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Maasai Mara.
National Park - Kenya
Maasai Mara
Kenya National Park
The Masai Mara is one of Africa’s most famous parks. The wildlife viewing is superb throughout the year. The park’s abundant vegetation and regular rainfall supports a huge population of herbivores, in turn attracting many predators.
All three big cats are relatively easy to see. The yearly wildebeest migration coming through the park is one of the world’s most amazing wildlife spectacles. Just outside the Masai Mara NR are a number of conservancies and private reserves run in partnership with local Masai communities.
The Masai Mara’s scenery is dominated by grassland savannah, but pockets of acacia woodland, riparian forest and rocky hills intersperse the plains.The ecosystem is home to the annual wildebeest migration where 2.5 million wildebeest, zebra and gazelles follow the rains in search of new grass. They make their way from the Serengeti to the Masai Mara somewhere around July and August, and usually arrive in September. The crossing of the Mara River along the way is one of the highlights of this spectacular event. They slowly head back into the Serengeti again around October.
"The Maasai Mara is a land of breathtaking vistas, abundant wildlife and endless plains."
Best Time to Go
June to October
Size
1,510km² / 583mi²
July to October
High Season
Wildlife
the Big Five
Noteworthy
The Great Migration
Altitude
1,435-2,143m / 4,708-7,031ft
There are scheduled daily flights that depart from Wilson Airport and Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, flight time is about 45 minutes to one of the three airstrips (Keekorok, Olkiombo and Musiara) in the Maasai Mara.
Amazing game drives.
Wildlife in the Maasai Mara
Maasai Mara is, together with Serengeti, home to the annual migration where 2.5 million wildebeest, zebra and gazelles follow the rains in search of new grass. They make their way from the Serengeti to the Maasai Mara somewhere around July and August, and usually arrive in September. The crossing of the Mara River along the way is one of the most spectacular wildlife events on the planet. The herds return to the Serengeti around October. The Maasai Mara is one of the best parks in Africa to see big cats, especially leopards which in most Parks are difficult to spot. The Big Five, especially elephant and buffalo are plentiful.
Weather & Climate
Climate in The Maasai Mara is generally mild and pleasant especially in dry season from July to October. The Wet season starts with short rains in November and is interrupted with drier months from December to March before the long rains change the landscape in April. The higher you go in the Park, the cooler it can get.
"Maasai Mara, together with the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, forms Africa’s most diverse, incredible and most spectacular eco-systems and possibly the world’s top safari big game viewing eco-system."
The Best Time to Visit
The months of December to March (the period between the short and long rains) and July to October (the dry season) are the best months to visit the Maasai Mara. The weather is pleasant, the roads haven’t yet deteriorated because of the rains and thirsty animals crowd around the Mara River and water pools. The last two months of the Dry season are often when the spectacular annual wildebeest migration passes through, game viewing is optimal at this time as there is plenty of predator and prey interactions.
Maasai Mara Scenery
The Masai Mara’s scenery is dominated by grassland savannah with islands of forest and hills. The word 'Mara' in Maa (Maasai language) means “spotted”, referring to these dots in the Maasai Mara’s landscape.
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