Animal kingdom neighbours for Severin Safari Camp in the Tsavo National Park, Kenya

A FIVE-star stay with lions, elephants, wathogs and mongooses for neighbours: This is Severin Safari Camp.

Severin Safari Camp

THERE is thievery afoot at the safari camp. A cheeky mongoose is nibbling my croissant and a hornbill has stolen my butter with his awkwardly large curved bill.

Two warthogs, like mini army tanks, are maneuvering on the grass eating whatever they can find and a friendly giraffe with lips so large they look pumped with silicon is chewing on an Acacia tree. All creatures great and small are enjoying breakfast. Let's hope the lions have had a successful hunt overnight and will not be popping by for brunch. This is Severin Safari Camp in the Tsavo National Park - a vast swathe of savannah in Kenya's remote southeast, 250km from the capital Nairobi. This impressive five-star camp has 21 comfortable tents and six luxurious suites with handmade wooden furniture, as well as an open-sided restaurant and lounge, curio store and stylish pool. But there is no electric fence to separate us from this predator-packed park. Tsavo, the largest reserve in Kenya, is home to more than 10,000 red elephants and is particularly well known for its lions, some of which are descendents of the man-eaters of Tsavo - the world's most notorious wild lions. In 1898, two beasts terrorised crews constructing a railway bridge over the Tsavo River, eating - according to some - 135 people. The lions can now be seen at the Field Museum in Chicago, where they sit stuffed and immortalised after being shot by British officer, John H. Patterson. But there are no wool-and-wire stuffed lions here at Severin, just terrifyingly real cats that - according to staff - are fond of dropping into the camp's Thorn Tree Bar for a jostle with the cushions. "In each of the tents there is a torch and a whistle that you can blow if there is a problem," Severin manager Manja Seifert tells me when we checked in. A plastic whistle to ward off descendants of the Tsavo man-eaters? With a reassuring German accent, Manja informed us that if we use the whistle a Masai warrior would run over with his spear ready to kill anything that might have ventured into the tent. She then handed us an indemnity form to sign, which says something about if we're eaten then it's not their fault (I've signed about 10 of these forms since arriving in Kenya several days ago). After unpacking, I lay on the mosquito net-covered king bed and read the booklet I bought at the camp's curio shop for $4. "Lions are shy animals, you can chase them and they will run away," Dominiano Chegem, a Masai man who worked at Severin for several years, writes in his book. "If you get near a lion, you first hold up your light and he will run because they are afraid of light and fire." According to Chegem, it's pretty easy to fight off a lion. Soon it's time for sundowners so we flash the torch to summon a Masai to escort us from our tent to the a la carte restaurant - Severin insists that you let a night porter escort you to and from your room after dusk and before dawn. Dawa cocktails - vodka, lime and sugar - are being served around the campfire so we relax into one of the director's chairs and I scan the surrounds for lions. I read a section of Chegem's book to my travel companion. "If you are afraid and show it, the lion will immediately notice," he writes. "If his fur stands up, he is angry. "If you don't hunt him there will probably be no problems," Chegem concludes. Wonderful, I tell my travel companion, if we don't go hunting then we'll probably survive the night. Bottoms up then ladies and chaps. IF YOU GO STAYING THERE: Severin Safari Camp is in Tsavo West National Park, 250km from Nairobi and Mombassa. There are good connections to the camp by car and by plane. There is an airstrip located 25 minutes away from the camp. Severin has 21 octagon tents, four concrete walled junior suites and two executive suites. The camp is suitable for children and for disabled guests. All tents have flush toilets, showers, hot water, hair dryers, mosquito nets and internet access. More: www.severinsafaricamp.com. It is one accommodation option available on Kenya tours with African safari specialists Bench International, which has an eight-day Kenya Highlights safari, a roundtrip from Nairobi, which includes the Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru and Tsavo West and Tsavo East National Parks. The price from $2165, depending on the season, includes all transport, accommodation, meals, game viewing drives and park fees. More: www.benchinternational.com.au. GETTING THERE: Emirates flies from Australian ports to Dubai with onward connections to Nairobi (about 4.5 hours). More: www.emirates.com. WHEN TO GO: All year round. Tsavo West National Park is just a few degrees south of the equator. The temperature remains the same throughout the year at 27-31C during the day and 22-24C during the night. NEED TO KNOW: Anti-malarial precautions are recommended. Australia requires any person over one year of age to show their yellow fever vaccination certificate upon returning home. Check with your doctor. The writer was a guest of Bench International, flying Emirates.