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Planning a visit to Kenya's Masai Mara? Here are leading luxury safari lodges you must consider staying on on your Visit. Read More!

Safari Updates, Visit East Africa, Wildlife safaris

Luxury Safari Lodges To Consider on Your Visit To Masai Mara

Masai Mara national reserve has some of Kenya’s leading luxury safari lodges that complement the vibrant big five and wildebeest migration safaris. Masai Mara is renown for its big five mammals that can be experienced in the Mara Triangle and and the various conservancies around the reserve. Accommodation is Key in exploring the vast lands of the Masai ecosystem and a number of luxury safari lodges have been set up over the years. These are strategically located making it easy for tourists to access Masai Mara for general activities like game drives.

Let us look at some of the most outstanding luxury safari lodges you must consider when visiting Masai Mara.

Mahali Mzuri

This beautiful luxurious tented safari camp is situated in the Olare Motorogi conservancy. The camp has 12 luxury cottages that are self contained with great views of the conservancy. Mahali Mzuri was voted Number 1 hotel and number world safari lodge in 2021 in Travel+Leisure for its outstanding services and luxurious touch.

Mahali Mzuri has an infinity swimming pool where you can swim and cool down on a hot day and relax enjoying the views of the wilderness. The pool is also heated and you can still enjoy your swim on a chilly day.

While staying at the Mahali Mzuri you get to experience big cats safaris, Wildebeest migration if it is the right season, safari game drives and much more. The Olare Motorogi conservancy is famous for the big cats and many other wildlife species. Incase you are interested in visiting the Mara triangle you can still do for wildlife viewing. You can also have a community to the Masai where you would get to know more about their culture and heritage.

Ensure to make your booking to the camp in advance since it gets fully booked especially in the peak tourist season.

Angama Mara Safari Lodge

Angama Mara is one of the best luxury safari lodges in Masai Mara overlooking the reserve. It is situated on the Rift Valley escarpment over looking the Rift valley floor. The tented safari lodge has 15 luxurious self contained and fully furnished tents that offers interrupted views of the great Rift Valley.

It is among the best exclusive and Honeymoon destinations in Kenya. It has over the years been internationally recognised as among World’s best accommodation facility for its outstanding beauty and excellent services offered there. It featured in and got accolades from renown travel magazines including Travel+leisure, Conde Nest Traveler, National Geographic among others.

Angama Mara is the perfect place to explore Masai Mara starting from Big five and big cats plus the wildebeest migration experiences. The lodge has a mobile tented camp called Angama Safari Camp in the Mara Triangle that is very ideal to explore the wildebeest migration. With this you are able to keep up with the wildebeest migration including live predators hunting moments.

The lodge can easily be accessed by air to the lodge’s airfield and it would be the best means to maximise your experience at the lodge. The safari experience starts right at the lodge and at the Angama Safari Camp so if you a wildlife lover you are very much covered. Those interested in filming or photographic safaris are very much welcome here. The lodges strategic location makes it ideal for filming and a lot of scenes from Out of Africa were filmed here. You can therefore enjoy photographic safaris, family safaris, Masai cultural visits, classic game drives, ballon safaris, guided nature walks among others.

Kichwa Tembo Tented Camp

You can not list luxury safari lodges and camps in Masai Mara and fail to mention andBeyond’s Kichwa Tembo tented camp. It is located on a private concession on the Oloololo escarpment overlooking Saparingo River. The concession is home to wildlife species including big cats that are often seen while on game drives. Kichwa Tembo is one of the best places in Masai to enjoy the great wildebeest migration experience.

It has 8 superior view tents, 20 superior tents and 12 classic tents that are well furnished and decorated with a rustic touch. They offer great uninterrupted views of the Masai Mara and one can easily spot wildlife even at the comfort of their tent. The tents are self contained and private and you get to have an exclusive access during your stay at Kichwa Tembo.

Kichwa Tembo also has a beautiful infinity pool where you can relax enjoying the sunset and the great scenic views. While staying at Kichwa Tembo you can engage in a number of safari activities including game drives, nature walks, community visits among others.

Elewana Sand River Masai Mara

This rustic camp has 12 tented cottages and it is among the top luxury safari lodges in Kenya’s Masai Mara. Its strategic location makes it an ideal place for game drives featuring the big cats. It is very exclusive giving one an opportunity to enjoy interrupted wildlife safari experiences and services at the lodge it self.

Elewana Sand River overlooks the Sand river and often times dinner and breakfast is set at the River banks. Here one relaxes enjoying great scenic views of the River and wilderness in general. There is also a swimming pool overlooking the plains of Masai Mara where you can enjoy a swim or sunbathe.

While Elewana Sand River you can engage in a number of safari activities like game drives, nature walks, community visits among others. The lodge is very ideal for the great wildebeest migration as you can get to watch the migration from your cottage.

The lodge received a Conde Nest traveler Readers’ Choice award in 2020 and it is truly outstanding.

Mara Intrepids Tented Camp

This beautiful camp overlooks Talek River and is also strategically located in the heart Masai Mara national reserve. The camps location makes it an ideal place to enjoy and explore the great Masai mara and its wildlife species. Mara Intrepids Tented Camp is located just a few minutes drive from the Mara River where millions gather to witness the Wildebeest River crossings as the wildebeest cross over from Tanzania’s Serengeti National park. With this easy access to the Mara River, the camp is the best and ideal to book if you are much interested in the wildebeest migration.

The luxury tents at the camp are self contained with great views of the surrounding scenery. You can engage in a number of safari activities while staying at the lodge. These include safari game drives, photography safaris, ballon safaris among others. Mara Intrepids Tented Camp is also a great place to stay with your family. They organise kids activities that keep them engaged and also get an opportunity to learn and explore more of the African and Masai Mara wilderness.

They also organise bush dinners and sundowners where you can enjoy the view of the sunrise and sunset. The camps exclusive nature makes it a great option if looking for luxury Safari Lodges to stay at when in Masai Mara.

Lions in Selous Game Reserve Tanzania. Tanzania Wildlife destinations

African Safari, Safari Updates, Tanzania Tours, Wildlife

Exclusive Tanzania Wildlife Destinations You Must Visit

Tanzania is one of the most visited wildlife destinations in East Africa. The country’s size gives it an advantage of a large area size for wildlife no wonder it has some of the highest wildlife concentrations in the region. East Africa in general is a great place to visit but destination Tanzania stands out. It is highly recommended for those seeking exclusive wildlife destinations and adventures. Let us briefly look at the major exclusive wildlife destinations you must not miss out while on a visit to this beautiful country.

The Selous

Selous game reserve also known as Nyerere national park is Tanzania’s leading exclusive wildlife destination. The park is located in the remote southern part and is also Tanzania’s and Africa largest protected area with a land area of 19,000 square kilometers. Selous has a number of wildlife species including giraffes, elephants, hippos, wild dogs, buffaloes, greater Kudus, elands and over 440 bird species. There is also unique vegetation species of the Miombo woodlands including baobab trees. It is from this basis that the park was listed among the world heritage sites by UNESCO.

Much as the biggest part of the park is used as a hunting area, about 8% of it is strictly for tourism and hunting in the tourism area is prohibited. Here adventure tourist especially wildlife photographers get to capture best moments in the park. The location of the park makes it not easily accessed by Many tourists and it therefore among the less crowded places in Tanzania. Unlike mass tourism experienced in parks like Serengeti, a safari in Nyerere national park is totally exclusive. The park can be best explored while on game drives and guided walking safaris.

The dry season from June to October is the best time to visit Selous game reserve. Here major game drive trails are dry easy to maneuver and the short grass makes it easy to spot wildlife. During the dry season some of the animals can be seen along River Rufigi as they take water. If you are seeking for exclusive wildlife safaris in Tanzania ensure to have sells as your number one destination.

The Ngorongoro Crater

This is world’s largest unfilled volcanic caldera with 610 meters deep and a floor of 260 square kilometers. It is also listed among the World heritage sites and it is one of Africa’s natural wonders. The crater is an attraction it self but has many other attractions including the various relief features within the crater. These include Rivers, lakes, vegetation varieties like forests, woodlands, grasslands all of whom are habitats to a number of wildlife species.

Notable wildlife seen on game drives on the crater floor include waterbucks, lions, elephants, rhinos, buffaloes, wildebeest and many bird species. The Ngorongoro crater being a natural enclosure makes it one of the exclusive wildlife destinations in Tanzania. It also offers a wide range of activities that once can engage in including birding, game drives, nature walks among others.

Just like many other wildlife destinations in Tanzania, the best time to visit the crater is during the dry season. Here there are minimal rainfall disturbances and game drives can easily be executed with easy wildlife viewing. The wet season from November to May is also a good time to visit and with the rains the number of guests reduce. The wet season is also a time the migratory birds from Europe set in and is the best time for birding.

Gombe national park

Much as Uganda’s Kibale national park and Nyungwe forest Rwanda are most famous for chimpanzees, Tanzania’s Gombe national park is another beautiful chimpanzee trekking destination. The park is located near lake Tanganyika in the rugged mountainous forested landscapes that are not only home to chimpanzees but also other primates and birds.

Gombe national park has a number of steep valleys with streams. There is also a waterfall that can be seen while on a guided nature walk in this forested national park. Chimpanzee trekking is the most commonly done wildlife activity here. The chimpanzees here were made famous by Jane Goodall who started her research In the early 1960’s and has done a tremendous job in primate conservation not only in Tanzania.

The park can be mainly explored on foot on the guided primate treks, natures walks in the forest or along the shores of Lake Tanganyika Africa’s deepest lake. For exclusive primate trekking in Tanzania and East Africa in general visiting Gombe national park would be great.

Ruaha National park

Ruaha is Tanzania’s second largest national park also located in the southern part. The park covers a land area of 7,809 square kilometers and also home to a variety of wildlife species. The four of the big five mammals occur here namely elephants, buffaloes, lions and leopards. Ruaha is also a great place to see Africa’s predators and big cats. It is the best places to see lions as prides of over 20 individuals are seen in the park.

Giraffes, hippos, zebras and over 450 bird species also occur in the park and all these can be seen on game drives and guided walks. Hot air ballon safaris are incredible offering great panoramic views of the parks wildlife. The park Is totally exclusive with limited accommodation facilities. Wildlife safaris here are very classic and undisturbed best for honeymooners and those who prefer their peace and quiet.

The park can be accessed by both road and air transport though air transport is the most convenient one. The road transfer from Dar-es-salaam takes about 10 hours drive with en route stop overs for photography and a lunch break. Incase you do not want this long drive you can have a stopover at Mukumi national park for an adventure and then proceed to Ruaha the next day. Since air transport is costly the road transfer would be an option and very rewarding in terms of adventure.

Ruaha is undoubtedly one of Tanzania’s most exclusive wildlife destinations and can be visited throughout the year. For better wildlife experiences though you can visit in the dry season from May to October.

Mountain Gorilla in Volcanoes National Park. Safari Getaways

Gorilla Trekking, Mountain Gorillas, Safari Updates, Wildlife

Why You should Track Mountain gorillas In Uganda

Mountain Gorillas are primates species that live in the forested mountains of Eastern Africa. They are among the rarest primates only found in three countries on the entire planet that are Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo. Mountain Gorillas are listed endangered by the IUCN and their total population is estimated at only 1000 individuals in the wild. These live in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in southwestern Uganda and in the Virunga massif a chain of dormant Volcanic mountains along the Rwanda, Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo border.

Mountain Gorillas are covered with thicker fur that enable them endure the cold temperatures of the region that fall below zero degrees. They are pure vegetarian and their diet mainly comprise of plant vegetation. They live in families headed by a dominant male gorilla called silverback. Some of the Mountain gorilla families have up to 20 individuals or more. Just like their name, mountain gorillas live in the mountainous areas. The elevation of Bwindi impenetrable forest for example ranges from 1,190 to 2,607 meters above sea level and that of the Virunga massif ranges from 2,400 to 4,507 meters above sea level.

A hike in the Virunga massif or Bwindi impenetrable forest offers an incredible encounter with the mountain gorillas. This experience has been described by many as a once in a life time experience. There are mainly Four mountain gorilla parks that include Volcanoes National Park Rwanda, Mgahinga gorilla and Bwindi impenetrable Forest national park in Uganda and Virunga national park in Democratic Republic of Congo. Let us look at the main reasons why you should track mountain gorillas in Uganda of all the 3 gorilla trekking destinations in East Africa.

Diverse Gorilla Trekking Ecosystems

Uganda is blessed with 2 mountain gorilla parks. Mgahinga gorilla park is part of the Virunga massif ecosystem encompassing 3 of the Virunga mountains. These include Mount Gahinga, Mount Sabyinyo and Mount Muhabura. These mountains are covered with light bamboo forests that transcends into an Albertine rift montane forest with heath and moorlands and an alpine zone at the higher altitudes of the mountains.

The light bamboo forests are homes to the mountain gorillas and many other mammals in the park. There is only one habituated mountain gorilla family in this park called Nyakagezi that offers intimate and exclusive gorilla trekking experiences. A mountain gorilla trek is more like that in the other Virunga massif parks offering a great and unique primate trekking experience.

Bwindi impenetrable forest national park on the other hand comprises of a number of hills with altitudes ranging from 1,190 to 2,607 meters above sea level. These are covered with a dense afromontane home a to a variety of wildlife species including mountain gorillas. The vegetation and relief of Bwindi is different from the Virunga massif including Mgahinga gorilla park.

Trekking gorillas in Bwindi impenetrable forest offers a completely unique gorilla trekking experience from that of the Virunga massif. The forest is a home to many other primates including colobus monkeys, l’hoest monkeys, chimpanzees some of which seen while gorilla trekking. There are many other mammals in the park like forest elephants, buffaloes, a number of birds among others. It is from this animal and plant life diversity that Bwindi was given a status of a world heritage site by UNESCO.

Mountain Gorilla Numbers

Uganda has the highest of the remaining mountain gorilla population. Over 450 mountain gorillas live in Bwindi impenetrable forest which is half of the entire population on the planet.

Bwindi impenetrable national park has four major sectors with 22 habituated gorilla families. They include Buhoma the northern sector of the park with 6 habituated families namely Rushegura, Habinyanja, Mubaare, Katwe, Binyindo and Muyambi familes. Ruhija is the eastern sector with Bitukura, Mukiiza, Kyaguriro and Oruzogo families. The southern sector has Rushaga with Bweza, Mishaya, Nshongi, Kutu, Mucunguzi, Busingye, Kahungye and Bikingi families. Also in the south is Nkuringo with Christmas, Nkuringo, Bushaho and Posho families. All these are open for gorilla trekking offering more chances of gorilla trekking and a unique wildlife experience in the park.

Mgahinga gorilla park’s only one habituated gorilla family also adds on the numbers to Uganda’s grand total. If you are therefore looking for the numbers of high chances then Uganda is the right place to track mountain gorillas.

Other primate experiences

The mountain gorilla parks in Uganda are not only homes to mountain gorillas but other primates. Mgahinga gorilla park for example is also home to the golden monkeys that are endemic to the Virunga massif. Mgahinga gorilla park is one of the few places where you can track both mountain gorillas and golden monkeys. Just like their name, golden monkeys are covered with golden fur and also live in families of up to 20 individuals.

You can arrange a golden monkey trek after your mountain gorilla trekking expedition. It also starts with an early morning briefing at the park headquarters from where you are led to the forest where you will meet the golden monkeys amidst sighting of other wildlife species especially birds.

Bwindi impenetrable national park is a sanctuary for chimpanzee and colobus monkeys plus other primates. Much as trails to explore these primates are not fully developed you can spot some of them while on hikes to the gorillas. You can also take guided nature walks in the park where you will get to see a number of the primates.

Tracking gorillas in Uganda generally gives you an opportunity to to see a number of these primates and more wildlife species.

The mountain gorilla parks are surrounded by local communities where you can enjoy authentic community and cultural experiences. The Batwa trail in Mgahinga gorilla park is highly recommended as the Batwa take you back the forest demonstrating their hunting and gathering skills. There are also some Batwa communities near Bwindi impenetrable forest as well as the Bakiga. You can visit any of these communities after the gorilla trek to get to know more about the local people’s ways of life.

Best time to Visit

You can have a mountain gorilla trek in Uganda any time of the year but for best experiences it is better to visit in the dry season. This stretches from June to September and from December to March. During these months there is minimal rainfall disturbances which makes hiking through the different trails a little easy.

During the wet season you can still enjoy your gorilla trek in Uganda. It is also a great time for birding as migratory birds set in from as far as Europe.

Wildlife Safari Tales of The Serengeti Wilderness

Serengeti national park is one stop wildlife destination located in northwestern Tanzania. Serengeti is famous for the wildebeest migration an exodus of animals including hartebeest, wildebeest and antelopes seeking for fresh pasture.

The name Serengeti was derived from a Maasai word “Seringit” meaning endless plains explaining the geographical nature of the park.

Serengeti at a Glance

The Serengeti ecosystem covers an area of 30,000 square kilometers combining Serengeti national Park and other small game reserves. With this vast size, the Serengeti plains are homes to various wildlife species with natural wonders like the wildebeest migration.

The wildebeest migration is the second largest animal migration on Earth an excellent experience for nature enthusiasts and animal lovers.

Wildlife in Serengeti

The Serengeti area boosts various wildlife species with East Africa’s big five mammals like Lions, Elephants, buffaloes, Leopards and Cheetahs. Its one of the wildlife destinations with large lion populations and best place for seeing these fierce cats. The total Lion population here is estimated at 3000 and its supported by the many herbivores the lions prey on.

Other predators in Serengeti include African Leopards, Cheetahs, spotted hyenas, wild dogs though these are a bit scarce.

Serengeti has many East Africa’s grazers including many antelope species like the topi, elands, gazelles, water-bucks, zebras and the wildebeest. Major giants include elephants, giraffes, hippos often sighted in large groups of up to 100 of them in one place.

For birders, Serengeti is a birders haven with over 1000 bird species recorded including native and migratory bird species. Often seen birds include the Fischer’s lovebird, Silver-bird, Eagles like the Verreaux’s eagle, rufous-tailed weaver among others.

Serengeti has many wildlife habitat landscapes like rivers, swamps, grasslands, kopjes, all acting as homes to the diverse wildlife species. Rivers like Grumeti are homes to large crocodile populations and hippos in the shallow waters.

Tourist Activities in Serengeti

Game drives are the most common activities in Serengeti done seeking to meet the major wildlife species in the park. Early morning game drives offer nocturnal wildlife encounters especially the big cats lions lions, leopards and cheetahs.

You also get to see early risers and enjoy sounds of nature plus a morning sunrise over the Serengeti horizon. You can opt for mid morning and evening game drives that are equally rewarding.

There are air balloon safaris that give an aerial view of the park offering a wide coverage of sight seeing. This offers great views of the herds of animals even those on the wildebeest migration.

For more intimate experiences with wildlife then guided nature walks are best options in Serengeti. These are often led by local Masai warriors and trained park rangers with great knowledge about the wildlife in Serengeti.

Birding is widely done in Serengeti national park and various birds are often spotted freely flying over the Serengeti plains.