MASAI MARA SAFARI: Best Packages In 2024

A top-notch Masai Mara safari offers the opportunity to witness the yearly wildebeest migration in addition to frequent sightings of big cats. The number of cats in the Masai Mara Reserve is well-known throughout the world and has been featured in many wildlife documentaries. Continue reading to learn more about the luxury Masai Mara safari package and accommodation.

Concentrated wildlife contact occurs because of the abundance of cats and the yearly Great Migration, which enters the reserve from July to October.
Among the most well-known sites are the Musiara Swamp, Rhino Ridge, and Topi Plains. The banks of the Talek or Mara rivers, or where they converge, are the best locations for migratory safaris.

Make a stop at one of the nearby private conservancies in addition to the reserve; here, access is restricted to walking safaris, night drives, and off-road driving.

Masai Mara Safari

Situated in southwest Kenya, the Masai Mara Safari is a well-liked wildlife safari location. It is well-known for its stunning scenery, a plethora of wildlife, and the chance to see the Great Movement—the world’s greatest yearly movement of land animals.
Among the Masai Mara Safari’s features are

#1. Abundant Wildlife

A wide variety of species, including elephants, buffalo, zebras, giraffes, and well-known big cats like lions, leopards, and cheetahs, may be found in the Masai Mara.

#2. Great Migration

Millions of wildebeest, zebras, and other antelopes migrated during the Great Migration, which is well-known to have taken place in the Masai Mara, in search of new grazing grounds. This annual migration, which takes place between August and November, is a breathtaking sight to behold.

#3. Stunning Landscapes

Beautiful scenery may be seen in the Masai Mara, including the Mara River’s meandering course, rolling hills, and expansive grasslands. The landscape offers a wonderful setting for taking pictures and observing wildlife.

#4. A Vast Selection of Activities

Hot air balloon safaris, game drives, guided nature walks, and cultural trips to nearby Maasai villages are just a few of the safari activities available to visitors to the Masai Mara.

#5. Luxurious Accommodations

In the Masai Mara, there are many different lodging choices, from opulent camps to eco-chic safari lodges. These lodges and camps provide luxurious safari experiences, cozy lodgings, and breathtaking views of the African savannah.

#6. Opportunities for Photography

The Masai Mara offers fantastic chances for wildlife photography because of its many species and stunning scenery. Photographers can take breathtaking pictures of animals in their native environments.

#7. Cultural Encounters

By visiting Maasai villages and discovering more about their rituals, traditions, and way of life, tourists may fully immerse themselves in the indigenous Maasai culture. The safari experience gains a special depth from this cross-cultural interaction.

#8. Professional Tour Guides

During game drives, knowledgeable guides accompany guests and offer insightful commentary on the animals, ecosystems, and conservation initiatives in the Masai Mara. They guarantee safari visitors a secure and educational experience.

#9. Genuine and Unspoiled

The pristine and genuine safari experience in the Masai Mara is well-known. It provides a feeling of adventure and a pure wilderness experience for guests to bond with nature.

#10. Memorable Experiences

Memories that last a lifetime can be made on a Masai Mara safari. Encountering iconic species and watching the Great Migration are just two of the incredible experiences that the safari delivers that will never be forgotten.

Masai Mara Safari Accommodation

The Masai Mara offers a variety of lodging choices, from opulent camps to eco-chic safari lodges. These lodges and camps provide luxurious lodging, top-notch safari experiences, and breathtaking views of the African savannah.

Some popular lodges include :

#1. Fairmont Mara Safari Club

Nestled in the heart of the bush, this opulent resort offers contemporary amenities and an amazing safari experience amidst the renowned Mara Savannah. The lodge offers opulently equipped tents with views of the Mara River, home to crocodiles and hippos. Amazing game drives, unique culinary adventures, and an outdoor pool are available to guests.

#2. Mara Bush Camp

Mara Bush Camp provides a traditional and genuine safari experience, situated in a sought-after wildlife location in the northern region of Masai Mara. The camp offers roomy and cozy tents with outside verandas and private bathrooms. Bush walks, guided game drives, and cultural exchanges with the Maasai people are available to visitors.

#3. JW Marriott Masai Mara Lodge

The first luxury safari lodge under the JW Marriott brand has debuted with this establishment. It has twenty opulent, roomy en-suite tents, each with a terrace and an outdoor Jacuzzi tub. The lodge has a dining area, lounge bar, spa, gym, photography studio, wide outside viewing deck, and airstrip transfers in addition to meals and game drives.

#4. Mara Serena Safari Lodge

This resort, which is situated in Masai Mara National Park, provides kind service and incredible opportunities to see wildlife. It is renowned for its lovely surroundings and cozy lodging.

#5. Mara Plains Camp

Nestled within the exclusive Olare Motorogi Conservancy is this opulent camp. With just seven tents, it provides small and unique safari experiences. With tasteful furnishings, every tent has its own veranda with expansive views of the grasslands beyond. The camp also features a dining area, lounge, and swimming pool for visitors to enjoy.

#6. Governors’ Camp

Governors’ Camp, one of the oldest and most well-known camps in the Masai Mara, is located on the banks of the Mara River. A private safari villa, family tents, and opulent tents are among the lodging choices it provides. With wildlife drives, bush walks, and hot-air balloon safaris, the camp offers a real safari experience.

#7. Sarova Mara Game Camp

Situated in the center of the Masai Mara Game Reserve is this spacious tented camp. It provides a range of lodging choices, such as family, club, and regular tents. The camp has a bar with a view of the game reserve, a restaurant with both local and international food, and a swimming pool.

#8. Camp Sala

Sala’s Camp, which is situated in the southern region of the Masai Mara, offers a distinctive and genuine safari experience. The camp features opulent tents with expansive views of the grasslands and private toilets. Visitors can take part in cultural tours to Maasai settlements, wildlife drives, and bush hikes. Additionally, the camp hosts bush meals and sundowners to create a truly authentic African experience.

#9. Mara Intrepids Camp

Mara Intrepids Camp, which is situated beside the Talek River, provides roomy, luxurious tents with contemporary conveniences. The lodge offers hot-air balloon safaris, bush walks, and wildlife drives—a distinctive fusion of luxury and excitement. Visitors can unwind by the pool or eat at the restaurant at the camp, which has a view of the river and the surrounding forest.

#10. Mara Explorer Camp

Mara Explorer Camp is located on the Talek River’s heavily wooded riverbed and features opulent tents with separate decks and expansive views. With individualized service and professionally led game drives, the camp offers a unique and intimate experience. Indulge in a restorative spa treatment or take in sundowners in the bush.

Masai Mara Safari Package

Travelers can choose from a variety of alternatives when exploring the wildlife and scenery of Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve with Masai Mara Safari packages. These packages are made to give guests a thorough and hassle-free experience. They primarily consist of lodging, meals, transportation, and safari activities.

Features and benefits of Masai Mara Safari packages include:

#1. Guided Nature Walks

A guided nature walk is a feature of several packages that lets guests explore the outdoors on foot. These expert-led walks give you the chance to learn more about the ecosystem’s finer points, learn about plants and their traditional uses, and get a new perspective on wildlife.

#2. Duration

The length of safari packages varies, with 2-day and multi-day excursions being possible. Because of the safari’s length, guests may fully immerse themselves in the Masai Mara Reserve’s wildlife and scenery.

#3. Safaris with Hot Air Balloons

An increasingly common addition to Masai Mara Safari packages is balloon safaris. In a hot-air balloon, visitors may soar over the wide plains and take in expansive views of the surrounding terrain and fauna. A champagne breakfast in the bush is often served after this tranquil and breathtaking event.

#4. Workshops for Photography

Some packages cater to photography lovers and may include the services of a professional wildlife photographer or photographic classes. These classes offer pointers and directions on how to take the best pictures of Masai Mara’s wildlife and scenery.

#5. Price

Packages for Masai Mara Safaris might differ in price based on the kind of lodging, length of stay, and inclusions. To accommodate a range of tastes and price points, some alternatives are inexpensive, mid-range, and luxurious.

#6. Sundowners and Bush Dinners

Specialized eating experiences in the bush are included in many programs. A delectable dinner is served to guests outside while they take in traditional dance and music performances. Another highlight of these packages is the sundowner beverages, which are savored against the breathtaking backdrop of an African sunset.

#7. Optional Extensions

Optional expansions to additional locations within Kenya or nearby nations may be available for certain packages. One can, for instance, combine a trip to Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park, Lake Nakuru National Park, or Amboseli National Park with a Masai Mara Safari.

#8. Exclusive Use of Safari Vehicles

The option of having a safari vehicle and guide all to yourself is available in some packages. As a result, safari experiences can now be tailored to individual interests and tastes, making game drives more flexible and personalized.

#9. Community and Conservation Initiatives

Visits to conservation and community projects in the Masai Mara region may be included in some packages. Through these excursions, one can gain a more comprehensive awareness of the area by learning about the efforts being made to support residents and safeguard species.

#10. All-Inclusive Packages

A few safari packages include everything—lodging, meals, transportation, park admission, and activities—all at once. With these packages, guests may enjoy ease and peace of mind knowing that there won’t be any hidden expenses while on safari.

Luxury Masai Mara Safari

Masai Mara is possibly the most famous safari destination in the world, but because of faulty government laws, you must be very careful about where you travel since you may end up with twenty minibusses, which we believe is the death of a genuine luxury safari. Contrary to common belief, the Masai Mara has many luxury safari camps that are off the usual path and away from tourists.

The profusion of predators (there are more predators than anyplace else in the world) and the scenery—those rolling plains are breathtakingly magnificent, and the sundowners here are especially spectacular, with ever-changing colors—are the reasons the Masai Mara is so popular. The wildebeest migration from July to October brings large numbers, although the area is great for game viewing all year.

The Masai tribe plays an important role here, and many of the most isolated sites offer a real and natural cultural experience, which only adds to your luxury safari. In no particular order, here are our top ten luxury Masai Mara safari camps (please keep in mind that every single camp we mention is in a remote and exclusive location with fewer people):

#1. The Mara Plains

Mara Plains has long been known as one of the most magnificent safari camps in the Masai Mara, and with its recent makeover, it just got better. There are now expansive tented suites with views of the plains. Much of the action frequently takes place in front of this luxury camp, and you will be provided with the best in everything, from meals to guides. The suites are unfathomably luxurious, and you will never want to leave.

#2. Richard’s River Camp

Richard’s River Camp is quirky and one-of-a-kind, with magnificent luxury tents and stylish fabrics and furnishings. Although this premium Masai Mara safari lodge is exceedingly luxurious, it still has a calm and informal vibe; the personnel and managers make you feel immediately at home, and you will leave having made new friends. When it comes to games, the site is unbeatable, and because of a little stream in front of the camp, much of the activity typically happens right in front of your luxury tent.

#3. Elephant Pepper Camp

With a combination of modern and vintage furnishings, this camp has all the charm of a tented camp. It is incredibly luxurious and boasts stunning views of the vast plains, with a short tree line in the background. The camp is equipped with hammocks, day beds, and other small relaxation places, allowing you to spend your days feeling wonderfully serene in between thrilling game drives.

#4. Sam Stockdale or Paolo Parazzi’s Mobile Camp

Paolo Parazzi and Sam Stogdale are two of Kenya’s greatest luxury safari guides, and either of their private mobile camps is ideal for people who want to travel off the main path, have a private guide and camp, and see some very good wildlife. Sam and Paolo know the Mara (and Kenya) like the back of their hands, having grown up here, and will take you to places that others may only dream of. The camp can be as opulent or as rustic as you choose, but the food, comfort, and guidance will never be compromised.

#5. Saruni Mara

Saruni Mara is a lodge, but a very opulent one. This premium Masai Mara lodge is the greatest of its kind in the Mara, with some of the most charismatic and welcoming staff. The food is excellent, as are the spacious luxury rooms with verandahs. Its location in the northern Masai Mara is ideal for wildlife viewing, and there are very few humans in the area.

#6. Cottars 1920s Safari Camp

Cottars Lodge is a well-known Masai Mara safari lodge that has maintained its status as one of the greatest; it is entirely furnished with antique campaign furniture and is one of the most romantic camps in Africa. Because it is located in its own private conservancy, you will not see another soul. Sipping a G&T in an old canvas bathtub while watching the wildlife go about its business makes this one of the most memorable luxury safari camps in the Mara.

#7. Naboisho Camp

Naboisho Camp is quite luxurious and has a more permanent feel for those who do not want to spend too much time in a true tented camp. It has a wonderful location in the exclusive Naboisho Conservancy, with fantastic game viewing and no tourists. The Masai play an important role here, and guests can walk and go on night drives, making a luxury Masai Mara safari a little more daring. At this camp, no detail has been overlooked, and you will enjoy a wonderful and one-of-a-kind experience.

#8. Roberts Safaris Mobile Camp

This luxury mobile camp has the most exciting location of all in the Mara; it can be set up anywhere, but thanks to Willie Roberts’ (your guide and host) knowledge, experience, and contacts, you will find yourself in some of the most spectacular and wild areas of the Masai Mara. The mobile camp itself is comfortable, and you will not be disappointed.

#9. Salas Camp

Salas Camp is practically on the Tanzanian border and offers a rustic and homely vibe that makes you depart as a friend rather than a client. The game-watching down here is distant and wild, and you will appreciate returning to our luxury camp to tell everyone about your adventures. Salas offers fantastic guides who can put you in the best position to view the action.

#10. Offbeat Mara

Offbeat Mara is a more rustic camp that offers a remote and unique location for those looking for game viewing with a few people. Once again, this camp is staffed with some of the friendliest and warmest people one could hope to meet, and its tents all have views of the surrounding bush in which plains game grazes happily around the camp, and you might be lucky enough to see Elephants, Buffalo, and Lions from your tent as well.

How Much Does It Cost to Go to Masai Mara?

The cost of a vacation to Masai Mara might vary depending on factors like park fees, lodging options, transportation options, trip duration, and additional activities. Non-resident park fees range between $80 and $45 per adult and child. Budget accommodations cost around $350 per person, whereas luxury accommodations cost $1,500 or more per person. Fly-in safari packages range in price from $850 to $1,000. Additional activities, such as visits to Maasai settlements, may incur additional charges.

Which Month Is Best for the Masai Mara Safari?

During the dry season, the best time to visit the Masai Mara for a safari experience is between June and October. This time of year is perfect for wildlife viewing and photography because of the nice temperatures, warm and dry weather, and brilliant blue skies. The months of July to October are especially suggested for seeing the Great Migration, in which millions of wildebeests and other animals cross the Mara River in search of new grass.

Is Masai Mara in Kenya or Tanzania?

The Masai Mara National Reserve is located in Kenya, specifically in Narok County. It is a vast national game reserve that borders Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park. They comprise one of Africa’s most diverse and magnificent ecosystems, recognized for their plentiful animals and breathtaking scenery. The Masai Mara is famous for its yearly Great Migration, in which millions of wildebeest, zebras, and other animals cross the Mara River in search of greener pastures. Kenya and Tanzania are both wonderful African safari destinations, with fantastic wildlife encounters and stunning scenery. The Masai Mara, on the other hand, is in Kenya, while the Serengeti is in Tanzania.

Why is Masai Mara Special?

The Masai Mara is unique due to its abundance of wildlife, including the Big Five, and its importance as a staging area for the yearly Great Migration. It has beautiful scenery and a rich cultural heritage with the Maasai people, and it helps with wildlife protection. Overall, it is regarded as a world-class safari location that offers amazing African wilderness experiences.

Why is Masai Mara Expensive?

Accommodation, transportation, park fees, additional activities, and the chance for special experiences can all add up to make Masai Mara an expensive destination. The cost varies according to personal tastes and the level of luxury required. It is critical to conduct research and compare several possibilities to discover the most value for your money.

Summary

Experience the breathtaking splendor of Africa’s famed safari location, Masai Mara, as you encounter spectacular wildlife on an unforgettable tour. The Masai Mara Safari in Kenya provides a one-of-a-kind and spectacular wildlife encounter. With its plentiful wildlife, magnificent scenery, and the chance to observe the Great Migration, it’s no surprise that the Masai Mara is regarded as one of Africa’s finest safari locations. Masai Mara offers exquisite lodgings, animal photographic opportunities, cultural encounters, and an understanding of Maasai culture.