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Kakamega Forest
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Duration

8 Hours

Cancellation

No Cancel

Group Size

24 people

Languages

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About this activity

Experience Kakamega Forest Daytrip Birding  –Kenya, known for the diversity of its native wildlife, and rightfully for the iconic culture of the Maasai community in the Maasai Mara. However, there is more to this jewel of the magical Kenya than the Big 5.

Kakamega Forest stands as one of the few remaining ancient rainforests in Kenya, boasting an exceptional diversity of birdlife. Formerly a part of the expansive Guineo-Congolian forest that once blanketed Central Africa, Kakamega Forest retains its magnificence, offering a glimpse into the past.

Within its borders, you will find treasures to awaken the mind and fill the heart. You will see birds that do not exist anywhere else in Kenya, mysterious primates, and rare forest-dwelling mammals while walking deep in the forest trails that seem carved from another century.

Apart from birds, other inhabitants of the forest are several mammal species, including the Bush Pig, Giant Forest Hedgehog, Colobus Monkey, Debrazza Monkey, Red-tailed Monkey, and Pottos. For birdwatchers, Kakamega Forest is renowned primarily for its stunning birdlife with the Blue-headed Bee-eater, Great Blue Turaco, Ross’s Turaco, Turner’s Eremomela, and the endangered Grey Parrot being the most sought-after. If you’re coming to Kenya or already in the country, we would strongly recommend a daytrip birding tour to this jewel of nature.

Target Bird Species

Kakamega is one of the Easternmost Guineo-Congolian Equatorial forests, which span from the Congo River basin, through Central Africa to Western Kenya. This unique birding biome is full of unique bird species that can only be found here. This makes our birding daytrip to the Kakamega Forest one of the best birding highlights in Kenya. We therefore advise you not to restrict yourself to the most sought after bird species but have an open mind for the total enjoyment of your birding experience.

Grey-throated Barbet, Yellow-billed Barbet, Yellow-spotted Barbet, Hairy-breasted Barbet, Mackinnon’s Shrike, Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill, Sharpe’s Drongo, Kakamega Greenbul, Joyful Greenbul, Toro Olive Greenbul, Plain Greenbul, Little Greenbul, Black-billed Weaver, Vieillot’s Black Weaver, Forest Weaver, Luhder’s Bush-Shrike, Bocage’s Bush-Shrike, Pink-footed Puffback, White-chinned Prinia, Black-faced Prinia, Chubb’s Cisticola, Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Turner’s Eremomela, Uganda Woodland Warbler, Olive-green Camaroptera, Blue-headed Bee-eater, White-spotted Flufftail, Snowy-headed Robin-Chat, Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat, Grey-winged Robin-Chat, Jameson’s Wattle-eye, Brown-throated Wattle-eye, Yellow-bellied Wattle-eye, Chestnut Wattle-eye, Purple-throated Cuckoo-Shrike, Great Blue Turaco, African Broadbill, Bar-tailed Trogon, Equatorial Akalat, Brown-eared Woodpecker, Yellow-crested Woodpecker, Brown Illadopsis, Mountain Illadopsis, Scaly-breasted Illadopsis, Red-headed Bluebill, Dusky Tit, Olive-bellied Sunbird, White-tailed Ant-Thrush

Sustainable Daytrips - #GoBetterWithOluokos

At Oluokos Signature, we work responsibly hard to weave luxury experiences that improve life for the people and places we visit and takes care of the planet we explore and also call home. You can read more about our sustainable travel ethos and practice at Oluokos Signature. Please, click here, to find out about sustainability.

People

Learn how booking this daytrip will help to improve lives of the local communities.

  • We use local guides, meaning that our guests will remain well informed about local traditions, the inner secrets of wildlife, and cultural and social interactions.
  • Commerce – This daytrip brings income and opportunity to the host community through the inclusion of locally owned restaurants, the emphasis on eating locally/organically produced food and support of other local enterprise.

Places

How this trip helps protect and conserve local landscapes and nature.

  • Read about our commitment to nature protection and restoration here, including our rewilding commitment for every customer who books or travels with Oluokos Signature.
  • By limiting our luxury daytrips and safaris to small groups, led by a local guide, we operate responsibly and ‘tread lightly’. This allows us to minimize our impact on local natural resources and the environment.
  • We also adhere to the national parks, reserve and other wildlife conservancies rules where we maintain our daytrips on the designated tracks and not participating in mobbing or crowding wildlife at any time.
  • We’re a signatory to the One Planet network which is a global community of practitioners, policymakers and experts, including governments, businesses, civil society, academia and international organizations, that implements the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production and works towards achieving SDG 12: ensuring sustainable patterns of consumption and production.
  • We work with our partners on the ground to proactively eliminate or reduce waste, for example eliminating all single-use plastic water bottles and other plastics materials. At Oluokos Signature, we provide reusable water bottles to all our guests.
  • We operate a strict ‘leave no trace’ policy that includes separating waste immediately and returning it to the right point for proper disposal.

Planet

How we seek to keep the carbon footprint of this luxury safari to its minimum.

  • Read about our climate action here, including our carbon reduction and compensation commitments.
  • We prefer smaller, locally run accommodation facilities that have a much smaller impact on the surrounding environments.
  • Most meals use local ingredients, which have not been transported for long distances.

Find more tips for going sustainably on this safari

  • Here are a few extra steps you could take to minimize your impact when on this daytrip with Oluokos Signature.
  • Leave no trace: We do all we can to ensure we leave no rubbish behind in the wild and beautiful places we visit; we ask that you support us by doing the same. If there are no recycling facilities in our remote destinations, we’d ask you to consider bringing recyclable materials back to Nairobi with you so that we may channel them to the right handler.
  • Plastic waste reduction: Please bring your own re-usable water bottle on this trip; alternatively, Oluokos Signature will provide every guest with a re-usable water bottle, filtered water will be provided where tap water is not drinkable.

Highlights

  • Explore numerous bird species in dfferent parts of Kakamega Forest.
  • Meet and interact with local Luhya community.
  • Enjoy the mouth-watering Luhya delicacies in Kakamega town.
  • Experience unlimited birdwatching and photography opportunities.

Included/Excluded

  • Any applicable fees
  • Experienced safari guide
  • Hot lunch at a local hotel
  • VAT and other related taxes
  • Services of experienced community guides
  • Private transport in a 4x4 Landcruiser vehicle
  • Full support from Oluokos Signature and concierge before, during and after your trip
  • Tips and gratuities
  • Additional Services
  • Items of a personal nature
  • All meals and drinks not specified
  • Arrival and departure taxes at the airport
  • International and internal flights and transfers
  • We strongly advise all guests purchase comprehensive travel insurance

Itinerary

0600 Hours: Leave Kisumu City for Kakamega Forest

We’ll drive to Kakamega through the Kavirondo escarpment with a brief stopover at the equator in Gambogi. Our drive will take about an hour through picturesque agricultural farmlands and homes.

0730 Hours: Kakamega Forest Walk

Once at the park, we proceed for our full-day walk, which takes about 5 to 7 hours. We walk through the forest watching birds and various species of monkeys, and butterflies. Apart from birds, the forest is home to massive native trees marked as the “Big Five” and their medicinal values, butterflies, reptiles, ants, and a wide variety of flowers.

Our extensive walk will take us to the Isiukhu River where we see the beautiful waterfalls, and then we proceed to Buyangu hill lookout where the view of the forest is stunning from the top.

1300 Hours: Kakamega Forest - Kakamega Town

We’ll leave the forest and drive to Kakamega town for hot lunch. This will also be a good time to have a quick chat about the day’s progress.

1400 Hours: If our time permits, we’ll visit the Luyha community and the market around the forest and see the local thatched community homes. This will give us a deeper insight about the Luhya daily lives. 

1500 Hours: From Kakamega, we’ll drive back to Kisumu city arriving early in the evening to

Frequently asked questions

This activity will begin in Kisumu, Kenya's only lakeside city. For the sake of your enjoyment and getting pure value for your money, this activity begins at 0600 hours. 

The activity will end in the evening not later than 1800 hours in Kisumu city. On request, we will be happy to tranfer you back to your hotel of residence within a radius of 15 km in Kisumu city.   

You can bring one piece of carry-on bag onto the vehicle with you. This must be small enough to fit either under your seat or on your lap.

Airport transfers are not included in the price of our daytrtrip activities, however you can book for an arrival or departure transfer in advance with our office. In this case representative will be at the airport to greet or see you off. To arrange this please contact our customer service team once you have a confirmed booking.

Every itinerary created by Oluokos is based on your specifications and personal taste. With the in depth knowledge of our Experience Designers’ first-hand, local creativity they make sure every little detail is taken care of, while you get to enjoy a personalized safari experience to Kenya.

To answer your question, the number of guests on your daytrip will be only you and your loved ones. We handle every booking privately and at Oluokos, we strictly adhere to the no mixing group’s policy. Each of our safari vehicles has a maximum capacity for six guests. The beauty of taking our privately guided daytrip is that you'll get to enjoy the best that Africa has to offer to you and your group privately.

We can accommodate vegetarian guests and we will be happy to assist with diabetic, gluten-free and other medically recommended diets. Please advise us at the time of booking your daytrip with us. Unfortunately, we’re unable to supply meals in accordance with strict religious requirements. For example, we can’t provide salt-free, Halal, requests for specific dietary supplements such as soya milk, and high protein or low-carb meals.

Oluokos itineraries involve a good blend of driving, walking and enjoying sites from the comfort of your safari vehicle. The activity level and amount of walking can vary, so it is important that you bring adequate footwear to ensure your comfort and safety. Our Experience Designers will advise you appropriately before your daytrip begins.

Activity's Location

Kakamega Forest

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Member Since 2023

Information Contact

Email

goeco@oluokos.com

Website

https://oluokos.com

Phone

+254755124643