This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn more

Skip to main content

Talk to an expert 1-800-242-2434 Lines open now

User menu
Tortilis Camp
Tortilis Camp
Tortilis Camp
Tortilis Camp

Reviews of Tortilis Camp

Wildlife sightings and reviews

26 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Tortilis Camp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa

Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in Aug-2018, 19 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Tortilis Camp.
Lion

92% success

Leopard

7% success

Cheetah

50% success

Wild dog

21% success

Buffalo

100% success

Elephant

100% success

Hippo

100% success

Wildebeest

100% success

Zebra

100% success

Giraffe

95% success

Spotted Hyena

89% success

Eland

47% success

Oryx

44% success

Striped Hyena

33% success

Gerenuk

25% success

Aardvark

13% success

Pangolin

13% success

Showing 1-10 of 26
Duration
Arrival date
FamilyB
Los Altos

"Tortilis Camp review"

2 nights Arrived 26 Dec 2023
"We love Tortilis Camp! I would highly recommend it to anyone.

The setting is gorgeous, the rooms are well appointed but what makes it really special is the hospitality. The food and drink are delicious (they are proud of their large on-site garden producing great fresh fruit and vegetables).

The bush breakfast, sundowners and all the hospitality offered by the staff made it really special, in addition to fabulous wildlife viewing." See all these reviews: 10n in Kenya; 3n in Rwanda
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Cheetah

1 sighting

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Lion

5 sightings

Lynda
Nomad

"Tortilis Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 19 Jan 2023
"This camp has too many guests and you are a number not a person.

The staff are fantastic from Zed downwards but I did not take to the English Management. They do not take care to try to match you up with like minded people in your game vehicle. Luckily Zed came to my rescue and in fact I then had drives that were absolutely fabulous with Ali.

Fantastic backdrop with Kili." See all these reviews: 11n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Sightings Report

Buffalo

1 sighting

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Dr G & Dr E
UK

"Tortilis Camp review"

3 nights Arrived 11 Sep 2022
"We did not really expect too much from Amboseli, apart from elephants and birds, but boy, we were pleasantly surprised. This was the start of our twenty fifth safari and we saw our first ever lion kill on our first drive!

The following morning we saw a cheetah - not seen here for over a month and a melanistic serval (again, our first) and to top it all off, a golden jackal (you guessed it, our first) on the last day. Although we were hoping for birds, we did not expect water and marshland birds and so the flamingos were a great surprise. Guiding was excellent.

The camp has a lovely position and the tents are well appointed, if a little too close together (canvas does not insulate sound). We did not test the pool as the water was really cold. The food was excellent - by far the best that we have ever had on safari. Others have commented on the larger size of the camp, but we received a personal service and it did not feel too large. In fact, one of the benefits of a larger camp was that you could have dinner when you wanted it, not at a set time.

Birding around camp was excellent." See all these reviews: 14n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

2 sightings

Cheetah

1 sighting

Elephant

6 sightings

Giraffe

6 sightings

Hippo

4 sightings

Lion

3 sightings

Spotted Hyena

1 sighting

Wildebeest

6 sightings

Zebra

6 sightings

Mr + Ms D
Santa Cruz

"Wonderful place"

3 nights Arrived 13 Jun 2022
"Wonderful place - public spaces beautiful with Kilimanjaro in the distance. Had massages =again excellent. Food and drinks perfect with fresh produce grown in their garden. Staff was attentive and perfect (hate to keep using that word, but…).

Guide - our guide was John who excelled in his knowledge of all= animals, geography and people. We had the luxury to having him to ourselves-no other people in truck. Went everywhere- excellent driver." See all these reviews: 16n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr F
Amsterdam

"Tortilis Camp, busy but well managed."

4 nights Arrived 5 Jun 2022
"Tortilis Camp is a busy operation with an apparent focus on American package tourists, so people moving in and out all the time. After our stay at Sarara Camp this felt a bit overwhelming, however camp managers Candy and Graeme do a great job in maintaining a personal touch to it all. They are very visible and always in for a chat. Also the concept of having the same waiter during the entire stay works really well to maintain that personal touch. Our waiter Eunice was very kind and caring, nice to have a familiar face amongst the ever changing guest population. Our guide John was relatively new, just 4 months in camp, but very kind and knowledgeable; there wasn’t a bird he didn’t know about.
Having access to the Kitirua conservancy is a great advantage here, we had the best elephant interactions in this section, whereas in the national park it was often a remote observation. Some activities felt a bit regimental, like the bush breakfast and the sundowner only on the last night, but I guess this is the only way to streamline the operation.
We stayed in the Private House, located at the same level as the main lodge on the hill, so no descending and climbing to the tent 4 times a day.
The house itself is very spacious with 2 cavernous bedrooms, furniture and decorations maybe a bit bland. The brochure pictures the private house with a manicured lawn where one could have breakfast or drinks served: in reality just a small rim of grass and much more scrubby bushes, the breakfast option was never mentioned.
The neigbouring Family Tent has a much more appealing setting under a mature acacia tree and a beautiful porch, that would be my choice in the future.
The main advantage of the Private House (and Family Tent) is having access to a private use vehicle and guide, making it a much more personal experience. Also having your own pool, shared with the family tent, is a nice bonus. Finally we must mention the excellent quality of the meals, a buffet for breakfast and lunch and a 3 course dinner menu with 2 options for every course. Tortilis Camp is a good place to stay when in Amboseli." See all these reviews: 14n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Good
Sightings Report

Buffalo

7 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Giraffe

4 sightings

Hippo

5 sightings

Lion

7 sightings

Spotted Hyena

5 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Mr S.
Chester

"Tortilis Camp review"

4 nights Arrived 16 Mar 2022
"Excellent camp, well run, great food and service.

Game drives and guide Patrick particular good. He understood the needs of a photographer.

Fabulous tents and lovely refreshing pool after hot game drive" See all these reviews: 11n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Eland

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Gerenuk

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Oryx

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Mr V
Texas

"Tortilis Camp review"

4 nights Arrived 18 Jan 2022
"We thoroughly enjoyed our 4-night stay at Tortilis Camp. Like our previous experience at another property in the Elewana collection, the ambience here perhaps is just a touch on the formal side, but the staff is very friendly, and our interest in wildlife photography and maximizing time in the bush was thoroughly accommodated by management (managers Graeme and Candy were lovely).

The vehicles here are open-sided, instead of pop-hatch, which really helps with an expansive, low-angle perspective for wildlife viewing. Our guide, Patrick, was superb, and truly went out of his way to help us experience some unforgettable moments with elephants. The snow-capped peaks of Kilimanjaro even put in an appearance for us, though you’ll have to rely purely on Mother Nature to provide that treat." See all these reviews: 17n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Elephant

Multiple sightings

Giraffe

Multiple sightings

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wildebeest

Multiple sightings

Zebra

Multiple sightings

Mr B
London

"Great location and amazing food"

1 night Arrived 16 Nov 2021
"Tortilis is a bit larger in size, and I think it was fully booked, but although there were quite a few guests around, it didn't feel hectic. Great location, perched on a hill with a nice breeze, we had a wonderful view of Kilimanjaro from our tent - and there was a huge eagle owl in the tree next door!

We thought the food was excellent - probably the best food of our whole two week trip in Kenya, really impressive! We enjoyed sundowner drinks on the dry Amboseli lake, watching Wildebeest trail off into the distance. Our guide wasn't perhaps the most knowledgable compared to other camps, but I think he was quite new and finding his feet. We are sure he will settle in quickly.

The other great thing is that the Kitirua concession really feels part of the National Park, it's almost impossible to know which you're in most of the time. It's a great model for how tourism concessions can contribute to conservation and well worth supporting. We also saw some nice tree planting projects underway nearby.

The only thing we thought was a little strange was the tipping system here in comparison to other safari camps, waiters are tipped separately (in addition to guides, and lodge staff) at the end of the stay, which felt a little awkward." See all these reviews: 15n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

Multiple sightings

Eland

1 sighting

Elephant

6 sightings

Hippo

1 sighting

Spotted Hyena

1 sighting

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Mr T & Mr L
Amsterdam

"Tortilis Camp review"

5 nights Arrived 5 Oct 2021
"Tortilis was an excellent camp in a lovely situation on the top of a ridge with spectacular views on clear days across the plains to Mount Kilimanjaro. There is a very comfortable open-sided bar area with ample seating where guests are welcome throughout the day. And watching the animals come to the waterhole at all hours is a treat.

The lodge itself is larger than we would normally choose with big tour groups passing through for one or two nights. This did make it feel more commercial than our very intimate Elsa's Kopje experience. But I think this is a consequence of being in Amboseli which is a popular and easily accessible park. However, the camp was extremely well run by Moses and his team and coming from a sister property meant that we didn't need to sign additional paperwork et cetera. They had even called Elsa’s to find out what we were drinking for sundowners so they could suggest the same. And overall we were very well looked after by David and Jackson

Food was less compelling than Elsa's with a pre-prepared buffet lunch with a different theme (middle-East, Indian et cetera) and David was happy to provide excellent sandwiches as an alternative when asked.

By our fifth day we also found we were being offered the same food as day one but the camp explained that most guests were staying for a much shorter period than we were.

As with Elsa's there was a small pool (with lots of birds) and plenty of game to be seen from the room (tent) and from the bar area overlooking the floodlit waterhole. There were a few biting flies at night but nothing too bad.

We were in tent seven which was comfortable but showing some signs of wear and tear. And monkeys were an absolute menace, able to access the tent via the worn velcro flap even when the tent was fully zipped. So we made good use of the monkey proof chest. They took an especial liking to the blue Delft KLM houses we were given by KLM and the chewed wax seals on those houses is a nice souvenir of the trip :-)

This was also the first time we had been to Amboseli and the park itself was a revelation. A range of habitats (quasi-desert, lake bed, swamp and marsh, forest, rocky hills) and the variety of game was enormous. Huge herds of wildebeest and zebra, fantastic elephants and buffalos, plentiful bird life and some lovely cheetah (and in spite of our best efforts we also saw lions). The only downside was the park was very busy with lots of vehicles, especially over the long weekend at the end of our stay.

Our guide Soloman was excellent, again very respectful of our wish to avoid lions and happy to allow us to spend long periods simply watching the big herds of elephants and buffalo. At our request, he was adept at finding quiet areas of the park, away from other vehicles and we never felt rushed. And again it was great to have our own vehicle which maximized flexibility.

One observation about the location of Tortilis. It is quite a distance (45 minutes plus) from the marshy areas of the park which meant that it was almost impossible to get deep into that area in the afternoons. Instead the afternoon drives tended to be more cursory, staying close to the concession where it was possible to drive after 18h when the main park was closed. So the mornings started early with a long drive to the marsh area and lasted six hours or more. This was fine (indeed we had some amazing morning drives) but as a night owl it was a shame that the afternoon excursions were not able to be similarly epic. But lovers of morning drives will the very happy!

One benefit of the early start on our first morning was some jaw-dropping views of Kilimanjaro at sunrise. But be warned. If you see the mountain, be appreciative. We took that view slightly for granted and then never saw the mountain again during our stay." See all these reviews: 9n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Average
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

10 sightings

Cheetah

3 sightings

Eland

5 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

3 sightings

Lion

2 sightings

Oryx

2 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Olga
Dubai

"Amazing place in amazing location!"

3 nights Arrived 5 Apr 2021
"I had very interesting experience to stay in 5-star tent:).

Wonderfull camp, very professional and friendly staff, perfect service!" See all these reviews: 8n in Kenya
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Aardvark

Multiple sightings

Buffalo

10 sightings

Cheetah

Multiple sightings

Eland

10 sightings

Elephant

10 sightings

Gerenuk

10 sightings

Giraffe

10 sightings

Hippo

10 sightings

Leopard

Multiple sightings

Lion

3 sightings

Oryx

10 sightings

Pangolin

Multiple sightings

Spotted Hyena

10 sightings

Striped Hyena

Multiple sightings

Wild dog

4 sightings

Wildebeest

10 sightings

Zebra

10 sightings

Showing 1-10 of 26
95%
26 reviews of Tortilis Camp by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
21
4
1
0
0
Filter by month

Holiday styles & special interests in Kenya

From birdwatching breaks to walking holidays, find great ideas for your trip in Kenya.


Beach holidays

Beach holidays

Discover Africa's coast and tropical islands.

Birdwatching

Birdwatching

Diverse habitats, discreet hides and superb guiding.

Cultural experiences

Cultural experiences

Get an insight into Africa's cultures and history.

Family holidays

Family holidays

Hand-picked camps for an incredible family safari.

Honeymoons

Honeymoons

Romantic safaris and castaway island retreats.

Luxury

Luxury

First-class service, scenic vistas and unparalleled comfort await you during these carefully selected luxury holidays. 

Photography holidays

Photography holidays

Great holidays to suit the keen photographer.

Private villas & houses

Private villas & houses

Enjoy Africa with just your friends & family

Riding holidays

Riding holidays

Explore Africa's wilderness on horseback.

Solo Travel

Solo Travel

Trip ideas ideally suited for a solo traveller.

Walking

Walking

Explore Africa's most scenic trails on foot.

Walking safaris

Walking safaris

Explore Africa's untouched wildernesses on foot.

Wellbeing

Wellbeing

Wellness escapes in stunning locations

Wildlife safaris

Wildlife safaris

These trips include hard-hitting game and fascinatingly elusive species alike, as well as superb guiding and a variety of diverse ecosystems.

Other lodges in Amboseli and the Chyulu Hills

Alternative places to stay in this same area.


Porini Amboseli Camp

Porini Amboseli Camp

Porini Amboseli is a small and homely community-staffed eco-camp located in the Selankay Conservancy.


92% (12 reviews)
Tawi Lodge

Tawi Lodge

Tawi Lodge is modern, luxury safari lodge on a private wildlife conservancy in the Amboseli ecosystem in southern Kenya.


95% (8 reviews)
Selenkay Adventure Camp

Selenkay Adventure

Selenkay Adventure Camp is the dome-tent satellite camp of Porini Amboseli Camp, located in the Maasai-owned Selenkay Conservancy, one of the oldest community wildlife conservancies in Kenya.


100% (6 reviews)
Satao Elerai

Satao Elerai

The closest camp in Kenya to Mount Kilimanjaro, Satao Elerai is located in its own, private conservancy, the Elerai Conservation Area, just outside Amboseli National Park.


84% (5 reviews)
Campi ya Kanzi

Campi ya Kanzi

Campi ya Kanzi is a very well integrated, eco-friendly bush lodge and tented camp on the slopes of the Chyulu Hills in its own, 1000-square-kilometre Maasai conservancy.


90% (4 reviews)
Ol Donyo Lodge

Ol Donyo Lodge

Ol Donyo is a luxurious and innovative designer safari lodge with magnificent views and excellent walking, riding and wildlife country in its own private conservancy.


100% (1 review)

Login to Expert Africa

Sign in with password

Sign in with email link


New to Expert Africa? Create an account

Forgotten your details?

It's free & quick to set up

  • Save your wish-list
  • Send us an enquiry
  • Pay online for your trip
  • Subscribe to our newsletter
  • Give us feedback on your trip
  • Full site benefits of the site

Need some help? Talk to our team

Africa