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Beyond Kenya Safaris

Naboisho Conservancy

The Ultimate Safari Destination

With its high concentration of wildlife, and low tourism density, visitors to Mara Naboisho enjoy exceptional wildlife encounters – day and night. The Conservancy is home to the big cats – in impressive numbers, as well as herds of elephant, giraffe, wildebeest, and so much more.

Wildlife in the Mara Naboisho Conservancy

The Mara Naboisho Conservancy has a higher
density of wildlife than the adjacent
Masai Mara National park…

The conservancy has the big cats in big numbers. In fact, with roughly 100 lions living in the vicinity, it has one of the highest lion densities in the world. The largest pride in the Greater Mara Region – comprising 20 lions – has made the conservancy its home. Of course, such a healthy lion population would not be possible without an equally healthy wildlife food chain below it.

The conservancy boasts impressive herds of elephant, giraffe, wildebeest, and zebra. It is also home to Kenya’s rare wild dog. In addition to the abundance of resident game, the Mara Naboisho Conservancy also serves as a migration corridor for several hundred thousand animals between the Masai Mara National Reserve and the Loita Plains to the east. The existence of the Mara Naboisho Conservancy ensures that migratory cycles and patterns are not disturbed or forced to change.

What sets the Mara Naboisho Conservancy apart is not only the quantity of wildlife, but also the quality of game viewing. Because of its size and the limited number of guests, you will never find 20 vehicles huddled around a kill at the conservancy. In fact, it is unlikely that you would even find four. While high game-viewing standards are enforced – not only to improve the viewing experience, but also to protect the wildlife – the conservancy is free of the restrictions that make so many national park safaris pedestrian. Put simply, the experience is exceptional not only because of what you get to see, but also because of how you get to see it.

Aim of the Conservancy

Conserving the biological resources and the socio-cultural heritage of the conservancy area through a community conservation approach and responsible tourism.

The conservancy model promotes the coming together of several groups of stakeholders in order to rejuvenate a vital section of wildlife corridor for the Masai Mara/Serengeti ecosystem.

Comprised of over 53,000 acres northeast of the Masai Mara National Reserve, Mara Naboisho Conservancy provides an exclusive safari experience. The land includes contributions from over 500 Masai landowners and conservancy fees are directed back to these landowners, providing them with a sustainable livelihood.

The Mara Naboisho Conservancy also limits the number of tourists who may enter the area, thereby reducing the crowds of vehicles. Guests often find themselves the only vehicle around, giving spectacular, unspoiled views of exciting wildlife.

Initial research indicates that Mara Naboisho Conservancy has one of the highest densities of lions in Africa. One of the major prides, comprised of 22 lions, makes its home nearby Encounter Mara. The conservancy also has impressive numbers of elephant, giraffe, and other plains animals, in addition to hosting some of the rarest animals in Kenya, such as Wild Dog.

Big Cat Project

Coming together for a worthy course.

The Mara Naboisho Big Cat Project brings together community, researchers, NGOs and Tourism Partners in Naboisho Conservancy in an effort to help secure the future of the Big Cats namely Lion, Cheetah and Leopard. Currently the project has four major components: tracking, research, conflict mitigation and community education.

The project is implemented through the following partnerships:

  • The Africa Impact volunteer monitoring project in partnership with Koiyaki Guiding School and Basecamp Foundation;
  • The Mara Predator Conservation Programme, run by Kenya Wildlife Trust, which focuses on the scientific monitoring of lions and cheetahs in the Mara .;

Mara Elephant Project

The Mara Elephant Project (MEP) brings together researchers and conservationists in an effort to help secure the future of African elephants.

A mixture of land-use changes resulting from human population growth, deforestation and poaching for elephants’ highly valuable ivory is causing populations to dwindle. Humans are encroaching upon historic elephant rangelands, and human-elephant conflict is on the rise. That, paired with the demand for ivory, means the illegal killing of elephants is at its highest level since the international ivory trade ban. The Mara Elephant Project saves and protects the African elephant population in the Mara by combatting poaching operations, collaring, monitoring and researching elephants, and protecting farmers and elephants across their large dispersal area.

Partners include Wildlife Conservation Network, Save the Elephants; the Kenya Wildlife Service; the Globe Foundation and the Mara Conservancy.

ElephantVoices

In 2011 ElephantVoices launched “Elephant Partners”, an elephant conservation project in the Maasai Mara ecosystem. The goal of Elephant Partners is to develop and maintain a working model for citizens to monitor and protect elephants. The concept is to connect individual people – guides, scouts, researchers, visitors and people of the Mara – with the lives of individual elephants. Through the use of online databases, social media and a smartphone app for data collection, the project is maintaining a community of people who are gathering data about the Mara elephants and working together to protect them.

Community

By visiting the Mara Naboisho Conservancy, you will be playing a part in protecting the cultural heritage of the local Maasai community and improving their access to vital services.

The Mara Naboisho Conservancy was established not only to conserve the environment and wildlife, but also to protect and empower the local Maasai community. When you stay at Naboisho, part of the conservancy fee is channelled back into the community, making the project more sustainable.

In addition to this, there are also a number of community empowerment projects run by the Basecamp Foundation Kenya, a non-profit organisation. These projects – which include training locals to become guides, supporting local schools, improving access to healthcare and clean water, and empowering women – help to strengthen and uplift the community.

Because all three elements – the people, the land, and the wildlife – are inextricably linked, progress has a knock-on effect: as the community becomes more aware of the benefits of tourism in the area, the argument for protecting the environment and the wildlife gains traction.

Things to do in the Masai Mara Eco System

Immerse yourself in this prime wildlife area, explore the Acacia-dotted plains without the crowds, soak up the wisdom of the Maasai guides, and connect with nature in a way you didn’t dream possible. At the Mara Naboisho Conservancy, you can.

Because the Mara Naboisho Conservancy is not governed by the same rules that apply to national parks, there is the flexibility to experience something truly profound and to see and do things not possible in the Masai Mara National Reserve. The passion and expertise of the guides at the conservancy facilitate this experience.

Take a walking safari and discover ecosystems that are so often ignored. Spend the night in a transient fly camp and enjoy the simple pleasure of a meal cooked over a campfire. Head out on a night game drive in search of elusive nocturnal creatures that are rarely seen during the day. Or join the Mara Naboisho Lion Project as they track lions across the conservancy. If your interests extend beyond wildlife to include the indigenous people and culture, a visit to one of the Maasai villages on the edges of the conservancy can be arranged.

Variety is what distinguishes the exceptional from the mundane. Whatever things you would like to see and do, at the Mara Naboisho Conservancy, you have the freedom to choose. And that makes all the difference. The Mara Naboisho conservancy offers the widest range of things to see and do in the Masai Mara ecosystem. Learn more in our travel guide below.

African at its Best…

Experience the beauty of Africa through the luxury eco-friendly accommodation offered at our member camps…

On your holiday at the Mara Naboisho Conservancy, you are more likely to discover the paw print of a lion than the footstep of another human being. And, because the camps and accommodation are unfenced, it’s entirely possible that you will find that paw print as you step out of your tent. (We know: the prospect is almost as terrifying as it is exhilarating. But, fear not, intrepid Maasai ‘askari’ – guards – will escort you when necessary and make sure that you are safe on your safari.)

Space is a luxury, and the Mara Naboisho Conservancy has plenty of it – over 53,000 acres, to be exact. Because there are only nine camps in the entire conservancy, it means that there is an astonishing ratio of 350 acres of space to every available bed. The limited number of guests also means that the staff are able to give you the attention that you deserve.

Although none of the camps are the same – each accommodation has its own unique characteristics – certain values are shared across the conservancy. All of the camps are strongly committed to ensuring that any negative impact on the land and wildlife is as low as possible and that the Maasai community benefits from your holiday.

CAMPS

The Camps

Olare Motorogi Conservancy

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