Maasai Mara, Kenya
The Maasai Mara Game Reserve, located in the heartland of Maasai country in South Western Kenya adjacent to the Great Rift Valley, is widely considered to be one of Africa's greatest wildlife reserves and boasts the single largest concentration of plains game that can be found anywhere in the world.
It is an extraordinary area that offers the possibility of seeing almost every animal indigenous to the region. All the camps and lodges in the region including Elephant Pepper Camp, Cottar's 1920's Camp and Richard's Camp offer unique and enriching qualities and can be reached by a forty-five minute flight from Nairobi's Wilson Airport. The vast grassland plains are scattered with herds of zebra, giraffe, gazelle & topi as well as lion, cheetah, leopard, elephant & buffalo amongst others.
Each year the Mara plays host to the world's greatest natural spectacle, the Great Wildebeest Migration from the Serengeti. From July to October, the promise of rain and fresh life giving grass in the north brings more than 1.3 million Wildebeest together into a single massive herd. They pour across the border into the Mara, making a spectacular entrance in a surging column of life that stretches from horizon to horizon. The wildebeest bring new life to the Mara, not just through their cycle of regeneration of the grasslands, but for the predators that follow the herds.
The Maasai people who are a strongly independent people still value tradition and ritual as an integral part of their everyday lives. They regard themselves not just as residents of this area but as much a part of the life of the land as the land is part of their lives. The Mara is an awesome natural wonder, a place where Maasai warriors share the plains with hunting lions, a place of mighty herds and timeless cycles of life, death and regeneration. Wildlife moves freely in and out of the reserve and through neighbouring Maasai lands.
This is a truly magnificent culturally and wildlife rich part of Kenya, and a must for all travellers seeking adventure, luxury and awe-inspiring scenery.