Masai Mara National Reserve

The place you must visit

An amazing safari adventure!

We stayed in a tented camp. Our tent had two beds, a wood floor and a modern bathroom. We felt safe as we were protected by an electric fence around our camp. Our guide knew how to find where the animals were for our photo taking in the early mornings and early evenings.

Wild...

We went to Kenya for our honeymoon.
We had the chance to get a great guide and driver who took the time to let us look at Nature's beauties. He gave us a lot of explanations about the country, the animals, the people. The guy was pretty interesting.
We first stop at Lake Nakuru. We had the chance to see 2 000 000 pink flamingos. Amazing scene. The lodge was good, the food aswell but there were many many many mosquitos out there. Take some cream with you.
Then, we went in Masaaï Mara for 3 days. AWESOME!!! We've seen 4 of the 5 fives. The Leopard's pretty hard to see. We didn't have that chance. But we've seen some stuff we will never forget. What you see in reality is far better than what you see on TV.
It's hard to describe a trip like that. If you like wildlife, don't hesitate a second.

my dream and i can just visit masai mara it will be enough for me , best time for it is the migration time from Jul to Oct

Lots and lots of wild animals, maybe the one with most wildlife of all parks. The landscape is savanna and not that varied. This is the most visited park and you sometimes find almost traffic jams around the animals. Then again it's a big park and you could sometimes go for quite some time without running into other tourists.

I would do it again

Wildlife, scenery, weather, accommodations, food, transport, our guide - all amazing. The guides knew where all the animals like to hang out. I was only here for 4 days, so I only saw a small portion of this reserve, and I would love to go back and spend more time on my own. I worry about the noise and pollution impact of so many diesel engines, the high number of tourists in the area, the seemingly high number of dirt roads, and water consumption due to tourism in a savanna setting that seems quite arid. The hotel we stayed at was very well maintained, the staff were wonderful, and the food was tasty. I loved the architecture, and thought it contributed to the "bush feel". I appreciated the commitment to electricity conservation and the fact that solar water heating was used. It was unfortunate that our drives happened in the mid-day when lighting is not very conducive to photography. I generally do not like being on organized tours - I prefer the freedom that going alone provides - but it was worth it to have a guide here since I wasn't well educated about the wildlife and it was my first time to Africa. I hope to visit this reserve again, as well as others in the region, and would like to do a walking safari. Our group's focus was on The Big Five and other large mammals so I didn't feel comfortable rating birding. I did see a number of pretty cool birds just by chance! Four days wasn't enough...I want to spend 4 months out here!

I could experinces so much within only two days.

Much to see during a short time.

In the summer of 2011 I worked as a volunteer in Kenya. During that time I and seven other volunteers went together from a Friday to a Saturday to Masai Mara and I must say that this was one of the highlights of my six weeks long stay in Kenya. I have heard before that this national park is a good one, but still it exceeded my expectations.

After entering the gate we saw a lot of gnus and zebras together in flocks. Two of the gnus butted each other and I immediately realize that this trip would be something special. The savannah of the park was open and because of that the sight of animals is good. It only took thirty minutes before we encountered lions. Then it was also possible to drive two meters close to them and I could shoot really nice pictures. During the time in Masai Mara we came to see many lions; flocks of lions, young lions, a lion eating gnu and even grown-up lion males.

However, we came to see a lot more and at the end we had seen almost all animals that one can imagine to see when going for safari. There was only exception; the rhino. Rhinos are the rarest animals in Masai Mara, but it happens quite frequently that they are observed in the park. Consequently, we had bad luck with respect to that, but because everything else was so good I am more than satisfied with the wildlife in the park. There is also a river, where we could see a lot of hippos and crocodiles. At some places it was possible to leave the vehicle and when we ate in free air, a baboon came and wanted our food. The driver did not let him come to close, but I went against his will quite close to the monkey anyway and this was really an amazing encountering. I also liked that we could face cheetahs and some leopards sitting in top of trees, but as I mentioned we saw every kind of animal except the rhino. As implied we were for three days in the park and I would recommend not be there less than that, because the park is huge and there is so much to see. I am interested in photographing and I must admit that the best photos ever taken by my come from this trip.

We lived in Entumoto Safari Camp. The camp consisted of sturdy tents, each suited for two people. I had no problems sleeping there, but I must say that the food was not good. One day we got Spaghetti Bolognese and unfortunately it only consisted of ground beef and water. I had expected some dessert, but we never got any. What I liked about the accommodation is that the camp is guarded by Maasai people. During first evening we sat around a camp fire and heard their stories and experiences of life. We also heard a lion roaring quickly the Maasai guards started to see what was going on. The last day we also got invited to visit a Maasai village. The guards took us there. I am not against paying 1000 Kenyan shilling for that, but I did not like that they did not tell us that before they started to take us there, but first at the entrance. There was also a market in the village, but sadly the same low quality souvenirs as anywhere else in the country were sold there. I think that the Maasais can be seen as real Maasais, but the thing is just that their presence in the park has become to commercialized.

The price for the trip was good and everything was included in the price. Unfortunately, the contact person from the travel company was rude. She told us that everything was included in the price, but when the driver noticed that the entrance fee was increased, we became forced to compensate for that. When we drove home, the driver stopped by the road and bought a sack of dried leaves as fuel for his stove at home. I found it unprofessional doing personal errands when being on duty.

To summarize I am very satisfied with the wildlife experiences of Masai Mara. I could really recommend other tourists to go to this park. Concerning food and accommodation I am not complaining, because we as volunteers chose a low-budget option and we got what we paid for. If you would like to also experience good food during the evenings and good accommodation, which I actually think could be a pleasant part of a safari trip, I would like to recommend you to investigate the offerings of hotels in the park or other camps.

For me this is the best wildlife park in the world. We were here for three weeks during the migration and saw something new and amazing each day. The Masai people at Riverside Camp were very hospitable and kind. Loved every moment.

What can I say. We've been through the Mara on three different occasions at three different times of the year at three different lodges. Spectacular animal viewing, excellent lodges or camps to stay at. A MUST SEE !!