The rolling savannahs of Masai Mara is a grand stage for the great migration of various ungulates. The sound of their hooves like the rhythm of war drums and various predators waiting for their share in the grand buffet, there is nothing quite like the great migration. It is not only seen but experienced.
This perilous journey reaches its zenith at the river crossing as these animals have to swim across a river bed teeming with crocodiles in order to reach the far shore. The predators of the land are far from left behind as foods plenty and therein lies our opportunity to witness and photograph dramatic chases by elusive leopards and graceful cheetahs along with lions, spotted hyenas and more. Elephants, warthogs, antelopes, hippopotamuses, topis, ostriches etc are some of the other fauna that may graciously grace us with their presence.
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
- 6 nights and 7 days of experiencing the greatest wildlife spectacle on earth.
- Only three people in each 4×4 Land Cruiser
- Witness the great migration of millions of wildebeest and zebra.
- Excellent photo opportunities of the big 5. The elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion and leopard
- Extensive photography assistance both on and off the field
- Expert natural-history and photography guidance by Skipper Sachin Rai
DEPARTURE
TOUR ITINERARY
Please note: Since participants of this Tour travel from various destinations in India and abroad, the tour will commence at Nairobi on 31st Aug 2022. You may either take a flight that reaches Nairobi before that time the same morning, or fly in the previous day and stay overnight in Nairobi (in which case, the cost of accommodation will be additional). Please also note that flight costs are not included in the Tour fee.
We depart from Nairobi at around 7am and drive for around 5 hours to reach Maasai Mara. We check in our first property. We will be spending two nights at this place. After a quick introduction session, your photography mentor Sachin will brief you about the park and the next two days to come.
We will depart for our evening safari post lunch.
We will leave for our first morning safari at around 6.30am with our packed breakfast. We will spend our day at the Talek area of the park. In the past, we have been very lucky with not only river crossings but overall great sightings of the big cats in this region. Your photography mentor will decide the plan of action for the day based on his rich experience. After spending good 6 hours in the park, we shall go back to the property for lunch.
We will depart again for our evening game drive at around 3.30pm and go around the park looking for anything in good light. Unlike most parks in India, you get ample photography opportunities in most of the parks in Kenya. After a 3.5 hour safari, we will proceed back to our property. A photography session by Sachin will be followed by dinner and we will call it a night.
We depart early morning with our packed breakfast and luggage and check out of our property. We do our game drive and slowly drive towards the Mara River. After we finish with our game drive, we will check into a property close to the Mara river and spend the next four nights at this location.
We will depart for our evening game drive after lunch and spend our evening along the Mara river. This is where most of the action is expected to happen. Hundreds and thousands of wildebeest keep crossing the Mara river at various different points in these four months.
After our evening game drive, we will proceed back to the property.
We will be spending this entire day at the heart of the Migration areas. If lucky, we could get to see a river crossing in the Mara river. The predators are active most of the time at this time of the year since the food is in abundance. They go after every single opportunity which comes far more frequently during the migration. We will try to focus of some of the predators if there is not much action around the river. After spending the morning looking for opportunities to make images of river crossings, we will go back to the property for lunch.
After our lunch break, we will again depart for our evening game drive at around 3.30am looking for more action around the river.
Post safari we get back to the property, freshen up and meet up with your photography mentor, Sachin for one more session which will be followed by dinner.
After spending four days in Mara, this day we will try to do a full day safari. We will carry packed breakfast and lunch and spend the entire day looking for either river crossings or spend the time with some predators.
The advantage of full day safari is that you could get lucky with river crossings in the afternoon or you could also get lucky with some cheetahs trying to make a kill.
We will get back to the property after spending good 11 hours.
Maasai Mara is split into two areas, Greater Mara and Mara Triangle. This day we will try and do a full day safari in the Mara Triangle. This area borders with Tanzania and the park that extends into Tanzania is called Serengeti. There are some crossing points in Mara Triangle and we could try our luck with crossings in those areas.
As usual, we will carry our packed breakfast in the morning and we will have it under a picnic tree in the middle of the grasslands. It is quite an incredible experience to sit on the grass and enjoy your meal while animals would be walking at a distance from us.
Mara is known for the opportunities to create silhouettes and this last evening, we will try our best to look for areas where we could possibly create unique silhouette pictures. The vast grasslands will offer umpteen photo opportunities and we will go back to our properties with our memory cards filled to the brim.
We depart with our packed breakfast and luggage. We will do a short safari inside the park before we depart for Nairobi.
It takes over five and half hours to reach Nairobi and we would recommend you take a flight after 8pm.
COST AND TERMS
- Twin-sharing accommodation in two different comfortable lodges for 6 nights
- All meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) as mentioned in the itinerary
- All road transfers within Kenya as per the Tour itinerary
- Services of a photography mentor
- Services of a naturalist guide/driver
- Safari permits and guide fees
- Any airfare to or within Kenya
- Any kind of personal expenses or optional tours, extra meals and beverages ordered
- Insurance, laundry and phone calls
- Bottled water, soft drinks and alcoholic beverages
- Vaccination, visa and insurance expenses
- Optional balloon ride – USD 450-500 per person
- Optional tour to a Maasai village – USD 30 per person
- Optional boat ride in lake Naivasha – USD 60 per person
- All applicable taxes
- Anything that is not listed under ‘inclusions’
- 15% of the Tour fee as booking amount (non-refundable)
- 50% of the Tour fee before 15 April 2023
- 100% of the Tour fee before 15 May 2023
All figures per person.
Payments can be made in staggered instalments as long as the above schedule is adhered to. Please talk to us for more details.
- 15% of the Tour fee on or before 10 January 2023
- 50% of the Tour fee between 16 April and 15 May 2023
- 75% of the Tour fee between 16 May and 1 June 2023
- 100% of the Tour fee on or after 2 June 2023
All figures per person.
Please note: The date of written (email) communication of intent to cancel is the date considered for calculation of the cancellation fees.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Anybody above the age of 18 (unless accompanied by an adult) and interested in nature and wildlife photography will enjoy this Tour thoroughly.
Of course! This Tour is meant for newbies as well as experienced photographers. Beginners will get all the advantages of learning on and off the field from the photography mentors. In fact if you are a fresher, you should jump on this great photography learning opportunity and sign up right away!
Since guests of our Tours travel from different parts of the world as per their preferences, it is convenient for the Tour to start from the destination. We will however provide the assistance you need in arranging your pick up and drop.
Herds of Wildebeest and Zebra keep crossing the Mara river at different places during the migration season. We have to be at the right place at the right time. But considering we will be spending a considerable amount of time there, we should get to witness the river crossings.
The group size will be 9 participants plus the photography mentor. We will be using three land cruisers for this. Each land cruiser will have not more than 3 participants so that each one of you will have a window for yourself. The mentor will sit in the front, next to the driver/guide.
Yes, you have to take Yellow Fever vaccination atleast 15 days before your travel date to Kenya. This vaccination is valid for 10 years. Ensure you get a yellow card stating you have taken the vaccination. Indian government wants you to take Polio vaccination atleast a month before you travel to Kenya. This has to be taken from a municipal hospital or an authorised centre from where you will get a letter stating you have taken the oral polio drops.
The photography opportunities on this tour are immense. We would recommend a 300mm to 500mm lens for birds and mammals that will be at a distance. A mid range lens like a 100-400 or an 80-400 or 2–500 would be ideal too. If you are using a prime lens then a 70-200 kind of a lens will be very handy as you will say lions close by. A wide angle is a must because you can make some great habitat or scape shots.
Absolutely yes! We will be happy to customise this tour for you based on your preferred dates. Kindly write to us and tell us your preferred time of travel and we shall get back to you with a tentative itinerary and quote. This tour can be with or without a photography guide.
BOOK YOUR TOUR
Dates don’t work for you?
In case these dates do not work for you and you would wish to travel on your own at your own convenience dates, then do write to us.
We will customise a tour for you on your preferred dates. This can be with or without a photography guide. We would ensure you have the best drivers, guides and will also suggest properties based on your preference.
We have close to two decades of experience in the wildlife travel sector and will be able to guide you based on our own experience.