Maasai Mara National Reserve

Maasai Mara, or Masai Mara is a large national game reserve in Narok, Kenya that was originally established in 1961. It forms a continuous wildlife refuge together with the Serengeti National Park.

The Mara as it's sometimes referred to is Kenya's most popular game park and virtually every person who visits the country goes to the reserve. Maasai Mara is actually a 320 km² extension of Tanzania's Serengeti. The park, which consists mainly of open grassland is packed with wildlife, especially in the west, where the Esoit Olooloo (Siria) Escarpment sits. The western part is also the most difficult to access, but even in the rest of the park you will see loads of animals for sure. They include antelope, baboon, buffalo, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, hippo, impala, jackal, leopard, lion, spotted hyena, topi, wart hog and zebra. Most people come to see the annual wildebeest migration in July and August, when millions of them come to the area from the Serengeti in search of fresh grass. This is the so-called Great Migration. In October the herds return the other way.

The Masai Mara is more a reserve than a national park and the Maasai people have rights to graze their cattle and hunt animals there. A Maasai village in the park is open to visitors. The Mara River provides a continuous stream of vital water to the animals that roam the area.

There are plenty of lodges and camps in and near the park, but to move around you will need your own transportation or come on an organized safari. Safaris can be arranged in Nairobi, 160 km to the west. There are also flights between the capital and the park. The main access point is at Narok. Narok has good bus and matatu (minibus) connections with Nairobi.