SAFARI IN MAASAI MARA
One of the highlights and the reason why we visited Kenya is for this, safari at Maasai Mara!
Maasai Mara is a hugeeee national park in Kenya, one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country. Inside it has more than 400 species living in harmony. The park stretches all the way to Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.
So after Nairobi, we went to Maasai Mara by booking a car, in consideration that we would love to see the slow transition of the journey from the city to the national park. It took us 7 hours in total to reach our hotel — 30–40 minutes from the entrance of Maasai Mara.
Accommodation
We stayed at Mara River Camp for 2 nights, and had everything organized by the camp: from pick up, game drives, to the package including meals. The reason we chose this camp is, besides the price, that we love the safari ambiance. The camp is located by the river — thus the name — Mara River Camp. Our room is a standalone tent, also located by the river. When we arrived, we could see some hippos and crocodiles from the restaurant a.k.a common room. We fell in love with the place already!
The tent is a very sturdy built camp, and has everything we needed. It was very clean, and the bed was so comfortable. Each tent has electricity, and even hot water!
Staffs in the hotel are super friendly and their attention to details is meticulous. We love how they slipped heaters under our blanket when they prepared our bed during dinner. It is very needed since it can be quite cold during the night.
At night, they would light up the bonfire by the dining area, which gave the real atmosphere of camping.
On our last dinner there, the staff which are mostly Maasai people, gave us a performance together with other Maasai Warriors with the traditional game/competition, accompanied with their singing and dancing.
Game Drives
Arriving in the afternoon at about 3PM, we immediately went to lunch and headed out to the Maasai Mara for the game drive! We used the same car that picked us up in the city and had it privately to us. Since it was already late afternoon, we experienced the transition between day and sunset in the savanna — it was very beautiful! Soon after we arrived we saw tons of zebras, gazelles, many elephants, and even a hyena that was too full from eating so it could barely move. We had to return to the camp before dark so we left around 5.30 PM.
The next day, we decided that we would like to make the most of it by having a full-day game drive, starting at 7.30 AM in the morning. Checking our list by seeing 4 of the Big Five (leopards, elephants, lions, water buffaloes — and missing the rhinos) that day, and not only once but several times! My favorite sighting was a family of leopards eating a gazelle at their hideout.
We had lunch near the big river with so many hippos in sight.
Enjoy the rest of safari pictures that Dennis took, I think they are awesome!!
What To Wear and What To Bring
Since the camp prepared all the food for us, we don’t think that bringing snacks is necessary.
But if you love to snack like I do, better bring them from town because the camp is far from any commercial area.
(Kenyan wafers are delicious, btw~)
In terms of clothes, the dress code on a safari is to wear earth and neutral color (according to me, teehee~). Any style would be okay, as long as you are comfortable to sit long in it and to maybe go around in nature a little (it is restricted to walk around in Maasai Mara, but there are some particular spots where you can rest and have a little lunch/tea time in the park). Wear comfortable sport shoes/boots and be ready to have them dirty. The weather in the Maasai Mara is pretty cold in the morning and evening, so you might want to bring jackets or might even need a lightweight coat.
What we think is very useful is binoculars, it is great to have one (if you’re in a group, maybe one to use in turns).
On top of that, of course sunscreen, and mosquito repellent.
More Information
Accommodation: Mara River Camp
See more on www.dennislydia.com
