TRAVEL AND HOLIDAY - MASAI MARA NATIONAL RESERVE
Sarova Mara Game Camp : Kenya East Africa

Sarova Mara Game Camp – Its’ in the Masai Mara Game reserve in Kenya about a 5 to 6 hour drive from Nairobi. Wifee and I, stayed here for 2 wonderful nights and 3 days in a tent. The camp is beautiful, well maintained, and very comfortable. The service was 'Amazing'. The Staff, top to bottom, was very friendly and always glad to help. In fact I was wondering who their Human Resource person was, who could train the staff so well. After the game drive each  morning , we returned to cool cologned wet towels, a delicious Breakfast, and a clean tent. It was an absolutely wonderful stay. 

I will highly recommend a stay at this beautiful place in an amazing location. Though in the middle of a wild life reserve in the deep African Savannah, I found nothing wanting, being an ex Army Man I did have some trepidation on hearing “Tents”. However after my stay here I realized how the Moghuls went to war. “Moghulo kee Fauz” as we termed it in the Army, complete with royal tents and Hamamkhana and Janankhana too Hey hey.


Sarova Mara Game Camp excelled in the freshness and quality of its food which is supported by the Camp’s own vegetable and herb garden. The Isokon restaurant is simply amazing again. The chefs are all top of the line. Excellent Indian vegetarian and non vegetarian food plus Continental,  Mediterranean and local food was served. There is a very well stocked bar in the main restaurant and a lovely pool side bar. Spirits are very reasonably priced but soft drinks a tad expensive. Water is very expensive. They charge 250 Kenyan schillings (Ksh) (80Ksh are Rs. 50) for a litre bottle, only 1 small 250 ml water bottle is complimentary per day. I would carry 2 *20 litre jars from Nairobi which is Ksh 60 for 20 litres. There is only 1 curio shop at this game camp. It is good however very expensive. Massai gifts and curios from local Massais at the entrance gate of the reserve are at 1/5th the cost.

  

            The Main thing to do here is to go see wild life in the wild and roaming absolutely free. Lion, Cheetah, Elephants, Buffaloes, Wilder Beasts, Zebras, Giraffes, Rhinos, Hippos, deer and a plethora of beautiful birds. We had 4 safari drives of about 2 to 3 hours each. Morning from 6.30 AM and evening from 6.30 PM in Special Safari vehicles, roofs raised with trained drivers cum guides.On return from morning safaris a full multi course breakfast was served. I counted 6 types of juices, 9 different breads, 5 different Pork and chicken sausages, different smoked hams and grilled fish fillet, eggs to order fruit platters and on and on. 
For vegetarians, dosa, idli, upama, poha, chole bhature and what not. Along with African coffee and mountain tea. The evening Safari’s were followed by drinks and snacks, generally at the lovely fireplace near the bar. Even in summer it gets pretty cold in the evenings in the Mara. Dinner like lunch was again fit for a king. I still do not remember the number of main courses and desserts!

      When not on Safari game drives there is a small swimming pool, nature walks, pool tables within the camp. So also there are observation platforms to see birds and lesser wild life. One cannot go out of the barbed wire and electrified fence of the camp. Wild animals frequent the whole area.

5.      Let me tell you that Africa travel is a pretty expensive proposition. It will necessarily be a once in a lifetime thing for “middle”, middle class people like me!! Masai Mara is the number one destination for seeing wild life. Therefore be prepared to spend a tidy sum.

If you are going from India.                                                                        

Flight Mumbai-Nairobi is about 6 hours. Generally return fare by Kenyan Airways is around 35K INR, this is a good Airline to fly with. Visa is on arrival. Visa costs 50 USD per person. You are required to be inoculated for yellow fever before you arrive here. If you don't do this, Indian Immigration will put you in Quarantine on your return to India as this country is on the yellow fever list. This vaccination is available at all port cities in India.                                                                                                                                   

Stay at Nairobi for 2-3 days minimum. There are reasonable hotels at Nairobi. Budget hostels as well  starred ones. A good website is Booking.com. Minimum to see at Nairobi: Giraffe center, Elephant orphanage, National Museum and Elsa Mare, famous for 'Born free' book and movie of Joy Adamson. You can stay more if you like to do more than Masai Mara. 

      There are a number of National parks in Kenya besides Masai Mara. Some of them are: Sweetwater, Treetops, Aberdare, Kisumu, Tsavo  and Nairobi national park. The last one is in the middle of Nairobi city.

                                                                                         If on a budget then you may choose 1 or 2 of theNational Parks, but Masai Mara is a must. Tours are available from Nairobi to Sarova Mara resort (Masai Mara) and back. Cost is inclusive of everything, safari vehicle pick up from House/Hotel and drop back. We paid 700 USD per adult for 2 nights and 3 days. Pick up from Narobi residence was at 7 AM on Day 1 and drop back to Nairobi was at 6 PM on Day 3. Everything is included in this amount, like Game Camp fees, full board, entrance fees and other things but Hard drinks, Soft drinks, water and lunch on day 3 are not included.

       I would advise you to avoid Indian Travel Agencies. They are overcharging their tours by as much as 75 to a 100 percent. Travel on your own making your own arrangements from the net. Book internal excursions from travel agencies in Nairobi    when you reach here.Security is bad out here in Kenya, specially for Indians. Muggings are not uncommon, so do not move out alone and never after dark. Indians   are residents here for generations and in the eyes of the locals, have continued to skim the fat of the land from where the  Brits left off. So they are hated here. White skinned foreigners like the Europeans and the Americans are welcome. There is nothing to be afraid off but just a note of caution. Nature’s bounties found here are a must see so we take that little risk.                                                                                                                                                               
There are quite a few tented Camps other than Sarova Mara, but cost is only marginally less for this class and the one we stayed at is the best. There are many resorts in the Mara depending on your budget, but nothing very cheap. Cost of living in Kenya is very high. It is about 2 to 3 times costlier than India specially for strict vegetarians. Meat and chicken dishes are more affordable. So be prepared with your finances. Just to get an idea, tandori roti in a reasonable hotel at Nairobi costs Kenyan Schillings 100 each. A plate of Paneer tikka enough for 2 is around KSh 500, water is Ksh 80-100 per litre bottle and surprisingly milk is Ksh 84 per litre. As I said nothing to be daunted about just fix your budget then plan your trip and enjoy the cradle of civilization “Kenya”, and have the time of your life...... Ajay