Masai Mara Semi-Luxury Safari

SA RESIDENT SPECIAL!!

Visiting the most famous reserve in the world, the awe-inspiring Masai Mara, is the realisation of most safari dreams - rolling grasslands, wide-open savannah and rich African wildlife. The probability of seeing the Big Five and big cats, is exceptionally good.  Visit between June and October to see the wildebeest migration as they battle to cross the crocodile-infested Mara River.  Stay in tented camps in private concessions in the Greater Mara provide a more immersive experience, where you can hear the sounds of wildlife nearby at night and listen to the lions' roar in the distance! 


Itinerary

  • Day 0: Johannesburg

    Check-in for your flight to Kenya at the Kenya Airways check-in counter 3 hours before the scheduled departure time, which is just after midnight.

  • Day 1: Johannesburg / Nairobi / Greater Masai Mara

    The package includes return economy airfare with Kenya Airways from Johannesburg to Nairobi Airport (departing at 01h15 – arriving at 06h20). At Nairobi Airport, our friendly safari team will welcome you and transfer you to Wilson Airport (domestic airport in Nairobi) – roughly a 45-minute transfer. Our representative will meet you at Wilson Airport and accompany you to the light aircraft for your flight to the airstrip closest to your camp in the Masai Mara. Meet and greet by the camp team on arrival for your transfer and check-in. Afternoon game drive in the conservancy provides an outstanding opportunity to witness the bush in action. 

    Stay: Mara Expedition Camp OR Mara Toto Camp

    Meals: Lunch, dinner, breakfast, and a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks

  • Day 2: Masai Mara National Reserve

    Enjoy an early morning departure from the camp with a full day in the Masai Mara National Reserve (with a picnic lunch). The Great Wildebeest Migration is the annual highlight (between mid-July and the end of September) and creates one of the world's greatest natural spectacles. The sheer sight of the wildebeest and zebra herds rushing into the crocodile-infested river is a once-in-a-lifetime sighting.

    Stay: Mara Expedition Camp OR Mara Toto Camp

    Meals: Lunch, dinner, breakfast, and a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks

  • Day 3: Greater Masai Mara

    Book an early morning balloon safari (your account) and enjoy floating over the Masai Mara with its enchanting scenery and fantastic wildlife. Discover more of the private conservancy area where your camp is located with morning and afternoon game drives. These private conservancy areas which border the Masai Mara National Reserve grant access to some of the region’s best wildlife and some of the most spectacular landscapes. The main activity in the Great Masai Mara is game drives, and we use custom-built 4x4 safari vehicles designed to offer you unobstructed panoramic views.

    Stay: Mara Expedition Camp OR Mara Toto Camp

    Meals: Lunch, dinner, breakfast, and a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks

  • Day 4: Masai Mara National Reserve / Nairobi / Johannesburg

    Spend an early morning out on safari: the Masai Mara never fails to deliver extraordinary wildlife sightings. Return to the camp for breakfast before your guide transfers you to the airstrip for your flight to Nairobi - Wilson Airport. On arrival, you will drive to Nairobi's Karen area to enjoy lunch at the Karen Blixen Restaurant (for your account). If time allows, you can also visit the Giraffe Centre (for your account), which protects the highly endangered Rothschild giraffes before your transfer to the airport where you will board your flight home (departing at 21h00 Kenya time, arriving at 00h15* South African time).

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We can send you a tailor-made quotation similar to the above itinerary - one designed specifically for you, around your taste, budget, interests and more.

  • Return economy airfares with Kenya Airways from Johannesburg to Nairobi Airport.
  • Including airport taxes. 
  • Airport transfers in Nairobi with English speaking driver-guide. 
  • Safari accommodation:
  • Choose between 2 Semi-Luxury camps in the Greater Masai Mara (the Mara Expedition Camp OR Mara Toto Camp).
  • Lunch, dinner, breakfast,  a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
  • Daily laundry.
  • Return airstrip road transfers.
  • Great Plains Foundation Conservation & Community levy.
  • 1x Masai Mara National Reserve Park fee 
  • Scheduled wildlife activities:
  • Morning and afternoon game drives.
  • 1x Full-day game drive in the Masai Mara National Reserve.
  • Mara Expedition Camp has two professional Canon camera sets, each with a choice of lenses, including wide-angle macro lenses (on a first-come-first-serve basis) 
  • All photos are downloaded to a USB for guests to take home upon departure with our compliments 
  • Photographic tuition is available on request 
  • A limited number of Leica binoculars are also available for guest's complimentary use 
  • 4x4 Open Game Drive Safari Vehicles (on a shared base with other lodge guests)
  • Services of your professional and knowledgeable Kenya English speaking driver-guide 
  • All national park entrance fees (park fees are valid for 24 hours – if you enter the park at a particular time, you need to exit at the same time)
  • Comprehensive support from our operational office in Kenya for the duration of the safari 
  • Travel information pack

  • International flights
  • Entry visa to Kenya
  • Yellow Fever vaccination - COMPULSORY
  • Travel Insurance (Highly recommended)
  • Meals and drinks not specified  
  • Laundry services
  • Gratuities to the driver/guide, hotel staff & porters 
  • Maasai Village visit fee
  • Balloon safari
  • Lunch at Karen Blixen Restaurant (day 4)
  • Entrance fee to Giraffe Centre (day 4) 
  • All expenses of personal nature

Dates & Prices

Dates:

Valid until: 31 March 2023


This safari has been crafted with knowledge and insight, showcasing just a few of the experiences you can enjoy on safari in Kenya. It is merely an example, and any element of this itinerary can be adjusted to suit your needs. Chat with one of our Safari Specialists, who will be able to help you to customise the ideal safari itinerary for you based on your interests, preferences and budget.


Rates:

SA Resident Special USD Rate
3-Nights in Masai Mara R65,066.00 pp (SAVE R10,228 pp) Available on Request
4-Nights in Masai Mara R74,685.00 pp (SAVE R13,637.00 pp) Available on Request
MORE SA Resident Specials

 

  • The exchange rate used (bank selling rate): R17.50 to US$1.00
  • Please treat all pricing as a guide only.
  • The tour itinerary, inclusions and departures are based on travel until: 31 March 2023.
  • All rates are subject to increases beyond our control, including fuel price, government taxes and exchange rate fluctuations.

 

National Parks

Greater Masai Mara

The Masai Mara is well-known and the most popular reserve in the whole of Africa. Bordering the Serengeti National Park, the Masai Mara offers a wide variety of wildlife and the best opportunity to see lions (some with gorgeous, long black manes) and cheetah. In one day alone, you can spot lions, hippos, crocodiles, antelope, giraffes, wildebeests, warthogs, baboons, hyenas, jackals, zebras, Cape buffalo and dozens of birds. Every year, millions of wildebeests and zebras migrate into the Mara in search of water. The timing of this phenomenon varies, depending on the rains. Whether you get to experience the migration or not, wildlife watching is excellent all year round, and the Mara will leave you with a lasting impression of Kenya.


Masai Mara National Reserve

The Masai Mara lies in the Great Rift Valley, a fault line somewhat 5,600km long, extending from Ethiopia's Red Sea through Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and into Mozambique. 
There are four main types of topography in the Mara: 
  • Ngama Hills to the east with sandy soil and leafy bushes and loved by black rhinos.
  • Oloololo escarpment forming the western boundary and rising to a magnificent plateau.
  • Mara Triangle bordering the Mara River with lush grassland and acacia woodlands supporting masses of game, especially migrating wildebeests.
  • Central plains form the largest part of the reserve, with scattered bushes and boulders on rolling grasslands favoured by the plain's game. 
There is an abundance of wildebeests, zebras, impalas, topis, giraffes and Thomson's gazelles on the plains. Visitors often spot leopards, lions, hyenas, cheetah, jackal, bat-eared foxes and even black rhinos during game drives. The Mara river is filled with hippos and enormous Nile crocodiles. Every July (sometimes August), the wildebeests travel from the Serengeti plains to the Masai Mara. In October, once they have feasted and the grass is depleted, they return to the Southern Serengeti. The Mara birds appear in every size and colour including the beautiful lilac-breasted roller and plenty of large species lik eagles, vultures and storks.