Spending a few days at Galdessa or its sister property Ithumba is the best possible way to elevate your Tsavo elephant experience from excellent to exceptional. 

Ithumba and Galdessa are exclusive use, self-catering properties so your tour operator arranges and provides pretty much everything (vehicles, guides, provisions), with the camp-based chefs handling the cooking. 

Each of the camps have two separate mini-camp units which can be booked separately or together, but on an exclusive use basis only. So neither camp is an ideal option for a couple but it works for parties from 4 and up. The camps are suitable for all but very young children. We would recommend a minimum age of 5 with close parental supervision. Both camps have pools. 

Ithumba is the best option for guests who want ‘full immersion’ with the orphan elephants as the two camps which make up the property are just a short drive from the facility itself.  

So guests can spend the morning experiencing the elephants waking up and being fed, meet them again later out in the bush for a late morning feeding (the ones who are still being bottle fed) and observe them taking a swim/mud bath. By early evening, guests can be there when the young elephants re-enter the stockade for the night. Ithumba has 4 rooms, Ithumba Private has 3 rooms.  

Galdessa is my personal favorite. It consists of two properties right alongside each other (5 rooms at Galdessa and 3 rooms at Little Galdessa) in a simply stunning spot on the banks of the Galana River, looking up at the edge of the Yatta Plateau. Truly idyllic. 

On a 3-night stay one full day is devoted to a day outing (around a 90-minute drive each way) to the Sheldrick Integration unit at Voi.  

The main stockade complex is open to all donors but the one-on-one interaction with the orphan elephants during a late morning feeding event at a waterhole is limited to Galdessa guests only. It is undoubtedly the highlight of the stay. 

From Galdessa the one-on-one  interaction with the elephants is limited to essentially that one 3/4 day excursion. Even so, it is the property which we like best due to the setting of the camp along the Galana.  

The game viewing in Tsavo is fair to good, but not Masai Mara level to be sure. In our experience it is better at Galdessa than Ithumba. And game viewing in the area is much better during the dry season from July through October. 

In the rainy season Tsavo can be a mission with heat and bugs and thick vegetation. In the dry season the orphan elephants often interact with wild elephants which come to the waterhole at the integration units. This adds yet another exciting element to the experience. 

The best way to start the trip to Tsavo is with a train ride on the Madaraka Express from Nairobi to Voi, followed by a road transfer from there to Galdessa. The train trip  adds more diversity to the experience and is much less costly than a flight.  

Visitors who would like to spend a bit more time in Tsavo can start with Galdessa, then road transfer to Tsavo West. It takes about three hours or so and can be a fascinating journey. The  scenic views along the route are spectacular (views of Kilimanjaro among others) and the game viewing can be excellent.  

Visitors can then spend a night at the Serena Kilaguni or Severin Camp just to reposition and then fly out of the Kilaguni Airstrip the next day. The camps and experiences are ideal for family and multigenerational parties. 

Reach out to Bert at bert@fisheaglesafaris.com for suggestions and advice as to how you could include a visit to either Ithumba or Galdessa in a Kenya safari. We are always happy to get on a phone call or Zoom meeting, so please leave a Bert will be back in Texas in early September so if you’d like a call back from him or one of the other members of our team, please leave a message with our answering service at 1-800-513-5222 or 713-467-5222.

Property photos courtesy Sheldrick Lodges