Ker & Downey Safaris

Ker & Downey Logo - The Original

Like so many great ventures, Ker & Downey Safaris was born from a chance encounter. Donald Ker and Syd Downey, two big game hunters from Kenya, had been fighting with the British in Ethiopia shortly before the fall of Addis Ababa in 1941. Syd had just been released by the Italians and was celebrating at a local hotel when he bumped into Donald Ker. With one car and a lot of bravura, the pair made a plan to establish “the best safari company the world has ever known”.

Ker & Downey Mobile Camps

The Original Ker & Downey Safaris

Tent at night - Ker & Downey

Today, Ker & Downey is celebrated as the longest-existing safari outfitter in the world, and the standard-bearer for unsurpassed luxury in some of its last great wild places. So successful has the “K&D” name been that it has been brazenly borrowed by a number of copycat companies in Africa and the West. Yet to this day, no one has come close to emulating the standards, the rich experiences, or the peerless guiding of “The Original Ker & Downey Safaris”.

Seventy years of safari experience have taught us that the best way to get close to Africa – to experience its sights and sounds, its deep-within-you essence – is to stay in a mobile camp. When you are sleeping in the bush, the wilderness comes to you. There is nothing as exhilarating as falling asleep to the sound of a distant lion’s roar, or waking up to birdsong and a breath-taking view that belongs only to you.

Bed in the Wild, Ker & Downey Mobile camps.

Ker & Downey at Mara Ripoi

When you stay in a Ker & Downey camp, you can rest assured that you’ll have the best of everything. Our custom-made tents are the largest and roomiest available, with luxurious beds, en suite bathrooms, and private verandas with carefully chosen views. Our camp crews are among the most experienced in Africa, providing unobtrusive and attentive service, and delectable cuisine that consistently draws rave reviews.


Every camp is tailored to its guests: the menus, locations, arrangements for special activities. With the support of our brilliant mechanics and state-of-the-art workshops, we can provide any equipment or furnishings to make your safari more comfortable.

Guest Experiences

Guides can make or break a trip of a lifetime…. don’t gamble with your vacation experience; for the best luxury guided safari choose Ker and Downey.

“We need another word than ‘thank you’ to properly express our gratitude for all you have done for us. From the smallest kindness to the biggest surprises and adventures in and out of camp, the crew that Tim has put together is awesome, quietly anticipating our every need…”

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Rusty Robinson

Tourist

We just returned home from a family safari with Ker and Downey guide Sean Dundas in Amboseli, Masai Mara, and Lake Turkana. The trip was the best we have ever experienced as it exceeded our high expectations. It is obvious why film companies, actors, and successful travellers chose this stunning location and the guides of Ker and Downey.”

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Bonnie & Charlie Pratt

Tourists

“The best memory we will take away is the camaraderie we all shared with your wonderful team. Sam and Paolo brought so much to the group with their knowledge of wildlife, their enthusiasm and sense of fun – not to mention their patience with little pre-teen girls!”
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Tobey & John Taylor

Tourists

“It was a trip our family will never forget. Your dedication, knowledge and excellent attitudes truly made the difference… When I asked the kids what they liked the most, their top answer was ‘the friendship we made with James, Abigail and Paolo’. Thank you for sharing so much with us!”
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Juan Segura

Tourist

“I can’t imagine – from beginning to end – one detail overlooked. I feel we have made special new friends, as well as a lifetime of memories.”
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Tobey and John Taylor

Tourists

“Sam introduced us to so many warm and interesting Kenyans, who shared their love for the country with us. His love for Kenya, its people and wildlife comes through in all that he does, and made our safari truly amazing and memorable!”
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Lana McCarthy

Tourist

A Visual Journey of Ker & Downey Safaris

When you come on safari with Ker & Downey, you become part of the most experienced and trusted family in the safari business – a family with a guiding lineage that dates back to the dawn of the safari era.

Wildlife, Views & Experienced Guides

Camps are established in special areas, handpicked over many years, where the wildlife is most prolific, the views most spectacular. We often choose waterside sites close to where animals come to drink and bathe; but we are equally amenable to find you a spot that answers to a personal passion about birdlife, rare flora, geography or anthropology. As most of our parents (if not grandparents) toured these same areas, we can honestly claim to know these places better than anyone.

 

There are many ingredients that make up the perfect African safari. But there is one factor that separates a truly exceptional safari from all others: the presence of a dependable, knowledgeable and resourceful guide.

 

When you come on safari with Ker & Downey, you become part of the most experienced and trusted family in the safari business – a family with a guiding lineage that dates back to the dawn of the safari era.

 

Our guides are all natural leaders in the field, who have been taking people on safari all their adult lives. In many cases, they grew up in rural Africa, learning their bushcraft and tracking skills from their fathers and grandfathers and their guides – men who were, even back then, legends in the trade.

Moments from Ker & Downey Safaris

Relaxing Lounge in tent- Mobile camp
Washroom in the mobile camp -Ker & Downey
Mobile Camp at Night - Ker & Downey, Maasai Mara
King Size bed in Tent- Mobile Camp- Ker & Downey
Bed in the Wild, Ker & Downey Mobile camps.
Dining Table in the Mobile camp - Ker & Downey
Mobile Camp - Ker & Downey, Maasai Mara

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