The Maasai Mara National Reserve covers 1,510 km² of rolling grassland in southwest Kenya, but it is the wider Mara ecosystem — including private conservancies like Olare Motorogi, Mara North and Naboisho — that makes this truly exceptional wildlife country. Together, the reserve and conservancies protect over 2,500 km² of pristine savannah.

Why the Mara is Special

The Mara has the highest density of lion anywhere in East Africa. The combination of open plains visibility, highly habituated resident big cats, and relatively accessible terrain means predator sightings here are consistently better than almost anywhere else on the continent. Cheetah are commonly seen hunting on the open plains; leopard drape themselves in acacia trees along the Mara River; wild dog are occasionally sighted in the northern conservancies.

The Great Migration in the Mara

The Maasai Mara is where the annual wildebeest migration reaches its most dramatic conclusion. From approximately late July to October, 1.5 million wildebeest attempt multiple crossings of the Mara River — an event that can involve thousands of animals simultaneously plunging into crocodile-filled water.

The crossings are entirely unpredictable. A herd will gather on the bank, mill around nervously for hours, then either cross or turn back for no apparent reason. The best strategy is to find a herd gathered at a crossing point and wait. Patience is rewarded.

Private Conservancies: The Alternative to the Reserve

The private conservancies surrounding the national reserve offer significant advantages:

  • No vehicle limits per sighting — in the national reserve, popular crossings can have 50-100 vehicles; in conservancies, maximum 3-4
  • Off-road driving permitted — allows close access to wildlife without staying on tracks
  • Night game drives permitted — cheetahs hunting at dusk, leopard emerging, nightjars and hyena
  • Walking safaris with armed rangers
  • Generally smaller, more intimate camps

Conservancy camps command premium prices but deliver a dramatically more intimate experience. Masonda's Kenya's Finest safari is designed around this approach.

Beyond the Migration: Year-Round Wildlife

The Mara is excellent year-round, not just during the migration. The resident wildlife — lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant, hippo, crocodile, buffalo, giraffe, zebra and over 470 bird species — is always present. January-March is calving season for wildebeest and zebra in the Serengeti (though the herds are south at this time), while the Mara's resident herds calve from December-February with accompanying predator action.

Getting to the Mara

Nairobi to the Mara is a 5-6 hour drive (partly on notorious Kenyan roads) or a 45-minute domestic flight from Wilson Airport. We strongly recommend flying — Fly540, Safarilink and AirKenya all operate regular daily flights to various Mara airstrips. It is safer, less exhausting and often surprisingly affordable relative to the overall safari cost.

Our Kenya's Finest safari combines Nairobi, a domestic flight to the Mara, Sweetwaters Conservancy and Elementaita — 10 days of Kenya's greatest highlights.