When planning for an African safari, Kenya should be one of the safari highlights to visit. Before Kenya was so much known for the overland trips but today, traveling has become more flexible as local operators have come up with the new car rental services and it is 4×4 rooftop tent cars that are offered with an opportunity of staying in the wilderness.
Maasai Mara National Reserve is East Africa’s most popular and best-known park, with easy access from Nairobi and abundance of cheap accommodation options. The Masai Mara was first turned into a game reserve in 1948. Since then, the protected area has grown and shrunk again currently standing at 1,510 sq. km 583 sq. miles.
However, it is part of a far larger protected area, surrounded by private reserves and bordering Tanzania’s vast Serengeti National Park. The obvious attraction of the Mara is the chaotic migration of thousands upon thousands of wildebeest and zebra during June and then in October as they follow the scent of greener pastures.
Maasai Mara is one of the best places in Kenya to see huge herds of grazers and a seemingly endless procession of carnivores big and small the Maasai Mara is the one place in East Africa any could return to again and again and never get bored. Fantastic at any time, visiting the Mara during the annual wildebeest migration (roughly late June-October) though is to witness one of the undisputed wildlife wonders of the world.
The word ‘Mara’ means spotted and refers both to the shadow patterns of the clouds chasing over the Savannah and the occasional stands of acacia. The Masai Mara is Kenya’s finest big game reserve, 5,000ft above sea level and home to all kinds of animals, from six-tonne elephants to tiny dik – diks. Cheetahs patrol its open grasslands and leopards haunt the shady forests beside the Mara and Talek rivers.
But for me this will always be the land of the lion. I have been coming here since 2000 and the magic never fails. This is also the first part of the Mara to welcome the arrival of the Serengeti wildebeest migration – the greatest wildlife shows on earth.
A balloon safari from Little Governors Camp will show you the best of it. The only downside to the Mara is its popularity. With so many camps and so many vehicles, the tipping point is not far off.
So, my advice is to stay in the new private wildlife conservancies in the migration dispersal area outside the reserve, where tourist numbers are strictly limited.
The Mara’s game is, quite naturally, highly habituated to humans, which means it’s not unusual to see a hyena kill or something similarly thrilling before you’ve been there too long.
If you’re short on funds you can find a group tour to the Mara out of Nairobi for a bargain price, and although the red-robed Masai tribes’ people have almost become a cliché among images of East Africa, their culture is still fascinating and their ethnic group a force to be reckoned with in Kenyan politics.
A visit to the Mara is especially worthwhile in July and August, when those well – traveled wildebeest and zebra and their attendant predators migrate up from the Serengeti and fill the plains to bursting. But there’s much more to the Mara than the migration.
Its sweeping plains are home to masses of animals that include the Big Five, although rhinos are quite difficult to find, and its birdlife is tremendous.
However, it attracts masses of tourists too, catering for all budgets, so if you want to avoid the crowds, steer clear of the high season.
Another tip for avoiding the crowds is to stay in one of the conservancies bordering the park. These are owned by local Maasai who benefit from leasing the land to just a few lodge owners.
It’s a complete win-win situation with only a handful of lodges on each conservancy, visitors get a great place to stay with few other tourists; the wildlife has returned to what was once deserted land due to overgrazing by cattle; and the Maasai get a welcome income.
At the end of the day though, whether it’s the reserve itself or one of the conservancies there is no other place in East Africa I would rather be.
The Masai Mara is popular, with its range of accommodation to suit all budgets, its elegant and striking Masai people who sometimes work as guides and its plenty of animals that includes the Big Five and practically every other species, you’re likely to have on your checklist.
