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The Elewana Collection is a carefully curated collection of 15 camps, lodges and hotels, each one selected for their unique accommodation, their iconic locations, and for providing close access to all the drama and spectacle of African wildlife in exceptional comfort. Elewana's environmental and social philosophy is integral to the business. All camps and lodges have been designed to have as little impact as possible on their surroundings. Many camps employ state-of-the-art power systems, with solar and power-storage technology to ensure minimal emissions and fuel use. 50-75% of camp staff are from the local communities, ensuring many families enjoy a steady income. And whenever possible, food and supplies are sourced locally to ensure the surrounding communities feel the benefits of tourism on a commerce level.

Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge - Arusha

A welcoming retreat of aromas, gourmet food and vibrant gardens, the perfect start or end to an African safari. Situated on the fertile grounds of a coffee plantation, Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge is a peaceful sanctuary right on the doorstep of Arusha city.

The lodge is made up of a main area incorporating a spa, swimming pool, restaurant and a café bistro. The rooms and suites have views of the surrounding gardens. Reminiscent of traditional plantation houses outside, the rooms and suites are modern and spacious inside. All furnishings and amenities were designed with comfort in mind. Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge combines the warmth of an African welcome with the familiarity of a boutique hotel.

Guests can partake in a coffee tour, showing the process that brings a coffee bean from 'tree to cup'. The tour culminates in an all-important tasting of the farm's coffee blends. Guests can also visit Traders Walk, a collection of 5 on site boutiques including Shanga, run by Tanzanians with disabilities who produce beautiful arts and crafts. There is a Tanzanite Centre and the Soko Giftshop that is stocked with all sorts of wonderful gifts. Finally relax at Kahawa, a Coffee shop with freshly brewed coffee and delicious home-baked cakes.

Elewana The Manor at Ngorongoro - Karatu

As unique in character as its idyllic locale, this Cape-Dutch style homestead provides a relaxing and stylish ambiance. Elewana The Manor at Ngorongoro, with its luxurious cottages and magnificent Manor House, brings "old-world" grandeur to a green and lush setting. Think cigars and brandy, elegant fine dining, and post-dinner snooker.

Elewana The Manor is one of the most lavish properties on the safari circuit; the rooms are cottage suites within the manicured gardens, and each suite has a sitting room, fireplace and enormous bathroom. A luxurious safari base with a spa, swimming pool and stable of horses to explore the surrounding coffee plantations and countryside. The Manor also arranges special picnics and sundowners within the estate and coffee tours for those interested in learning more about Tanzania's famous coffee trade.

The Manor is in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, containing the Ngorongoro Crater, which is often called 'Africa's Eden' and the '8th Natural Wonder of the World'. We are the only property currently able to provide a fully catered meal on the Crater floor. This area is without a doubt one of the most beautiful parts of Tanzania, steeped in history and teeming with wildlife.

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Nikolas Vounnou

After finishing his studies he was fortunate enough to be accepted into Royal Malewane's 2 year apprenticeship in 2008 under the guidance of two of Africa stalwart guides Juan Pinto and Craig McFarlane.

He is an enthusiastic and committed guide who has his National diploma in Nature Conservation. He is a FGASA Level III Professional Field Guide and youngest to obtain SKS DG. Nik is a Level III Tracker and SKS-Birding (National).

He has a passion and zest to expose guests to Africa, its wildlife and endless beauty especially whilst on foot.

Rudi Hulshof

With over 21 years of game lodge and hospitality industry experience, Rudi is constantly fine-tuning his passion for Guiding along with nature and wildlife photography. Starting as a guide in 1998 in the Waterberg area of South Africa, Rudi quickly moved through the training ranks to attain the highest South African guiding qualification available (SKS DA) by the end of 2000.

At Royal Malewane, Rudi upgraded his previous Guiding qualifications and since has completed all components to achieve the SKS DG qualification, completed in June 2017. Currently Rudi is in the final process to achieve two further specialist qualifications, SKS Birding and SKS Astronomy. Guiding has always been a passion that, in conjunction with Photography, has kept him motivated, and thus an inspiration to all his guests and peers.

The training conducted reinforced the earlier teachings that had been done in South Africa but now on home soil. This included rifle handling, awareness of the environment, different situations and how to manage not only the wildlife but the guests in the Guides’ care.

It has been wonderful to hear from our Walking Guides that the external training received has made such a difference and impact on how they conduct their bush walks. Now putting into practise what they learnt in South Africa, one of our Guides, Baraka said “It was our time to take a lead and they (Nik & Rudi) just observed, sometimes advising on how we could improve so that we can deliver the best experience to our guests.  I found things like maintaining a flow of walk by minimising stops will make guests feel the experience more.” In general our guides have gained from being able to share experience and knowledge. Our Head Guide at Elewana Tarangire Treetops confirmed “it is my expectations that this will not be the end, we have opened a new chapter between us.”

Our Elewana Walking Guides:

Moses Yahane (Elewana Head Guide) was born in Karatu where he grew up and did his schooling. He did not complete secondary schooling and started his first job in 1994, employed at Elewana Serengeti Migration Camp as a security guard. As time went on his passion for learning about the trees and birds in the area grew and during the day he would join the guides to learn all he could. The fig tree in the centre of the camp was planted by Moses in 1994, a year before the camp opened. Moses has been a guide for 21 years and loves the bush, constantly wanting to improve his skills and be the best.

Alex Kanunga was born and raised in Arusha, completing secondary school in 2003 and continuing his studies at Arusha African Wildlife Management College. His first job was helping out with safaris before joining Elewana in 2013, with over 12 years in the industry and of those 8 have been in guiding, his knowledge of the bush is extensive. Alex is known for his friendly smile and outgoing character and is passionate about guiding and sharing everything he knows with visitors. He is one of our top walking guides at Elewana Serengeti Migration Camp.

John Ngowi grew up in Kilimanjaro and did his schooling in the area. He went to College where he studied Wildlife Management. He then joined a research company for 2 years studying the breeding and biology of small passerines. After which he worked for different camps as a guide and in 2005 joined Elewana Collection, developing his skills while working in all our Tanzania camps. He has 8 years experience as a guide and continues to grow as his passion for wildlife and the outdoors is unmatched.

Elly Mamuya (Elewana Head Guide) was born in Kilimanjaro but his family soon moved to Manyara where he grew up and went to school. He studied wildlife in 1992 and got a diploma in Wildlife Management in 1994. He has worked for a couple of safari operators then in 2005 was employed by the government for 3 year as a warden. In 2009 joined Elewana as assistant manager but his passion was in guiding so requested to transfer. He has been a guide for 22 years, he does everything by the book and is dedicated to giving guests the best experience at Elewana Tarangire Treetops.

Baraka Mtallo was born in Kilimanjaro where he did his schooling then continued his studies in Wildlife Management in Arusha. He started working at Elewana Serengeti Migration Camp then moved between the properties before ending up at Elewana Tarangire Treetops. With 12 years in the industry, of which 8 are as a Guide and has become a skilled individual who knows the bush and its secrets. He is friendly and gets on well with everyone.

Born and raised in Kilimanjaro, Stanford Shao went to Dar e salam once he completed secondary education to attend Hotel School. Once he finished his studies he worked in the hospitality industry but did part time guiding for a number of years. He joined Elewana Collection in 2005 and has worked hard to build his reputation as a key member of the team. He is a confident individual that is outgoing and has a wealth of information to share with guests.

The Elewana Collection is fully committed to continuous guide training in both Kenya and Tanzania iin order to achieve our goal - that our guests enjoy exceptional and safe safari experiences with our guides, while exploring and discovering East Africa’s many beautiful areas.

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Managing a conservancy as vast and diverse as Loisaba in a challenging landscape with limited resources can be a challenge. To do this effectively we have to be ‘Smart’ – literally. SMART stands for Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool, which is a specifically developed protected area management tool designed to measure, evaluate and improve the overall effectiveness of law enforcement patrols. In doing so protected area managers, such as Loisaba Conservancy CEO Tom Silvester are provided with the necessary information to make adaptive management decisions.

Loisaba Conservancy started the SMART journey with assistance from Space for Giants and the Zoological Society of London. Amos trains rangers in the use of a simple mobile phone App called Cybertracker, which is essentially the data collection vehicle for SMART. Today, every patrol group on the conservancy is hard at work collecting critical information on wildlife sightings and potential threats (e.g. snares and/or poaching) to wildlife. The phones that the rangers use are GPS enabled thereby making it possible to gather real time data from the patrol teams (e.g. distance patrolled, hours patrolled etc.) where they recorded sightings and threat and possibly most importantly, what the blind spots are on the conservancy.

Every week, Loisaba’s Conservation Officer visits each patrol base and downloads the data onto a computer. Together with input from the Space for Giants team a weekly report is created giving management a spatial view of what is happening on the conservancy and this is then discussed by the Senior to take appropriate action. SMART is proving to be a ‘game-changer’ and is going to help Loisaba develop into one of the leading conservancies in the landscape.

All profits generated by tourism activities at Elewana Loisaba Tented Camp and Elewana Star Beds are dedicated to the conservation of the 56,000-acre private wilderness area, known as Loisaba Conservancy. We encourage our guests to visit the Conservation Centre to learn about the various projects that are ongoing and vital to the success of this area.

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For guests staying at Elewana Arusha Coffee Lodge there is an exciting and informative 'Coffee Tour' for anyone who wishes to learn the fascinating cycle of the coffee bean. The Tour takes place within the grounds of the Lodge, weaving in and out of the evergreen coffee bushes, the Coffee Guide explains how the bean is nurtured, harvested, dried and finally roasted to produce a myriad of different blends that sate the taste of the most ardent of coffee connoisseurs. And the best part of the sixty-minute tour is the preparation of the coffee for that all-important taste test. In full view of all, the coffee is roasted, then freshly ground and finally added to hot water, all three actions of which delivering aromas that awaken even the dullest of senses.

Elewana The Manor at Ngorongoro is situated on the Shangri-La Estate, home to Ngorongoro Mountain Coffee and located on the lush highlands of Northern Tanzania 1700 metres above sea level. Named after the famous novel “Lost Horizon” and rebought by a group of Danish Germans after being owned previously by the British after World War 2, the estate was revived in order to produce the renowned coffee that we have today. The crystal-clear untreated water from the forest along with the climate and exceptionally fertile volcanic soil all contribute to the vast growth and uniquely mild flavoured of the Mountain Coffee.

While staying at Elewana The Manor at Ngorongoro Guests can stroll through the plantation of Shangri-La farm, learning the history and everyday processes of coffee making followed by the "bean to cup" method. A traditional hand roasting station is setup to witness how coffee beans were roasted in the old days on a Jiko- or local Swahili stove. End the tour with estate cheese and charcuterie accompanied by sparkling wine set up in The Manor gardens.

The estates follow a traditional agro-forestry system whereby coffee is shade grown under mostly indigenous trees, maintaining the right balance between our productive and non-productive areas. The staff housing and villages provide secure homes for the workforce and their families, whilst areas not conductive for coffee growth are preserved, thereby merging ecologically and socially stringent standards in order to produce consistently superior coffee. All the coffee harvested is UTZ certified, showing consumers that products have been sourced from farm to shop to shelf, following the Code of Conduct where guidance for better farming methods, working conditions and care for nature is expertly offered. As well as this, the estates are also Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices certified, where rewards are given only to those who produce high quality sustainably grown coffee for Starbucks stores. By evaluating the economic, social and environmental aspects of coffee production, they ensure that Starbucks sources sustainably grow and process coffee while addressing the needs of all the participants in the supply chain from farmer to consumer. By also being Rainforest Alliance Certified, they are audited annually against a rigorous standard with detailed environmental, social and economic criteria, designed to protect biodiversity, deliver financial benefits to farmers, and foster a culture of respect for workers and local communities allowing coffee to grow in harmony with nature.

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Adamson retired as a wildlife warden in 1961 and devoted himself to raising lions who could not look after themselves and training them to survive in the wild. In 1970, he moved to the Kora National Reserve in northern Kenya to continue the rehabilitation of captive or orphaned big cats for eventual reintroduction into the wild.

Joy and George Adamson were undoubtedly two of the most celebrated champions of wildlife the world has ever known and Elsa the lioness, star of the best-selling book ‘Born Free’ written by Joy, the most famous lion. Filming Elsa’s life story began in Kenya, and the resulting Academy award-winning film was not only a smash hit, but a ground-breaking movie which captured the imagination of the world and redefined the meaning of wildlife conservation forever. George Adamson was a technical advisor and lion expert for the filming.

George and Joy forged a great friendship with Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers, who portrayed them in the film, and inspired the two actors into a life dedicated to wildlife conservation. They went on to establish the Born Free Foundation, which is still protecting wildlife today and is now managed by their son Will Travers.

On 20 August 1989, George Adamson was murdered near his camp in Kora National Park, by Somali bandits, when he went to the rescue of his assistant and a young European tourist. He was 83 years old. He is buried in the Kora National Park near his brother Terrance. Two lions are buried next to Adamson as well: Super Cub, and Mugi, a lion released in Kora after George's death.

Kora was designated a National Park with Kenyan Government protection in honour of his memory.

George Adamson’s legacy lives on with the work that the Born Free Foundation does and at Elewana Elsa’s Kopje where the Elewana Collection maintains a number of artefacts linked to his and Joy’s life on site. The Elsa’s Kopje  Managers are delighted to share his story and the amazing work he did in his life time.

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We are delighted to update you on the progress at the school and confirm that the third new classroom has been completed and work on the fourth classroom will commence shortly. The construction of the 80 bed boy’s dormitory will start this coming month so students will be able to live and work on campus, saving them hours of travel by foot and allowing some to attend school who previously have been unable to.

A further generous donation has been allocated to build a library, arts and crafts and science block, construction of which we hope will begin next year. This facility will provide the students with exposure to basic practical skills in order to explore new talents and encourage literacy and academic prowess. It is hoped that these new facilities will enable students to discover new interests that grant them access to opportunities that would otherwise be unattainable.

Guests staying at Elewana Tortilis Camp are welcome to visit the school and spend time with the children and contribute to the community.

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Elewana Kilindi Zanzibar is the ultimate romantic destination, the perfect place to enjoy the harmony of the ocean and spend time with the one you love. Set in a picturesque tropical garden with its secluded beachfront, the luxurious Pavilion suites embrace wide-arched glassless windows affording spectacular views over the Indian Ocean.

Each villa has its own private plunge pool and is tended to by its own Guest Ambassador. Kilindi's 'open-to-nature' approach provides the true essence to any stay and crafts a private, intimate and 'barefoot' appeal that so many crave. Explore the hidden secrets of the island or relax in the infinity pool watching the dhows head out to sea, with a gentle breeze in their sail.

There is a delightful spa offering an extensive array of treatments to satisfy you from head to toe, the spa combines African natural ingredients with both modern and traditional methods in the art of beauty, offering the ultimate in pampering.

Guests can enjoy day boat trips, scuba and snorkelling to get a glimpse of the dolphins, copious fish and vivid corals that thrive in Zanzibar’s waters. Stone Town is a UNESCO world heritage site, and a place where history still lives. The stone buildings, meandering alleyways, and markets still existing as they have done for centuries make for a fascinating day of exploring.

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We believe our Seedball for Warriors project meets this criteria;

Forests are vital for wildlife, freshwater resources and local people. However, only 7% of Kenya is covered by trees – 67 trees per person, compared to the global average of 420. Elewana aims to reforest Kenya with their primary school Wildlife Warrior Club network and the innovative seedball programme running in camps in or near private conservancies.

The seedballs are tree seeds encased in a ball of charcoal dust, mixed with nutritious binders to protect the seeds from predators and extreme temperature until rains arrive and the seed germinates. Every member of the Wildlife Warrior Clubs in our school network have been given bags of seedballs to throw or slingshot into the bush around their schools, villages and homes, and the project continues with guest donations providing more seedballs for students.

The local kids seemed to enjoy it so much that we’ve incorporated this fun and innovative conservation practice into our guest experience. Selected Elewana properties stock the seedballs for guests to buy and throw on game drives and bush walks. This fun and engaging activity allows guests to become a part of the landscape they move through instead of only an observer, and by taking part they make a real contribution to the habitats and to the ever changing conservation story of Kenya.

To date, over 63,000 seeds have been thrown by Elewana guests with an estimated germination rate anywhere between 10% and 90%, even at its lowest end, that is over 6300 new trees for Kenya this year alone - and we aren’t done yet!

For those of you who are PURE members we would encourage you to support our initiative by voting for us! Voting is easy - simply visit the PURE Awards page, by clicking the link to the Conservation and Sustainability Category here. Voting is now open and will continue through to Tuesday 11 September.

For non PURE members - we hope you like this project and will encourage your future guests to take part when they visit Elewana properties.

We eagerly await the results that will be announced at the PURE Awards Party on the 11th September. Please follow us to find out the results.

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Shanga is a social enterprise that employs people with disabilities in a multi-faceted creative workshop. Of the 60 employees over 55% have disabilities.

We often receive requests to share everyone’s story, including details of what their disability, how it may have occurred, and how they have overcome the challenges the disability poses

This sharing in itself can often be challenging. For many of the Shanga employees answering these questions leads to reliving the trauma of a tragic accident or memories of being outcast by their communities. Out of respect for our staff privacy and wishes we prefer to share and celebrate their passions and achievements.

In this spirit we would like to introduce Amani and Masoud.

By not knowing their disability please do not let this hinder your full comprehension of the many challenges they have faced but please reflect on the following while reading their stories:

For more information about Shanga, please visit our website www.shanga.org

Ability over Disability:

Shanga’s mission statement is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable development goals: "Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development." Our global mission is to promote the rights and advancement of persons with disabilities.

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The General Manager of Elewana Elsa’s Kopje reminds us that it is also a day to reflect on the lives of George and Joy Adamson, who drew the attention of the world to lion conservation in Africa; and on the responsibility that we all have to safeguard our priceless natural heritage, of which this iconic species forms such an integral part. George devoted himself to raising lions who could not fend for themselves and trained them to survive in the wild, acting as a role model to the rest of the world, showing the dedication we all need to have in order to save this beautiful species from becoming endangered, after all, "Africa needs Lions!"

Following the amazing work started by George Adamson, the Born Free Foundation started the Meru Lion Heritage Project, tracking and monitoring lions, deploying de-snaring teams and working with communities in order to educate them to reduce human wildlife conflict. Lions are losing their habitat, resulting in increased conflict with local communities and therefore leading to a collapse in lion numbers by 30-50% in the last 20 years.

World Lion Day is a day to appreciate the work done by so many foundations and organisations like Born Free, as well as to encourage more people to become aware of what we can all do to contribute to the protection and conservation of the ‘King of the Jungle’.

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Loisaba Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy in Loisaba, one of Elewana’s partners and owner of Loisaba conservancy where both Elewana Loisaba Tented Camp and Elewana Loisaba Starbeds are situated, work alongside Space for Giants, an international conservation organization that protects the African landscapes needed for elephants to thrive. Space for Giants was instrumental in securing a 56,000 acre stretch, a key habitat for Kenya’s second largest population of elephants, that was facing the threat of being bought and turned over to use other than conservation. 

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

Additionally, Lewa Conservancy has a Joint Operations Centre, located near Elewana Kifaru House and Elewana Lewa Safari Camp, which serves as a communications hub from Borana in the west of the conservancy and all the Northern Rangeland Trust Conservancies, enabling skilled operatives to see exactly what is happening across this vast are of 300km. Guest staying at either of the Elewana properties are able to view the Domain Awareness System, created by Vulcan, the high-tech and philanthropy focused company funded by Paul G. Allen, which is specifically designed to combat poaching and enhance wildlife management, providing a single picture that alerts security and antipoaching teams to threat, allowing the population of elephants around the area to be closely monitored and protected.

Meru National Park

Founded by Virginia McKenna, who also opened Elewana Elsa’s Kopje, the Born Free Foundation in Meru, is a partner of the Elewana Collection and an organization that also helps protect not only elephants, but other animals that face threat. The ivory trade poses one of the largest threats to elephant and therefore trade in ivory products of any kind is opposed by Born Free, so they work with governments, wildlife law-enforcement agencies, conservation bodies, the media and the wider public to promote the adoption of bans on domestic and international commercial trade in raw and worked ivory, whilst also actively publicises the risk posed by any trade in products containing ivory from other ivory-bearing species.

Amboseli National Park

Another foundation that contributes to the sustentation of elephants and partners of Elewana Tortilis Camp is the BigLife Foundation. They cover over 1.6million acres across Amboseli, Tsavo and Kilimanjaro. Their expertly trained and well-equipped rangers help to protect and secure the wildlife, striving to prevent poaching of all wildlife, especially elephants, by tracking poachers and collaborating with local prosecutors to ensure punishment. Poaching continues to be a threat, however with the increase in the human population and competing for space, conflict with humans is critical, making it an even bigger challenge.

World Elephant Day is a reminder of all the threats that elephants face, and is used to encourage and educate everyone around the world on how to help protect this species so that generations to come can marvel at their existence and not just a beautiful photograph on a wall, which is all we will have if we don’t do something now to protect them.

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As part of the lead up to the day itself, a series of clean ups and waste mapping events have been held around the world and across both countries. Most recently in Arusha, Tanzania  25 volunteers came together on the 18th of August to clean up Kijenge & Moshono communities, focusing mainly on the rivers and river banks. The Elewana Collection and Sky Safari have supported this movement in Tanzania and also donated trash bags for the rubbish collected. Jane Goodall and her Roots & Shoots Foundation have also joined the Let's Do It Arusha committee in order to apply their knowledge and skills to create waste and trash awareness around the communities.

The Let’s Do It Campaign introduced a mobile app for trash mapping, to enable a coordinated and targeted approach to clean ups for the first time. Tanzania was delighted to be the winner of the Weekly World Mappers Challenge in early August, which then motivated them to do another mapping challenge that took place on the 21st of to encourage  the community to do their part. Jane Goodall’s inspirational speech addressing World Clean Up Day and the problems that waste causes to the environment has inspired over 1000 followers of the Let's Do It Arusha & Moshi Facebook page and others to start cleaning up the mess that we make daily and to reassess and rebuild the attitudes we all have to waste on a long term basis.

Let’s Do It Kenya is also helping the anti-pollution movement by promoting the mobile app, helping to map illegal garbage points and dumpsites across the country. They also held a Twitter chat on Frequently Asked Questions about World Clean Up day, which reached over 70,000 people with information on keeping our planet clean.

So, save the date – Saturday 15th of September - and join the biggest positive civic action in the world with people from 150 countries not only cleaning up trash but raising global awareness and implementing lasting changes that will see each individual make a real difference in the global waste epidemic.

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DELTA operated by Kenya Airways

• Nairobi – Accra
• Nairobi – Amsterdam
• Nairobi – Kisumu
• Nairobi – London Heathrow
• Nairobi – Mombasa
• Nairobi – Paris CDG

Source: Routes Online