own group of friends without losing the private, unhurried pace

QUICK ANSWER | Why choose a women only safari in Kenya? A women only safari removes the guesswork of travelling with strangers by putting an all-female team in every role, guide, driver and host. Kenya’s parks and camps are safe for all travellers, but a fully female service chain adds a layer of ease many women prefer, especially when travelling solo.

Is a Women Only Safari Safe?

Kenya’s licensed safari operators, KATO-registered vehicles and established camps are safe environments for travellers of any gender, and that baseline does not change because a trip is marketed as women only. What a women only safari adds is not a different level of physical security so much as a different experience of the trip: there is no point on the route where you are relying on the presence of men you have not chosen to travel with.

That distinction matters in practice. A solo woman on a mixed-gender group tour may be the only woman in a vehicle of eight strangers for two weeks. On our itineraries, the guide beside you, the person checking you into camp and the woman handling your room key at the Wangari Maathai Wing are all part of a deliberately built female team. JKIA airport transfers, road transfers between camps, early morning game drive pick-ups: every one of those moments is handled by a woman you can trust because she has done this job for years, not because of a badge on a brochure.

QUICK ANSWER | Are women only safaris safe? Yes. Kenya’s licensed safari vehicles and camps are safe for all travellers, and a women only safari adds a fully female guide, driver and host team plus a women-only Nairobi hotel floor, so you are never relying on men you have not chosen to travel with.

Benefits of Travelling With Other Women

On a private women only itinerary you can travel entirely alone, but most of our guests bring at least one companion, or meet fellow travellers through set departures like the Women of the Wild route. There is a particular ease to a shared sundowner with women who understand exactly why you booked this kind of trip in the first place.

Evenings built around this format tend to run differently too. Campfire conversation naturally turns toward the guides themselves, women who moved into a profession still largely led by men, and the Maasai and Samburu women running the community enterprises visited along the route. Guests describe these evenings, not the game drives, as the part of the trip they talk about most when they get home.

WOMEN CONNECT Every featured itinerary includes a visit to a women-led community enterprise, whether that is a Maasai women’s craft cooperative near the Mara, a Samburu beadwork collective in the north, or an evening feeding session with Reteti’s Milk Mamas. These are working visits with real income attached, not staged photo stops.

Female Safari Guides and the Safari Experience

Every driver-guide on our women only itineraries holds full KPSGA certification, the Kenya Professional Safari Guides Association qualification that governs guiding standards across the industry. That certification tests wildlife knowledge, bush driving skill and guest management, and it is identical whether the guide is a man or a woman. What changes on these itineraries is who holds it: an all-female team from your Jomo Kenyatta International Airport pick-up to your final Nairobi drop-off.

This matters for practical reasons beyond comfort. A guide who has spent years navigating this specific industry as a woman tends to anticipate questions a mixed team might not think to raise, from where to change discreetly on a bush breakfast stop to how to time a toilet break on a five-hour Rift Valley Road transfer. Small things, but they accumulate into a noticeably smoother trip.

Being female is additional to the KPSGA standard, not a substitute for it.

Best Destinations for a Women Only Safari in Kenya

Our three featured women only itineraries cover five of Kenya’s strongest safari destinations, and each combination suits a slightly different traveller.

Amboseli

Amboseli National Park sits beneath Mount Kilimanjaro and holds some of Africa’s largest surviving elephant herds. It is also home to Team Lioness, East Africa’s first all-female wildlife ranger unit, whose patrols protect the same elephants you will spend two days photographing.

Samburu (Shaba National Reserve)

North of the equator, Shaba National Reserve and the wider Samburu ecosystem hold species found almost nowhere else in Kenya, the Samburu Special Five: Grevy’s zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich. It is quieter than the southern circuit and largely untouched by mass tourism.

Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru

The Great Rift Valley lakes offer a gentler introduction to safari. Naivasha’s lodge grounds are unfenced, with giraffe and zebra grazing the fairways, and a boat ride brings you close to hippo pods and dense birdlife. Lake Nakuru National Park protects a closely guarded rhino sanctuary, tree-climbing lions and, in season, dense flamingo flocks.

Masai Mara

Every one of our women only itineraries closes with multiple nights in the Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya’s flagship wildlife destination and the stage for the Great Wildebeest Migration between July and October. Camps range from Zebra River Camp to Mara Elatia in the Mara Triangle to Sarova Mara Game Camp.

QUICK ANSWER | Best destinations for a women only safari Amboseli, Samburu and the Masai Mara are the strongest destinations for a women only safari in Kenya, each paired with the Rift Valley lakes of Naivasha and Nakuru. Amboseli offers elephants beneath Kilimanjaro, Samburu offers rare northern species, and the Masai Mara anchors every route.

Best Time to Visit

Amboseli, Samburu, Naivasha and Nakuru all offer strong resident wildlife year-round, so a women only safari built around those parks works in any season. July through October adds the Great Wildebeest Migration and Mara River crossings to your nights in the Masai Mara, with the heaviest crossing activity typically in August and September. If clear views of Mount Kilimanjaro from Amboseli matter to you, the dry seasons of June to October and January to February give the best odds.

QUICK ANSWER | Best time for a women only safari in Kenya Kenya’s resident wildlife is strong year-round, so any month suits a women only safari. July to October adds the Great Wildebeest Migration to your Masai Mara nights, with peak Mara River crossing activity in August and September, and the clearest Kilimanjaro views over Amboseli.

Women Only Safari for Solo Travellers

Every featured itinerary is built as a private, solo-friendly journey, not a fixed-departure tour where you are matched with strangers. Solo travellers have the vehicle and guide entirely to themselves, or may invite their own companions to travel together. A single supplement applies for solo travellers; ask us for current rates against your chosen route and dates.

For a first safari alone, the Rift Valley route to Lake Naivasha and the Masai Mara tends to suit best. It has the gentlest pace, fewer transfers, and three unhurried nights in one Masai Mara camp rather than moving lodges every night. Solo travellers with more time and an appetite for a quieter, less-visited landscape often prefer the Samburu route instead.

QUICK ANSWER | Women only safari for solo travellers Yes, all three featured itineraries are private and solo-friendly, with the vehicle and guide reserved entirely for you. A single supplement applies. First-time solo travellers often prefer the gentler Naivasha to Masai Mara route.

What to Expect on Safari

A typical day opens early. Breakfast before sunrise, a morning game drive while the light is soft and animals are most active, then a return to camp or lodge for lunch and a rest through the heat of early afternoon. A second game drive runs from around four o’clock until dusk, followed by dinner and, on Masai Mara nights, conversation around a fire under a genuinely dark sky.

Road days between destinations run longer, typically four to six hours with rest stops built in, since every featured itinerary is entirely road-based rather than flying between parks. Each route also builds in at least one cultural or conservation visit, a Team Lioness ranger meeting, a Samburu beadwork cooperative, an evening at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, or a Maasai women’s enterprise near the Mara, so the trip is not game drives alone.

QUICK ANSWER | What to expect on a women only safari Expect early starts, two game drives a day, a female driver-guide throughout, full-board camps and lodges, and at least one community or conservation visit led by women. Road transfers between parks run four to six hours with rest stops, since these itineraries travel by road, not light aircraft.

What to Pack

Pack light, neutral-coloured clothing in khaki, green or brown for game drives, along with comfortable closed-toe shoes for uneven ground at conservancy and cultural stops. A wide-brimmed hat, sunscreen and insect repellent are essential given the equatorial sun and dawn and dusk mosquito activity. Bring binoculars and a camera with spare batteries, since charging points can be limited at smaller tented camps. Evenings cool quickly at altitude and in the Rift Valley, so a light jacket or fleece earns its space in your bag.

How Much Does a Women Only Safari Cost?

Pricing for a women only safari in Kenya is quoted per person and varies with route, camp category and group size, so each of our three featured itineraries is priced individually on request rather than published as a flat rate. Costs are driven mainly by three factors: the number of nights, the camp or lodge tier chosen for each stop, and whether you are travelling solo, which carries a single supplement, or splitting a private vehicle across a small group.

What is included across all three itineraries: all road transfers with your all-female driver-guide, full board accommodation throughout, park and reserve entrance fees, and the signature community visits specific to each route. Not included: international flights, visa fees, travel insurance, tips, alcoholic beverages beyond camp inclusions, spa treatments and optional extras like a hot air balloon safari over the Masai Mara.

QUICK ANSWER | How much does a women only safari in Kenya cost? Pricing is quoted on request per person and depends on route, camp tier and group size. All three featured itineraries include road transfers, full board accommodation, park fees and community visits, with international flights, tips and optional extras like ballooning priced separately.

Featured Women Only Safari Experiences

We run three distinct women only itineraries, each with its own route, pace and signature destination. All three open with a night on the Wangari Maathai Wing at Sarova Panafric and close with a farewell lunch at the Carnivore restaurant in Nairobi, hosted by Hellen Asiko.

1. Female Safari Kenya: Amboseli & Masai Mara (8 Days / 7 Nights)

This route opens beneath Mount Kilimanjaro. Two nights at Ol Tukai Lodge in Amboseli National Park include a full day meeting Team Lioness, East Africa’s first all-female wildlife ranger unit, who patrol the ecosystem protecting the elephant herds you spend the day photographing. From there the route crosses the Rift Valley floor to Lake Naivasha for a night at Great Rift Valley Lodge, then to Sarova Lion Hill above Lake Nakuru, before closing with two intimate nights at Zebra River Camp inside the Masai Mara ecosystem.

• Route: Nairobi, Amboseli, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, Nairobi
• Main wildlife: Elephant herds beneath Kilimanjaro, rhino and tree-climbing lions at Nakuru, Big Five in the Mara
• Key experience: Meeting Team Lioness rangers in Amboseli
• Accommodation: Wangari Maathai Wing, Nairobi; Ol Tukai Lodge, Amboseli; Great Rift Valley Lodge, Naivasha; Sarova Lion Hill, Nakuru; Zebra River Camp, Masai Mara
• Best for: Travellers who want Kilimanjaro views and a direct conservation encounter with Amboseli’s ranger corps

See the full day-by-day route and current pricing on the Female Safari: Amboseli & Masai Mara itinerary page.

2. Rift Valley Women Only Safari: Naivasha & Masai Mara (7 Days / 6 Nights)

The gentlest of the three routes, and the one we recommend most often for a first safari. After a relaxed introduction at Lake Naivasha, including a boat ride past hippo pods and dense birdlife, the route continues to Lake Nakuru’s rhino sanctuary before settling into three unhurried nights at Mara Elatia, a tented camp inside the game-rich Mara Triangle. One fewer destination and one fewer transfer than the Amboseli route, with the same three full nights in one Masai Mara camp.

• Route: Nairobi, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara (Mara Triangle), Nairobi
• Main wildlife: Hippo and birdlife at Naivasha, rhino and flamingo at Nakuru, Big Five in the Mara Triangle
• Key experience: A sunrise game drive, bush breakfast and campfire storytelling over three full Mara nights
• Accommodation: Wangari Maathai Wing, Nairobi; Great Rift Valley Lodge, Naivasha; Lion Hill, Nakuru; Mara Elatia, Masai Mara
• Best for: First-time safari travellers and anyone wanting fewer transfers and a slower pace

Full details and current pricing are on the Women Only Safari: Naivasha & Masai Mara itinerary page.

3. Women’s Safari Kenya: Samburu & Masai Mara (8 Days / 7 Nights)

The most remote of the three, and the choice for a returning safari traveller. Two nights at Sarova Shaba in Shaba National Reserve open the route with the rare Samburu Special Five, Grevy’s zebra, reticulated giraffe, gerenuk, Beisa oryx and Somali ostrich, alongside a Samburu women’s beadwork cooperative visit and an evening feeding session with Reteti Elephant Sanctuary’s Milk Mamas. The route then runs south via Lake Nakuru to three unhurried nights at Sarova Mara Game Camp.

• Route: Nairobi, Shaba National Reserve (Samburu), Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, Nairobi
• Main wildlife: Samburu Special Five, rhino and flamingo at Nakuru, Big Five in the Mara
• Key experience: An evening milk-feeding session with Reteti Elephant Sanctuary’s Milk Mamas
• Accommodation: Wangari Maathai Wing, Nairobi; Sarova Shaba, Samburu; Lion Hill, Nakuru; Sarova Mara Camp, Masai Mara
• Best for: Travellers wanting a quieter northern circuit and rare species beyond the standard southern route

The full itinerary and current pricing are on the Women’s Safari: Samburu & Masai Mara itinerary page.

Compare the 3 Featured Safaris

	Amboseli & Masai Mara	Naivasha & Masai Mara	Samburu & Masai Mara
Duration	8 Days / 7 Nights	7 Days / 6 Nights	8 Days / 7 Nights
Signature stop	Team Lioness, Amboseli	Three nights, Mara Elatia	Reteti Milk Mamas, Samburu
Mara camp	Zebra River Camp (2 nights)	Mara Elatia (3 nights)	Sarova Mara Camp (3 nights)
Pace	Moderate, five stops	Gentlest, four stops	Moderate, four stops, longer road legs
Best for	Kilimanjaro views + conservation	First-time safari travellers	Returning travellers, rare species

Your vehicle, your guide and your pace: this journey is built for the solo female traveller or for the women you choose to bring along, entirely yours from start to finish.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best women only safari in Kenya?

The best choice depends on your priorities. For a first safari, the Rift Valley route to Lake Naivasha and Mara Elatia offers the gentlest pace with three unhurried Masai Mara nights. For Kilimanjaro views and a conservation focus, the Amboseli route featuring Team Lioness suits better. For a quieter, less-visited landscape, the Samburu route stands apart.

Are women only safaris safe?

Yes. Kenya’s licensed safari vehicles and camps are safe for all travellers. A women only safari adds a fully female guide, driver and camp host team, plus a women-only Nairobi hotel floor, so you are never relying on men you have not chosen to travel with.

Can I join a women only safari alone?

Yes. All three featured itineraries are private, and solo travellers have the vehicle and guide entirely to themselves or may invite their own companions. A single supplement applies for a private room throughout.

How much is a women only safari in Kenya?

Pricing is quoted on request per person and depends on route, camp tier and group size. Ask us for a quote against your preferred itinerary and travel dates.

What is included in a women only safari package?

All three featured itineraries include road transfers with an all-female driver-guide, full board accommodation, park and reserve entrance fees, and the signature community or conservation visit specific to that route. International flights, visa fees, tips and optional extras are not included.

Are women only safaris private or shared?

Our featured itineraries are private, for 2 to 6 guests, with your own vehicle and guide throughout. Set-departure options with fixed dates are also available for travellers who want to meet other women on the same route.

Are the safari guides actually women?

Yes. Every driver-guide across all three itineraries is female and holds full KPSGA certification, the same professional qualification held by Kenya’s top male guides. Being female is additional to that standard, not a substitute for it.

What should I wear on a women only safari?

Neutral-coloured clothing in khaki, green or brown, comfortable closed-toe shoes, a wide-brimmed hat and a light jacket for cool evenings. Bright colours and heavy perfume are best avoided on game drives, since they can unsettle wildlife.

What is the best month for a Kenya safari?

Kenya’s parks offer strong resident wildlife year-round. July to October adds the Great Wildebeest Migration to Masai Mara nights, with peak Mara River crossings typically in August and September, while June to October and January to February give the clearest Kilimanjaro views over Amboseli.

Which is better for women, Masai Mara, Amboseli or Samburu?

All three appear across our featured routes rather than standing alone, since every itinerary closes with multiple Masai Mara nights. Amboseli adds Kilimanjaro views and Team Lioness, Samburu adds rare northern species and a quieter circuit, and the Masai Mara anchors every route with the strongest Big Five viewing.

Can a women only safari be arranged for my own group of friends?

Yes. Any of the three featured itineraries can be run privately for your own group of friends, a milestone celebration or a corporate women’s retreat, on a date of your choosing. Ask us about departures and group rates.

Plan Your Women Only Safari with Afrikan Accent Adventures

This guide has covered what a women only safari is, why women choose one, how Kenya’s safety picture actually holds up, and what three of our own itineraries look like day by day, from Amboseli’s Team Lioness rangers to Samburu’s Milk Mamas to three unhurried Masai Mara nights at Mara Elatia. What we have not covered is your specific dates, your budget and which camps suit you best, and that conversation is where we come in.

As a Nairobi-based, KATO and TRA-registered operator running these routes since 2015, Afrikan Accent Adventures can adjust any of the three featured itineraries, extend a route, swap a camp tier, or build a private departure for your own group of friends around the same all-female team. The best way to work out what fits you is a direct conversation, not a checkout page, so speak to Hellen Asiko, our Director and Guest Experience Curator, and book a free consultation. She will help you match a route, a season and a camp tier to what you actually want from this trip. The tree-planting ceremony that opens every one of our women’s journeys is still waiting for you at the Wangari Maathai Wing.

Your women only safari starts with a conversation, not a checkout page.