GROUP JOINING AND PRIVATE BUDGET CAMPING SAFARI IN MASAI MARA.

The Masai Mara camping safari provides the most cost-effective way to view wildlife in the Masai Mara in a reasonable number of days for an amazing price!

We are currently offering this safari as a group or private safari for 2 or more people up to a maximum of 7 people in a safari van that has a pop-up roof for game drives. This provides our clients with flexible game viewing times, flexible game drives, lots of space to take photos and view wildlife, and the flexibility that a private safari driver/guide will offer you in terms of where to go and view wildlife in Masai Mara. This is not usually possible in a group trip.

The 3-day Masai Mara camping safari takes you to Africa’s best game reserve to view wildlife, great scenery, and birdlife, plus an experience interacting with the Masai tribe, who have lived for centuries in harmony with the wildlife, grazing their cattle right next to Africa’s fierce predators without fear of attack.

Masai Mara is home to most species of Africa’s wildlife. There is wildlife all year round in the Mara, so there is no excuse as to why you should not visit this park anytime you are in Kenya.

During the July–October season, millions of wildebeest, zebras, and gazelles embark on the greatest land-based animal migration on earth. Trekking from the plains of Serengeti in Tanzania through the Mara River, where ferocious crocodiles await eagerly to pounce on the unsuspecting herbivores. Escorted by prides of lions, cheetahs, sly leopards, laughing hyenas, and the ominous vultures soaring high in the sky waiting to scavenge any sickly or tired animal that cannot make the trek. The Masai Mara Safari allows you to be part of this incredible adventure.

During the January–June and November–December seasons, the migration is in Serengeti, but there is resident wildlife in the Masai Mara, so you will still be able to spot lots of animals during this time.

December to January is the calving time for most herbivores in the Masai Mara, so there is a lot of prey for carnivores. The season is warm and dry, making it ideal for game viewing.

Where to stay in the Masai Mara on the camping safari.

Camp is based just outside the Ololamutiek Gate of the Masai Mara. There is no fence between the park and the outside environment; therefore, wildlife roams far and wide, even close to the camp. The camp is fenced off to protect residents from predators and unpredictable animals like elephants. Camps are self-contained with flush toilets and private bathrooms inside the tent. There is hot water in the morning and evening to take a shower. Tents have permanent roofs to protect against rain and harsh weather and to keep the tent cool during the day and warm at night. There is a mosquito net over the bed to protect you from the insects at night, so remember to tuck it in tightly around the bed edges.

ITINERARY FOR THE BUDGET CAMPING SAFARI IN MASAI MARA

Day 1: Nairobi to Masai Mara

We will pick you up in Nairobi either at your hotel or other Nairobi accommodation. Pick-up time is usually 7:00 AM, but this will depend on where you are staying within the city. (You are briefed on your pickup up time once you confirm where you are staying in the city.) Depart from Nairobi and drive to the Rift Valley View Point, where you will stop and take some snaps of the sheer drop of the Rift Valley, the nearby Suswa Ranges, and Mount Longonot. Descend on a winding road to the floor of the Rift Valley, driving to Narok Town, where you will refuel. This is the last town stop on the road to the Mara, so you can stock up on snacks and drinks as you head out to the jungle. Drive on to Masai Mara, arriving at the camp in the early afternoon. You will proceed on a game drive at 3:45 PM as the midday heat retreats and as the sun goes down and wildlife emerges from the shade. Your driver/guide will spot wildlife and give you a close-up look and details of their behavior and way of life. At 6:30 PM your game drive will end. Drive to the camp where you can have a hot water shower before dinner. The Masai guards at the camp will light you a bonfire where you can have a drink as they regale you with stories of their culture and way of life that has been unchanged for thousands of years, after which you can head out to your tent for rest and overnight.

Day 2: Full-Day Game Drive

Have breakfast at 6:30 AM and head out on a full-day game drive in Kenya’s most popular game sanctuary, where you will have the best opportunity of spotting the Big Five (lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino, and elephant). You shall drive along the savannah plains of the Mara, crossing streams and gullies as you search for wildlife that is scattered all over the game reserve. If you fancy, you can head out to the Mara River, where you will be able to view hippos in the pools and crocodiles sunbathing on the banks of the river. At 1 PM your guide will head out to a picnic spot where you can disembark from the vehicle to have your packed lunch, which will have been prepared by your camp chef and packed in the vehicle as you head out in the morning. After a short rest, resume your afternoon game drive. Drive back to camp in the late afternoon. You have the option to visit a local Maasai village. Note that gratuities are given to the Masai when you visit their village. After having a hot shower, head out to the dining hall for dinner. Overnight at the camp.

Day 3: Masai Mara to Nairobi

At 6:15 PM, head out on a game drive in search of Africa’s big cats as they complete their night’s hunt or feed on their prey. You have great chances to view lions, cheetahs, and leopards at this time of the morning. Have the game drive till 9 AM, then head to camp for breakfast. Depart Masai Mara for Nairobi with a short stop at a curio shop where you can buy some souvenirs to remind you of a great holiday in the Mara. Head out for Nairobi with lunch en route, arriving about 16:00, where you can be dropped off at your hotel or Nairobi accommodation.

Camping Accommodation on the Safari in Masai Mara.

You stay in a tent that has a permanent roof, bed, bed linen, hot water shower, and private toilet, all self-contained in the tent. Tents are high in height, and one can stand freely inside. Tents accommodate 2 people of the same gender—separate beds or couples—one bed or twin beds as you wish, 3 persons traveling together—3 beds, or a single person if you wish to have your own private tent at a small fee. The camps are located at the Olomutia and Sekanani gates of the Masai Mara National Reserve.

This safari is flexible as it departs every day throughout the year. You can also extend your safari by staying an extra day in Masai Mara or going onwards to Lake Nakuru and Amboseli if you so wish.

There is electricity 6 PM–10 PM and 5 AM–7 AM to charge your phones and cameras. Food is taken in the dining hall. The camp is fenced off from the main reserve so wildlife cannot access it. There are Masai guards who patrol the camp at night; thus, it is safe.

Please note the safari is also extendable by a day to Lake Nakuru National Park for US$ 545 per person, whereby you leave Masai Mara in the late morning for Nakuru with lunch at Mai Mahiu or Naivasha towns. You arrive in Nakuru in the early evening for rest and overnight at a budget hotel. The next day you leave the hotel after breakfast for the Nakuru National Park, where you have a full-day game drive, leaving in the afternoon for Nairobi.