THE 10 CLOSEST Hotels to Sheldrick Wildlife Trust

You do need to pay for the park fee on arrival (about 43USD) and reserve your tickets to sheldrick nursery online by proving names and amounts of or adults and children attending. Entrance is paid on arrival to Sheldrick (20 USD in cash in 2024). They’ll have your name and number of people on a clipboard as you arrive. (This can’t be done day of). The feeding is from 11am-noon. There is rope separating you from the elephants but there is ample room to see. The speaker is on a mic so you hear all about each elephant. There were two groups of 10 each to receive bottles and mud baths as you watch them play and learn about them. Afterwards there is a gift areas where you can purchase a year sponsorship of an elephant(for 50USD). Since you need to pay the park fee I suggest you booking a safari ride and having them then drop you off at Sheldrick. They do wonderful work with elephants and it’s all perfectly orchestrated. It’s fun for kids and adults but is was mainly adults and in pure sun so make sure to have a hat or sunglasses and water. If you do a safari it will be a 6am-ish pick up so this whole adventure is only half a day.

If you love elephants this is the place to go. You get to see a few groups of ~10 baby elephants being fed, playing and taking mud baths for an hour. It was a magical moment when the elephants started to run to the pit from the forest. You get to be really close to them and even give a pat on their back. At the same time a guide will tell the background story of the shelter and each elephant. He will even introduce all of them by name. After the event you have the chance to adopt an orphan elephant for a yearly cost of $50. A few things that might be useful to know in advance: - Make a pre-booking for the tickets by email. There place seems to be very popular and it’s open to visitors only at 11 am daily (the event lasts for an hour). - You can take an uber there and the driver can drive you all the way to the shelter. - At the gate you have to pay the National Park entrance fee which is around $45 for non-resident adults. They accept the payment only via eCitizen online service. I didn’t manage to register but you can use your driver’s account to pay. It might be handy to combine the shelter visit with a morning safari so you get both with the same entrance fee. - At the shelter you have to pay $20 for the visit and they only accept cash! - We visited during the rainy season and the pit was very muddy so bring shoes that suit the conditions. - There isn’t any drinking water available so bring your own.

The David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage is a definite must do when in Nairobi. The elephant orphanage is the best iv visited, professionally managed and excellently presented. It is located within Nairobi National Park with the 1 hr activity starting at 11. As a result in addition to the Sheldrick Orphanage fee of $20 you need to pay a Nairobi NP fee of $45 pp. Accordingly it is good to combine with a Nairobi NP tour either before or after. If afterwards it does mean you should buy any snacks / drinks to tide you through the afternoon safari before entering the park as any reentry to the park costs an additional $45 fee Booking is required and you should ensure you are there in advance to ensure a good standing spot near the mud baths During the course of 1 hour you are introduced to the resident elephants. In our case this was 19 elephants split into 2 groups. The presenter provides the fascinating back story of each individual plus clearly explains the background and purpose of the trust The elephants each get a large bottle of milk when they come in before frolicking in the water and dirt / mud. They are clearly having fun. A great spot to stand is approx in the middle opposite the path, the elephants enter in and near the water. There will be plenty of photo opportunities! When you exit you can chose to adopt any of the specific elephants you met. The whole experience is very professionally managed and a must do when in Nairobi. Very highly recommended.

We stopped here after touring Nairobi National Park until 10:45 am or so. The program regarding the orphaned elephants is from 11:00 to 12:00. The elephants are very entertaining and the emcee provided a lot of information about the orphanage and the individual elephants. I thought the program was excellent. It’s also significantly better than the nearby Giraffe Center which I thought was a waste of time. Note that the elephants can only be seen from 11-12:00 and tickets should be purchased in advance. Highly recommended.

Like many visitors, I obsessively followed the Sheldrick instagram account for months before my visit for the lunch time bottle feeding. I made my ticket reservations three months ahead of time and went with three friends. I knew it was a ticketed event to limit guests, so was surprised to see about 100-150 people there for the feeding. It's a large fenced area with some elevated seating (important to me, because I use a cane and couldn't stand for the whole hour). People were generally generous with time on the fence closest to the elephants and were good at sharing time close up on the day I was there. The head keeper tells the story of every orphan during the feedings and you may even get a chance to touch an elephant. On the way out, you can adopt an elephant or visit the gift store.

This is an outstanding organization dedicated to saving the lives of orphaned baby elephants. For one hour each day a limited number of guests get up close and personal with the orphan baby elephants. A narrator presents the story of each orphan and then they are given bottles of milk. Advance tickets are a must as it is once a day with limited guests. A must while in Nairobi!

The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is a haven for rescued elephants, where their playful nature shines even on rainy days. On this particular visit, the elephants were in their element, embracing the wet weather with enthusiasm. They reveled in the mud, rolling, splashing, and covering themselves in a protective coat. The rain seemed to bring out their most joyful behavior, reminding everyone of their spirited and intelligent personalities. Watching them playfully interact with each other and the environment was a heartwarming experience, showcasing the Trust's incredible work in giving these gentle giants a safe and nurturing home.

Orphange was amazing. Getting into Kenya National Park was a nightmare and cost us over 100 USD before we even got to the orphanage and paid for that. We had to pay for the park entrance on line and that was also challenging as we had to pay for ourselves in the first transaction, then the driver of the car in a second and then his car in a third transaction. Then we had to wait in an extremely long line at the gate while they confirmed we had paid. The cost to get into the park made me think twice about visiting Sheldrick - but seeing the baby elephants is a must do.

The set up here allows visitors to get up close to the elephants so it's a very interactive experience. We really enjoyed gently touching the elephants and watching them play together, roll about in the mud piles and see how the keepers feed them with huge milk bottles. Little Raha the baby girl black rhino was also adorable, she appeared first before the elephants arrived, strolling in over the field and into the viewing area. There was a long talk given by one of the keepers who gave some insights into how the elephants are cared for, how they have ended up in the orphanage, background on how the orphanage started and also learned about each of the individual elephants. There is an opportunity to by clothes and gifts etc although we did find it a bit pricey. There is a board on display which has a summary of each of the elephants history and explains about their little personalities and why some of them are friends with each other ie. If they joined the orphanage at the same time. It's a very memorable and enjoyable experience, definitely worth doing. Note that visit times are 1hr per day, 11am to 12pm so advisable to book ahead of your visit in Nairobi.

We visited the Sheldrick facility inside of the Nairobi National Park on our first day in Nairobi. What an amazing way to start a very memorial trip. The baby rhinoceros was heart warming to see how they saved her and are nursing her back to health. The over 20 baby elephants were beautiful. They got close enough for us to pet them. The experience of a life-time. The blind rhino is an amazing story saving an animal from a certain death. He was an amazing animal as well. We adopted a baby elephant while we were there and we had to pull each other from the gift shop. So very amazing.