Best hotels in Matthew's Range

Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy, in the remote reaches of northern Kenya, is a conservation success story. Here, in this 75,000-hectare wilderness at the foothills of the Mathews mountain range, the wildlife and Samburu cattle farmers co-exist harmoniously. And it's here you'll find the only camp for hundreds of kilometres. Location? Tick. Great accommodation and good food? Absolutely! Sarara Tented Camp is a completely private, super-luxury tented camp in a fairytale setting. It's worth every cent and every minute you spend on the long journey there.

Kitich Camp is a truly remote and private location set in a pristine forest on the upper slopes of the Mathews Mountains (also known as the Lenkiyio Hills). The camp has guarded this vast natural forest for more than 40 years and was originally set up in the 1970s as a private hideaway for his friends by the celebrated hunter and conservationist Miles Burton. The forest covers some 900 square kilometres of Mathews Mountains' peaks, which soar so high above the lowlands that the BBC described the area as a “biological bonanza" on a "sky island".

Sarara House is an exclusive two-bedroom house that is perfect for families or friends and includes a magnificent plunge pool, private dining, and spacious lounge area with awe-inspiring views. Sarara House has become famous for its elephants, who regularly visit its pool – much to guests’ delight! As one of Sarara’s most cherished up-close experiences, it’s also a wonderful photo opportunity to quietly watch them amble by to sip some water.

Remote and run by its own Samburu host, guide and chef, this exclusive-use safari house takes one family or group at a time and sits on a rocky escarpment in northern Kenya's Namunyak Conservancy. Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, Africa's first Indigenous-owned and run sanctuary, is a ten-minute walk away, so you can watch its keepers at work. Built from rock, timber and thatch and worked around the boulders, the house feels earthy and handmade, and its open-sided lounge looks across the Sarara Valley to the peaks of the Mathews Range. For those who've done the classic parks, it's a rare chance to have a corner of Samburu country to yourselves.

Sarara Treehouses is a tented camp set high in the trees of an old forest, at the foot of Warges, the highest peak in northern Kenya’s Mathews Range. Run by the Samburu in the Namunyak Conservancy, about 20 minutes’ drive from the airstrip, it gives you two landscapes in one: montane forest behind camp for hikes, and dry plains below for drives. Canvas tents rise on stilts, linked by raised walkways with twisted-branch railings, and the thatched lounge and infinity pool look over a waterhole from the hilltop. It’s rustic and a little adventurous, and waking to birdsong with elephants padding about beneath your tent is what you’ll remember...