The Giraffe Centre day tour is a brief day excursion from Nairobi to the only sanctuary in the country for the endangered Rothschild giraffe. What began as a rehabilitation project to rescue the Rothschild giraffe — threatened by poaching, disease, human-wildlife conflict, and habitat loss — is now a fantastic wildlife experience worth checking off your to-do list. Rothschild giraffes are distinguished by a pale coat with less-jagged orange-brown patches, plain lower legs that give the appearance of white-grey stockings, and five ossicones (horns) instead of the usual two or four. The species is also unusually tall, reaching up to 5.88m (19.3ft).
The Giraffe Centre is managed by the African Fund for Endangered Wildlife (AFEW), a conservation education NGO that also supports schools through documentaries, inter-school contests, and conservation materials. Only 120 Rothschild giraffes remained on a ranch in western Kenya when the centre was founded; the original founders’ house is now the boutique Giraffe Manor hotel. The centre is about 20km from central Nairobi, and handlers provide pellets so you can hand-feed the giraffes — who’ll happily take them straight from your palm, or even your lips, for the perfect photo-op.