Nestled within an indigenous forest in Nairobi, lies a special place called ‘Giraffe Manor’. When I saw my cousin and his wife enjoying breakfast with giraffes at this place over five years ago – I knew Giraffe Manor would be a bucket list item for me and Nick. Nowhere else offers such an incredible and special experience – this is truly once-in a-lifetime!
The presence of the giraffes at the manor began in the 1970s, when the owners, Jock and Betty Leslie-Melville, adopted Daisy, an orphaned Rothschild’s giraffe. Rothschild’s giraffes are one of the most endangered subspecies of giraffe and one of the world’s most at-risk species. So while they are definitely a tourist draw, the Nairobi Giraffe Centre and Giraffe Manor are really there to help local giraffes.
Afternoon Tea with Giraffes
Our first encounter with the giraffes happened heading out to the terrace for afternoon tea featuring sandwiches, scones, cakes and of course a bowl of pellets for the giraffes. Nick was lucky enough to score a kiss from the giraffe. Giraffe saliva is interestingly antiseptic.
Any other time I found Nick kissing a women named Stacey he would be in trouble, but was happy to make an exception for this fine lady.
We visited the giraffe centre and the encounters there were great but we definitely had a superior experience at the manor. We were able to get much closer to the giraffes and able to have much longer encounters. Its hard not to have your favourite giraffe as you do a bond with them so quickly.
They have so much personally that every member of staff knows each giraffe by sight and name. It was eventually time to head back to our room and each room is named after one of the giraffes there.
We were staying in the ‘Betty’ room after Betty Leslie – Melville that first purchased the home back in 1970. The next day we were to be woken up by Betty. As you see the sun glimpses through the windows and it was around 6am where we noticed the giraffes coming to our balcony.
Breakfast with Giraffes
The sun had barely risen above the horizon when we caught a glimpse of our first visitors, and it wasn’t long until they came to say hello.
After the dust had settled most of the giraffes retreated to the Giraffe Centre for the promise of more pellets. We finally managed to consume something other than drinks and indulge in a lovely breakfast.
Our time at the manor was wonderful and unique in every sense of the word. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I am so glad and grateful that we could have. It was the perfect way to spend our last morning in Kenya, and although we didn’t realise it at the time, our last activity of the trip before it all got mothballed by the coronavirus outbreak.