Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Tours and Tickets

The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust keeps strict visiting hours. Its Nairobi Nursery—the home of its orphaned elephants—is open for an hour a day, typically from 11am to 12pm. Make sure to book your tickets ahead of time to avoid disappointment. If you’re visiting with a tour, your operator will arrange bookings on your behalf.

The main activity at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's Nairobi Nursery is seeing the orphaned baby elephants. Visitors are able to watch the keepers as they bottle feed the orphans and give them a daily mud bath. Note that visitors are not allowed to touch the animals, out of respect for animal welfare.

The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is located inside Nairobi National Park, within easy reach of Nairobi and the surrounding areas. The best way to get there is to join a tour that includes round-trip transportation from your hotel. Alternatively, you can arrange for a private taxi to take you there, wait for you, and then take you back.

Sort of. Tours from Nairobi include transportation to the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, but once inside you’ll learn about the animal rehabilitation program directly from Sheldrick’s staff members. Tours often also visit Nairobi’s Giraffe Centre, while some include a game drive at Nairobi National Park.

No, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is not open to volunteers—it relies on trained professionals who have expertise in dealing with wild animals. However, you can help out by fundraising in your local community or by digitally adopting an elephant for a small annual donation.

If you want to adopt an orphaned elephant (financially, not literally), you can do so on the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust website. You will receive an adoption certificate and a monthly update about your chosen adoptee.