Explorer-style bush camp in a private setting overlooking Kenya’s Maasai Mara game reserve
Lounge and dining tent, bar, library, outdoor deck, pool, fire-pit, safari boutique
Five traditional en-suite tents plus a two-bedroom family tent
Game drives, photography, hot air balloon expeditions, cultural experiences, bicycling, Great Plains Young Explorers Programme
Activities at Mara Expedition Camp are primarily focused on wildlife, with additional opportunities for photography, cultural encounters, and cycling.
Game drives are the key focus at Mara Expedition Camp, often accompanied by picnic lunches so guests can maximise their days out in the field. This region is particularly renowned for its big cats, especially leopard, but there are plenty of other species to observe. The spectacular savannas, river valleys, and verdant woodlands are home to predators such as spotted hyena, jackal, and wild dog, as well as herbivores like elephant, rhino, giraffe, and gazelle. The birdlife is equally impressive. And between August and November, the campsite itself plays host to the wildebeest Great Migration! Mara Expedition Camp’s Land Cruisers are open-sided and fully stocked with reference books, drinks, and snacks.
Mara Expedition offers two professional camera sets for guests to use during their stay. Photographs are downloaded onto a USB before departure, ensuring you can hone your skills and keep all your treasured wildlife photos with memories of the Mara.
Hot air balloon rides depart at sunrise, soaring above the Mara plains for an unforgettable aerial safari. Upon landing, enjoy a delicious champagne breakfast before continuing your wildlife-viewing activities. Please note that this experience incurs an additional cost.
The Naboisho Women’s Group offers a cultural experience that allows guests to purchase items such as beaded and leather products, coasters, bracelets, necklaces, belts, dog collars, earrings, and decorated dawa sticks. This enables the women to reinvest in their business, keeping it self-sustaining.
Guests at Mara Expedition Camp can participate in a guided bicycle experience on the open plains and around the landing strip, offering a unique way to see plains game, including gazelles, topis, impalas, and warthogs. Availability is on request, and a safari vehicle is always on standby in case of need.
Great Plains offers a kids’ programme for young guests, designed to engage with the bush and gain knowledge on topics such as birding, cooking, and tracking wildlife.
*This property is unfenced and located in a wildlife area, so large and potentially dangerous animals do pass through. If you opt to stay here, always be alert when walking around the camp and request for a member of staff to escort you if you have any concerns. Any guest is escorted after dark as a matter of course.
Mara Expedition Camp is situated in a remote, private setting within the Maasai Mara National Reserve, with access to the Mara North Conservancy. Guests arrive by light aircraft at Ol Kiombo airstrip, and then there’s a 45-minute game drive transfer to the camp. Private charters can also land at nearby Weavers airstrip, which is just a 3-minute drive away.
Mara Expedition Camp’s lantern-lit communal areas are beautifully styled with vintage leather sofas, wooden chests, brass lanterns, intricately carved screens, and oversized Persian rugs that infuse the rooms with warmth and colour.
There are both bar and tea-and-coffee areas, and the dining space features a long communal table where meals are shared together with stories of the day’s events. Guests can also sit outside on the extensive veranda or gather around the fire-pit for a pre-dinner drink and conversation with other guests. Private dining can also be arranged in secluded locations under the trees or on one of the camp’s decks. There’s a plunge pool on its own deck near the central area, ideal for a quick dip to cool off. The Great Plains Safari Boutique sells locally and regionally produced crafts, many of which support community projects in the nearby Maasai communities. Please be aware that while Wi-Fi is available in each guest tent, cellphones and computers are not permitted in the public areas of camp or on safari vehicles.
Shaded by acacia trees, Mara Expedition Camp features five classic twin or double guest tents, each raised on a slightly elevated platform, as well as a two-bedroom family unit suitable for up to four guests.
Inside each tent, you’ll find wood floors decorated with Persian rugs, a vintage-style writing desk, a storage trunk, netted windows, mosquito nets, a standing fan, and a tea-and-coffee station. Every en-suite bathroom features a large brass safari shower, a flush toilet, and twin basins. You’ll also have use of a yoga mat and an electronic safe. Outside, there’s a veranda furnished with a table and two director’s chairs, where guests can soak up the views accompanied by an early morning coffee. It’s also possible to enjoy a romantic mobile bath, which the staff can set up outside on request. The family tent is suitable for up to four guests, and features interconnected double and twin en-suite tents, each with a separate dressing and washbasin area.
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