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Sunrise over the Masai Mara, with a pair of low-flying hot air balloons and a herd of wildebeest below in the typical red oat grass of the region
Maasai Mara National Park
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Kenya

Maasai Mara National Park Tours

Overview

Take a trip to Maasai Mara National Park on your Kenya vacation.

Known simply as “The Mara” to locals, Maasai Mara National Reserve is a large reserve located in south-western Kenya. The area was named after the Maasai people who were the traditional inhabitants of the land to be discovered on a Kenya safari.

The reserve was established in 1948 as a wildlife sanctuary that covered 520 square kilometres/200 square miles. Today, the reserve covers an area of 1,510 square kilometres/583 square miles and is bordered by the Serengeti Park of Tanzania to the south, the Siria escarpment to the west and Maasai pastoral ranches to the north, east and west. Unlike other national parks in Kenya, Maasai Mara is not administered by the Kenya Wildlife Service but rather by local authorities and the Maasai people.

Maasai Mara is not the largest conservation area on a Kenya vacation but it is certainly the most famous. This is due to the annual Great Migration which is one of the most impressive natural events in the world. Each July approximately 1,300,000 wildebeest, 500,000 Thomson’s gazelles, 200,000 zebras, 97,000 topi and 18,000 elands migrate north from the Serengeti plains to the Maasai Mara in search of fresh pasture. These animals then return to the Serengeti in October.

Whether witnessing the Great Migration on a Kenyan safari or experiencing the traditional semi-nomadic pastoralist lifestyles of neighbouring Maasai tribes, the reserve is a must-see on any visit to Kenya. 

At a Glance
LanguagesEnglish, Swahili
CurrencyKenyan Shilling (KES)

The Great Migration

The Great Migration is the name for the movement of over 1.5 million wildebeest and hundreds of thousands of zebra and gazelle during the dry season on the East African savanna. The herds move around 2,000 kilometres/125,000 miles from the southern expanse of the Serengeti Plains and Ngorongoro Crater to the Maasai Mara National Reserve and back down to the southern Serengeti again in search of food and water. Many visitors come for the Wildebeest Migration and the best time to visit the Masai Mara for this famous spectacle is between July/early August and the end of November although due to varying rainfall patterns, the exact timing varies from year to year.

Witnessing the Great Migration is one of the greatest experiences a person can have on their African vacation. Everyone who has the chance to stand up in their jeep and gaze out on thousands of animals moving across the plains should take that opportunity. 

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