Masai Mara National Reserve Overview

Known as one of Africa’s greatest wildlife reserves, Masai Mara National Reserve is famous for superb wildlife viewing.

Highlights And Main Attractions Of Masai Mara National Reserve

Known as Africa's premier safari destination, fertile grassland of savannah in Masai Mara National Rerserve welcomes alluring migratory wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s gazelle.

As Masai Mara and Serengeti ecosystem hosts Great Wildebeest Migration every year, Masai Mara is the best place to watch the annual migration especially from August to October.

Known as the Mara Triangle, the remote western section of the reserve is known as one of the best area for game viewing.

This park is also the home of African Big Five; lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and rhino.

Masai Mara National Reserve Quick Facts

  • One of the Kenya Safari Destinations that is most famous for game drive

  • Wildlife including African Big Five can be regularly spotted during the game drive.

  • Availability of more than 450 bird species is one of the Kenya Safari Facts.

  • This park is counted as one of the highest densities in the world.

Eco-System And Wildlife Of Masai Mara National Reserve

The meaning of Masai Mara comes from ‘Masai’, an ethnic group and word 'Mara', which means spotted, refers to these dots in the landscape.

Masai Mara National Reserve is full of grassland savannah, but pockets of acacia woodland, forests on the bank of river and rocky hills are scattered on the plains. Bisected by riverine forests, Masai Mara is intersected by three major rivers: the Sand, the Talek, and the Mara.

The wildlife of Masai Mara has a major contribution towards the popularity of Kenya Safari Tours.. Known as an incredible wildlife viewing, Masai Mara National Reserve is the home of Big Five including buffalo, giraffe, lion, leopard, antelopes, hyena and cheetah with the migratory wildebeest and zebra.

Endangered black rhinos can be spotted in the dense bushes, where hippos and crocodiles can be found in Mara River during Kenya Safari Tours. There are more than 450 bird species that can be seen in this reserve.

Masai Mara National Reserve Accommodation Options

Most of the accommodations are luxurious, where the availability can be ranged from permanent lodges to tented and mobile camps.

Some of the famous lodges are Mara Simba lodge, Keekorok lodge, Mara Serena Safari lodge, etc.

Luxury camps that can be found in Kenya Safari Tours are Angama Mara camp, &Beyond Bateleur camp & Kichwa Tembo tenteted Camp, Cottar's camp, elephant bedroom, Elephant Pepper camp, Little Governor’s Camp, Saruni camp, Richard’s River camp, and other camps.

Masai Mara National Reserve Pros And Cons

Pros

  • Offers excellent wildlife view throughout the year

  • Annual wildebeest migration enters from Tanzania and stay there from August to October

  • Open savannah lands offers spotting wildlife easily

  • Wide variety of accommodation for different budgets

  • Hot air balloon safaris

Cons

  • Highest traffic during high season

  • Fly-in is recommended for inaccessible roads

Want to Visit Masai Mara National Reserve?

Known as a classic safari destination, Masai Mara National Reserve is famous for many Things To Do In Kenya Safari such as game drive, hot air balloon safari, Masai cultural safari, wildebeest migration and birding safari.

Located 270 km from Nairobi, Masai Mara can be reached about 4-5 hours by road through Narok and Sekenani Gate or 40-45 minutes by flight. In flight transport, this reserve can be accessible through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and the near by Wilson airport for domestic flights and regional flights.

According to Kenya Travel Guide, dry season from January to February and August to October is the Best Time To Visit Kenya Safari.

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