Kenya Travel: Photo Diary From Maasai Mara

Like last year, our stay at Mahali Mzuri in the Maasai Mara (sometimes spell as Masai Mara) was above and beyond excellent. It’s a relaxing safari lodge set high above a cliff in the Rift Valley that makes for great game watching and tranquility. Seriously — there is not a person for miles and we could lay in bed at night listening to lions purr and hippos grunt, not to mention to squawking of birds and baboon banter.

Kenya Travel: Photo Diary Of Maasai Mara

If seeing big cats is on your safari agenda, booking a stay in the Masai Mara is the way to go. We saw so many lions, leopards and cheetah this year — including their cubs!

Getting To The Maasai Mara

Like Tsavo National Park, the Mara is accessible in a few different ways. We have always flown Safarilink and had a great experience. Flights leave Nairobi from Wilson airport (note: this is different than the international airport in Nairobi, Jomo Kenyatta). The flight from Nairobi to the Mara takes around 45 minutes.

You can also access the Masai Mara via car and it takes around 6 hours from Nairobi.

Where To Stay In Maasai Mara

There are SO MANY CAMPS in the Mara. Let me say that again – so many camps! At last count I believe there are more than 200 to choose from, which is a ton considering the Mara is only 580 square miles. I say only, because Tsavo is 8,000 and there are not nearly that many camps out there.

In any case, we love Mahali Mzuri, because it’s within its own conservancy — the Olare Motorogi Conservancy — and the animals are abundant. That considered, there are so many animals in the Mara as a whole, I’m sure you cannot go wrong.

And now, what I’m sure most of you are here for — photos straight from the Mara. I am focusing primarily on animal photos here, but there are plenty of opportunities to visit Maasai villages, schools and of course, the camps themselves.