One of the most exciting safari openings in Kenya this year has arrived in Amboseli. A&K Kitirua Plains Lodge, the newest property from Abercrombie & Kent's Sanctuary collection, opened in June 2026, and it brings a bold new style of luxury to the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Set in a private concession in the Kitirua Conservancy, bordering Amboseli National Park, it offers something rare in this corner of Kenya: front row access to the elephants and the mountain, with a fraction of the crowds. Here is what makes it special, who it suits best, and the journeys we would build around it.
A new kind of lodge in Amboseli
Kitirua Plains Lodge is a deliberate departure from the classic safari tent. Designed by Luxury Frontiers, its thirteen suites curve into the landscape with organic walls and natural materials, and floor to ceiling glass frames Mount Kilimanjaro from your bed.
There are eleven suites and two larger two bedroom suites, an Explorer's Lounge for dining and drinks above the plains, and an infinity pool set into a wetland where elephants pass below. Rates are fully inclusive, with all meals, premium drinks, daily safari activities and airstrip transfers. It is intimate, design led, and quietly spectacular.
Stay three, pay two this year
There is a reason to plan early. To mark its opening, Kitirua Plains Lodge is offering a stay three nights and pay for two deal for guests this year, a rare chance to add an extra night beneath Kilimanjaro. Dates and conditions apply, so ask us for the latest availability.
A private concession in the Kitirua Conservancy
The real advantage is the address. The lodge sits on a private concession of 128 acres in the Kitirua Conservancy, bordering Amboseli National Park and only minutes from the gate. A private concession means exclusivity, far fewer vehicles at every sighting, and freedom the national park does not allow.
Here you can explore on foot and after dark. Walking safaris with Maasai guides let you read the smaller details of the bush, and night drives reveal the lions, leopards and hyenas that the park never shows. It is Amboseli, but more private, and far more immersive.
Elephants, big cats and Kilimanjaro
Amboseli is elephant country at its finest, home to some of the largest tuskers left in Africa. Game drives cross open plains and seasonal wetlands in search of herds a hundred strong, set against the snows of Kilimanjaro. Alongside the elephants you will find lion, cheetah, buffalo and giraffe, and more than four hundred species of bird, with flamingos gathering in pink ribbons when the lake floods. Add a dawn hot air balloon flight and a visit with the Maasai community, and few new lodges offer such range from the very first day.
When to go
Amboseli rewards a visit all year. The dry months, from June to October and again in January and February, bring the clearest views of Kilimanjaro and the easiest game viewing. The green season turns the plains lush and the birdlife spectacular, with fewer guests and the chance of flamingos on the lake. For the mountain at its most dramatic, plan your drives for first light.
How to get to Kitirua Plains Lodge
Reaching the lodge is quick and scenic, a short light aircraft flight to the Amboseli airstrip, then a transfer to camp:
- From Nairobi, fly from Wilson Airport to Amboseli in about 45 minutes.
- From the coast, fly from Ukunda near Diani to Amboseli in around 55 minutes.
- From the Masai Mara, flights connect to Amboseli in a little under two hours, depending on your airstrip and the day's routing.
Who Kitirua Plains Lodge is best for
This is a lodge with a clear character, and it suits some travellers beautifully:
- Couples and honeymooners who want privacy, romance and Kilimanjaro from the bath.
- Photographers chasing the elephant and Kilimanjaro shot, away from the crowds.
- Families and groups, thanks to the spacious two bedroom suites.
- Travellers who want walking safaris and night drives, not only game drives.
- Design lovers looking for something beyond the traditional tented camp.
- Anyone building a wider Kenya safari who wants Amboseli done properly.
If you are also heading to the Mara, pair it with a stay at one of the finest luxury camps in the Masai Mara for a classic two part Kenya journey.
Below are the journeys we would build around it, each a private, tailormade safari we can base at Kitirua Plains Lodge for your nights beneath the mountain.
