Dreaming to experience the wild and nature’s best ecosystem, what should come to your mind is the great Maasai Mara in Kenya. An extra ordinary safari experience will be a one way ticket to the land of pleasure and adventure. Kenya is a popular tourist destination that prides in the famous Maasai Mara a branded national reserve with magnificent beauty which can never be traced elsewhere. Travellers planning to visit Kenya should include Masai Mara on their package for an amazing wildlife experience.
Self-drive is a new vibe adopted by many travellers who want to explore national parks and other travel destinations. Agencies are available to offer their vehicles for self-drive in Kenya depending on their travel purpose. 4×4 wheel drive vehicles are offered at affordable and friendly deals to let you explore the pride of Africa in style. Cars in the fleet include land cruiser Prado, TX, v8, land cruiser extended, roof top tented cars, super custom, Rav 4, mini vans and buses.
Have you ever thought of what makes Maasai Mara so special from the rest of other tourist destination in Kenya? Maasai Mara is Kenya’s largest ecosystem made of the Maasai Mara national reserve and Mara triangle, Mara River, Olare Orok conservancy and the Masaai communities/ villages. Some people fail to distinguish the two parks Maasai Mara and Serengeti national park because of the boundaries and being close neighbor parks.
Maasai is an ancestral name derived from the early inhabitants the Maasai which means “my people” and Mara “spotted”. Maasai Mara is brimming with a natural life of its own which can never be traced elsewhere in Africa. It is made up of the big five game and the epic wildebeests that are spotted during the annual migration. It is located in the south western Kenya along the Tanzania border in Narok County embraced with the rolling hills, stunning scenic landscapes, sprawling savannah wilderness, green forests and the great annual wildebeest migration.
The best way to fully explore Masai Mara reserve is through self-drive and reaching destination on your own in a strange country is a bit tricky but fun to those that get a chance to safely travel. The wild is quite, the wild is fun, the wild demands, the wild rewards and the wild strikes. So be careful during self-drive and its better and advisable to get a ranger guide from the park gate to take you through safari in Maasai Mara.
Maasai Mara is a gem yet to be discovered by those that appreciate nature and willing to invest in time and money. To avoid getting at the wrong side of nature, switch off the radio while in the park because sound interferes and scares wildlife species. You are prohibited from leaving the vehicle without the rangers consent and avoid off tracking without sights.
Maasai Mara is a renowned destination for the big five creatures that roam and camouflage in the plain savannah but are easily spotted. The lavish park vegetation is another added beauty for wildlife breeding with the topography creating a photography platform for nature photo lovers and researchers.
Activities and attractions
What you encounter is a life time reward for the passion and desire exhibited after going an extra mile to seek for nature. The eyes of a traveller is designed to capture beautiful memories and let the brains store the rest of the content because adventurous travel is rewarding. The wild is therapy and it offers a safari pill to its guests. What you see and do is paramount and expect positive results during your stay in Maasai Mara.
Annual wildebeest migration
This is the bestselling activity in the Maasai Mara and every travellers favorite. Booking for this session is affordable to all guests of all classes. A safari in Kenya is not complete without engaging in the annual wildebeest migration which happens between the month of July and October. The animals cross from their bleeding area of Serengeti national park through Mara River infected with crocodiles to Maasai Mara for fresh and green pastures and returns while following the rain patterns. Its extreme excitement is the nature battle between millions of wildebeests and zebra against the crocodiles who fight hard to stop them. The lions also make Mara River bank a home during the migration session to hunt without much strength. It’s a day session which requires guests to come early well equipped and leave late in the evening. It is adventures experiencing the real wildebeest migration activity on a safari than observing it on a documentary.
Nature walks
Close encounter calls for great sights and this can only be achieved during nature walks in Maasai Mara reserve. With the help of a ranger guide and some locals following traces less used by predators. It is easier and fun to explore the park on foot with guest interaction with the locals and great sights of wildlife at close range. Engaging in walks creates body fitness and guests get to reach Maasai Mara to witness migration depending on the season. Researchers are granted a platform to gather adequate information at close proximity about the reserves flora and fauna and peoples interaction with the park. Creatures that are easily sighted on nature walks include buffalos, antelopes, giraffes, elephants, bush bucks among others.
Hot Air balloons
Experience staying up in the air space and appreciate the park’s ecosystem in a hot air balloon. This activity creates a romantic feel and a bit thrilling when leaving the ground. It starts off with a shake and scary sound and guests are advised to sit firm. This is a very early morning session and begins with breakfast at the hotel and then proceed for a short briefing before setting off to the skies. It takes 1-2 hours of sky drive at the same heights with the birds. Expect amazing clear sights of beautiful sceneries, birds flying very close, tree canopies, wildlife roaming in the reserve. The best part for photographers is that the sky offers a best angle with panorama views and great aerial shots. Guests are rewarded with a glass of wine and a certificate to celebrate success.
Game drive
Searching for wildlife species in the open savannah grasslands of Maasai Mara on a game drive is so enticing and fun during self-drive. This activity involves following tracking trails while in a 4×4 wheel drive vehicle with a guide to help you with the necessary park information. Game drives are conducted in three sessions which include morning game drives, evening game drives and night game drives.
During morning animals are more active and move out of their resting places to come and hunt for food. Evening drives are also rewarding as the wilderness is getting silent and the creatures are going to rest after a long day. Under the guidance of a ranger guide, guests are allowed to visit the park for a night game drive to search for nocturnal creatures. Wildlife to encounter during game drives include the big five such as buffaloes, lions, leopards, elephants and rhinos. Other creature to spot include hyenas, hippos, crocodiles, zebras, hartebeests, Oribis, antelopes, gazelle, wildebeests and many others
Birding
Masai Mara reserve is a birders haven and a variety of birds are sighted during the guest birding experience. The park has made it top to the records where a client can see more than 342 bird species within 24 hours out of over 450 bird species. The open savannah is praised for offering birds a platform to display before the birders. The park host migratory birds which are sighted between October to February annually. Bird species which can are spotted include ostrich, yellow-billed stork, Kori bustard, marabou stork, Hamerkop, sacred Ibis, Egyptian vulture, tawny Eagle, secretary bird, Ruppels Vulture, African fish Eagle, long tailed cormorant, Grey Egret, little bittern, Grey Heron among others.
Masai cultural villages
With the unique and unchanged traditions and norms of the Maasai group of people which is shared to the guest who choose to pay a visit to local communities. The Maasai are believed to have existed for many years but their culture still remains unchangeable even with the change in day to day technology. The Maasai locals are the common park associates with the wildlife and live in harmony. They live near and around the reserve and can promote conservation of the area’s ecosystem. The Maasai are renowned pastoralists who walk along as they graze their herds of cattle in African style.
The guests get to visit the Maasai communities which comprises of over 50 houses (African thatched huts) surrounded by crawls home to their pride (cattle). Guests get to experience and learn about the African traditions and while on the cultural tour expect to engage in the traditional dance and drama style of high jumps up and down, feed on fresh or boiled blood, learn how to milk cows and learn tactics of how they construct mud grass hatched houses.
Other activities
Picnic views is best done by lovers who want to create romantic memories in the wilderness. Enjoy your meals with clear sights of numerous bird species, wildebeests and other beautiful sceneries. . Guests can as well arrange for horseback safari which is a rare activity but can be participated while on a safari in Maasai Mara reserve. With the guidance of well-trained rangers, you will pass through beautiful land scape and get close to the wildlife at the back of the horse and following up wildebeest migration is spectacular.
Explore Maasai Mara reserve with its sought after annual 1000 wildebeest migration with us and get a nature therapy treat. We know there, we have been there and we will definitely take you there. Visit the pride of Africa on a self-drive for solo travel, family or group safaris.
