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History of Masai Mara

According to the tribe's own oral history, the Maasai originated north of Lake Turkana (north-west Kenya) in the lower Nile Valley. They began migrating south in the 15th century and arrived in the long trunk of land stretching across central Tanzania and Northern Kenya during the 17th and 18 century.
Masai Mara is a large game reserve in Narok County, Kenya, contiguous with the Serengeti National Park in Mara Region, Tanzania. It is named in honor of the Maasai people (the ancestral inhabitants of the area) and their description of the area when looked at from afar: "Mara," which is Maa (Maasai language) for "spotted," an apt description for the circles of trees, scrub, savanna, and cloud shadows that mark the area.

Interesting facts about Masai Mara

  • This spectacular area is the site of the world’s greatest wildlife migration. Every year, almost two million wildebeest, zebra and gazelle travel from the Serengeti up to the Maasai Mara (and back again), feeding on the lush grass that springs up after seasonal rains. During this time you may witness the migration and our favorite prosseional Driver-guides may lead you the way.

  • Epic landscape; The mara ecosystem spans around 3,000 sq km. All that space makes for some pretty awe-inspiring sunsets.

  • Kenya is considered one of the top five bird-watching destinations in the world and well over a thousand species of our feathered friends call the country home. The Mara ecosystem has the highest ostrich population of Africa and the unique grey crowned crane is also found here. We think its distinctive stiff golden feathers give the lion’s mane a run for its money!

  • As in the Serengeti, the wildebeest are the dominant inhabitants of the Maasai Mara, and their numbers are estimated in the millions. Around July of each year, these ungainly animals migrate north from the Serengeti plains in search of fresh pasture, and return to the south around October. The Great Migration is one of the most impressive natural events worldwide, involving some 1,300,000 wildebeest, 500,000 Thomson’s gazelles, 200,000 zebras 97,000 Topi and 18,000 elands.

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