Kenya · Greater Serengeti Ecosystem
Just across the border from the Serengeti lies the northern stage of the same great ecosystem — rolling grasslands where the migration’s river crossings and one of the highest concentrations of big cats in Africa play out.
Kenya · Greater Serengeti Ecosystem · Wild & Nature Safaris
Discover
The Maasai Mara takes its name from the Maasai word for “spotted” — a reference to the way acacia scrub and cloud shadow dapple its rolling plains. Though it covers just 1,510 square kilometres, its open grassland and riverine forest support extraordinary densities of wildlife, and it forms the northern reach of the same ecosystem as the Serengeti, unfenced and continuous.
From July to October, vast columns of wildebeest and zebra pour north from the Serengeti and gather along the Mara River, plunging across in the season’s most dramatic spectacle. But the Mara is far more than the migration: its cheetahs hunt the open plains, leopards haunt the riverine forest, and the neighbouring community conservancies — Mara North, Naboisho, Olare Motorogi — offer night drives, walking safaris and exclusivity that the main reserve cannot.
Wildlife & Natural Highlights
Every destination has its own rhythm and its own icons. These are the encounters, landscapes and moments that define Maasai Mara.
Between July and October the herds mass on the riverbanks and cross in thundering columns — the most famous wildlife spectacle in Africa.
The Mara holds one of the highest densities of large predators anywhere — resident lion prides, cheetah coalitions and leopards along the Talek and Mara rivers.
Community-owned conservancies on the reserve’s northern edges offer night drives, walking safaris and a fraction of the vehicles.
Dawn flights over the plains, ending with a champagne breakfast in the grass.
The conservancies protect small populations of black rhino — one of the best chances in Kenya.
The plains are Maasai land — village visits, guided walks and camps that share revenue directly with local communities.
Best Time to Visit
July to October for the river crossings · January to February for predators, green plains and solitude.
July – October
The herds fill the northern Mara and the river crossings reach their peak. Peak season — superb wildlife, busy in the main reserve.
January – February
Short, warm rains leave the plains emerald and the predators hunting newborns. Fewer vehicles, excellent photography and intimate camps.
March – May
Quiet and green. Some camps close or move — those that remain offer remarkable value and solitude.
June
The plains dry, the herds begin to arrive from the south and the game viewing steadily sharpens.
Safari Experiences
From first light on the plains to the last glow on the water — the experiences that make Maasai Mara unforgettable.
Dawn and dusk drives on the open plains and along the rivers — the Mara is one of the most reliable big-cat destinations on earth.
Float over the herds at first light and land for a bush breakfast on the plains.
Walk with Maasai guides through the conservancies — tracks, birds and a ground-level view of the ecosystem.
Permitted in the conservancies — aardwolves, servals and hunting lions after dark.
Spend time in a Maasai manyatta with a community guide — arranged through camps that return revenue to the villages.
Several conservancies offer waterhole hides — ground-level photography of elephants, giraffes and plains game.
Recommended Journeys
Hand-crafted itineraries built around this destination — each one shaped, paced and priced for the way you want to travel.
Follow more than a million wildebeest across the Serengeti’s endless plains — a private five-day journey through the greatest wildlife spectacle on earth, timed to the herds and shaped entirely around you.
From $3,450 per person
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Experience one of nature’s most extraordinary spectacles on this four-day Ndutu Migration Safari, specially crafted around the dramatic wildebeest calving season in Tanzania’s Southern Serengeti.
Private safari · enquire for pricing
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A seven-day private Tanzania safari following the Great Migration north — Lake Manyara, the Serengeti’s central and northern ranges, the Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire.
Private safari · enquire for pricing
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Good to Know
The questions travellers ask us most often about Maasai Mara.
— Kenya · Greater Serengeti Ecosystem
Both are superb and they share one ecosystem. The Mara is smaller, denser and easier to reach from Nairobi; the Serengeti is vaster, wilder and hosts the migration for more months of the year. Many travellers combine them.
Crossings peak between July and October as the herds move between the Serengeti and the Mara. They are unpredictable by nature — we plan camps around where the herds actually are.
Conservancies are community-owned areas bordering the reserve. They limit vehicle numbers, allow night drives and walking safaris, and return income directly to Maasai landowners — often the best safari experience in the Mara.
Excellent. Resident wildlife — lions, cheetahs, leopards, elephants and giraffes — is here year-round, and the green season months are among the most rewarding and least crowded.
Yes — cross-border itineraries with our Kenyan partners link the Mara to the Serengeti by road or light aircraft, or you can fly between Nairobi and the northern Serengeti airstrips.