Olorgesailie Pre-Historic Site
Olorgesailie Pre-Historic Site
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
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4.0
21 reviews
Excellent
9
Very good
7
Average
2
Poor
1
Terrible
2
Tom
Malmö, Sweden19 contributions
Sep 2022
We stumbled across this little gem on our way to Lake Magadi. Down an unassuming side-road out into an environment that in the dry season resembles an acacia filled desert. It's really very beautiful.
The visitor's centre is a small open-air building, it cost 500 KSH per head to enter the exhibition and this includes a tour guide to take you around the site. We noted from the visitor book that there had only been one ther visitor in a few days.
There is a small exhibition explaining the geology of the area, along with some basic biology and archaeology to help you make the most of the visit.
Our guide showed up and despite his English not being amazing, he was very pleasant and tried very hard to give us lots of information. There were sites containing hand axes from prehistoric hominids as well as bones from elephants and pigs that were deposited 2m years ago and are now extinct.
This place is definitely worth visiting. A few things to note: It was nearly 40 C when we were there and there is quite a bit of walking between the sites, particularly to get to the last site with the elephant bones. All of this is in direct sun, with no shade. I strongly recommend taking water and a hat.
On the way back expect the usual impromptu market set up by the Maasai to try and sell you souvenirs, since there is some sort of community building at the end of the tour. If you have cash with you, they are well priced, just be aware that like most Maasai markets, the items are not handmade and often not even from Kenya, since they are usually bought in bulk in Nairobi to sell to tourists.
The visitor's centre is a small open-air building, it cost 500 KSH per head to enter the exhibition and this includes a tour guide to take you around the site. We noted from the visitor book that there had only been one ther visitor in a few days.
There is a small exhibition explaining the geology of the area, along with some basic biology and archaeology to help you make the most of the visit.
Our guide showed up and despite his English not being amazing, he was very pleasant and tried very hard to give us lots of information. There were sites containing hand axes from prehistoric hominids as well as bones from elephants and pigs that were deposited 2m years ago and are now extinct.
This place is definitely worth visiting. A few things to note: It was nearly 40 C when we were there and there is quite a bit of walking between the sites, particularly to get to the last site with the elephant bones. All of this is in direct sun, with no shade. I strongly recommend taking water and a hat.
On the way back expect the usual impromptu market set up by the Maasai to try and sell you souvenirs, since there is some sort of community building at the end of the tour. If you have cash with you, they are well priced, just be aware that like most Maasai markets, the items are not handmade and often not even from Kenya, since they are usually bought in bulk in Nairobi to sell to tourists.
Written October 1, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
bjois
Kristiansand78 contributions
Dec 2014 • Family
I gave this place excellent because you get really a feeling of the cradle of mankind. Even the road to the place is a rough road, the museum is a very small, but very instructive. The guide give you an impression how it really was. Here people (homo erectus) did stay for many 100 000 years, our forefathers. You will see head sculls of giraffe and other animals - even elephant. They were bigger than the animals to day. You will see the spots were the Leakey family did excavate back in the 50ies and lots of tools the homo erectus did use. Yes it's normally hot here, but we were here during the rainy season, and we have been in Magadi many times. If you are interested in the history of mankind, this is the spot.
Written December 3, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Noah
Nairobi, Kenya24 contributions
Feb 2015 • Family
The Olorgesaille pre-hsitoric site isn’t for everybody and the drive is arduous with lots of potholes the last 20 km or so. But we really enjoyed our visit and the guide was very informative. You step back in time at Olorgesaille to see hand axes, stone tools and fossilized bones of elephants and hippos. You will also enjoy great vistas of the Eastern Rift Valley. Even though this site was inhabited by homo erectus, there are strangely no remains of humans to be found.
Written February 22, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dharini N
Lilongwe, Malawi22 contributions
Jun 2022 • Friends
DONT VISIT. The manager and his assistant are rude and have changed the rules. They won’t let you camp away from the bandas and are on a weird power trip! Avoid at all costs. It’s an hour from Nairobi which is the real pull but there are also other nice campsite in the area so I would
Avoid this one.
Avoid this one.
Written June 10, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
HoneyBunnyH3
Bonn, Germany171 contributions
Sep 2018 • Friends
The good things first: There are new bandas (huts) with a decent bed, bedding and mosquito net. The price is 1500 KES for the hut (sleeps two), 1800 residents and 2000 foreigners (discrimination against foreigners is a usual thing in Kenya and is supported by the Ministry of Tourism). There is an external shower and toilet (rather primitive but clean). The museum is "uninspired" (like all museums in Kenya!). The care taker advises not to leave the premises as there would be "dangerous Masais" around. He advises to take a guide, who brings people to a baboon cliff, maybe 1 km away, charging 500 per person, which is a complete rip-off. Even worse: The maybe 10 km long trip to a mountain in the back is 5.000 KES for a maximum of 5 people. To compare: A KWS ranger with gun in the Aberdares charges 2.000 a day. And worse: NO RECEIPTS, which is illegal in Kenya. It is a pity and a shame that the caretaker of the National Museums of Kenya supports that kind of illegal activities.
Written September 16, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wachira44
Nairobi, Kenya333 contributions
Oct 2014 • Business
Here you will learn the activities of the first man in the world the way we started to have modern life.It is a great place to see and know the evolution of man to the modern you who knows everything today,Pay a visit and learn a lot.
We have accomodation but you must bring on your items for cooking.But the place is exttemely hot but scenic.
We have accomodation but you must bring on your items for cooking.But the place is exttemely hot but scenic.
Written December 31, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Juan Camilo V
Toronto, Canada115 contributions
Oct 2016 • Couples
The place is fantastic. We stopped there on our way to lake Magadi and it was better than expected. We did not climb Mt Olorgesailie as this is a full day activity and should be started at 5 am. We just went to the museum where they first show you the different types of tools found in this site, fossils and how they relate to tools found in other places in the world. Then you can see the actual excavations and some fossils of hippos and a extinct species of elephants.
Written October 30, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Magadi C
Magadi, Kenya2 contributions
Mar 2015 • Friends
A great place to visit! accommodation available though food may be tricky to some visitors but you can proceed to Lake Magadi where you can spend the night and have meals.
Written May 6, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
snowcap_9
Colorado19 contributions
Jun 2013 • Friends
A great time to visit this site is after the rainy season because everything is green. The vistas of the Rift Valley from the site are magnificent. Because my husband was teaching a three-day seminar at a nearby village we had to stay in the bandas. They were adequate. The screening on the windows is long gone so the nets are a must. However, ours has holes. We used mosquito coils at night and sprayed with Deet repellent. There is bedding provided but pillows are lumps of cotton so take your own. If your camping you need to take EVERYTHING you need: food, flashlights, lamps, cooking stove, and drinking water. There is a shower? a "pull the rope to open the lid on a bucket" type. Flies are terrible during the day which makes sitting out and relaxing impossible unless you know some fly repellent that works. I would do this as a day-trip unless you are REALLY adventurous.
Written July 23, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Megan R
1 contribution
May 2023 • Friends
I’m an Archaeologist from Canada and I knew that while in Kenya I would regret it forever if I didn’t visit a site. I chose this one based on the quality of the museum, the significance of the site, and the amount of material in situ still remaining.
Our guide, Adrian, was friendly, knowledgeable and engaging (Even for my friends who didn’t care much for these affairs, he pulled them right in!).
A group of Maasai women came from a neighbouring village to sell their wares and it was lovely.
I was in tears at the richness of this site, its preservation, and the quality of the people caring for it. It was a dream to see all the things I studied in text books all throughout my degree, right there in front of me, where it originated.
If you have any sort of passion for human evolution, this site is a must.
Our guide, Adrian, was friendly, knowledgeable and engaging (Even for my friends who didn’t care much for these affairs, he pulled them right in!).
A group of Maasai women came from a neighbouring village to sell their wares and it was lovely.
I was in tears at the richness of this site, its preservation, and the quality of the people caring for it. It was a dream to see all the things I studied in text books all throughout my degree, right there in front of me, where it originated.
If you have any sort of passion for human evolution, this site is a must.
Written June 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
kinyuamunene
Engare Nairobi, Tanzania
Hey guys are there showers in the bandas or a swimming pool..?
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Olorgesailie Pre-Historic Site Information
Excellent Reviews | 9 |
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Very Good Reviews | 7 |
Olorgesailie Pre-Historic Site Photos | 46 |