[mystiikmonk]

Since I was a kid, National Geographic, Discovery, and BBC have been my go-to sources for exploring the flora and fauna of the wild and marveling at the natural wonders of the Earth. This early fascination instilled in me an inherent wish to witness these wonders in real life. Later, when I discovered that Masai Mara, Kenya, is where much of this magic unfolds, it immediately shot to the top of my bucket list.

After many years of waiting, my wife and I (she, too, has now grown passionate about wildlife) finally planned our trip for this September, starting from Bangalore.

Itinerary:

• Route: Bangalore → Mumbai → Nairobi and back via the same route (Indigo Airlines).
• Accommodation: A one-day extra stay at an Airbnb near Nairobi Airport, both before and after the road trip to Masai Mara.

Trip Timelines:

• Arrival in Nairobi: We landed early in the morning. Immigration took about 45 minutes.
• Sim Card Setup: The biggest wait was the line at the airport for a Safaricom SIM card (which works best in remote areas). This process took an additional 40 minutes.
• First Day: Checked into our Airbnb and rested for the day.
• Next Day: Our cab was ready for the road trip to Masai Mara.
• Masai Mara: For the next five days, we were immersed in safaris from before sunrise to after sunset.
• Accommodation in Masai Mara: We stayed inside the Mara Reserve, right next to the Mara River.

Booking:

We booked the entire trip through Nature Wanderers, a group we’ve traveled with for other wildlife destinations. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a seamless and enriching wildlife experience.

Reflections:

Words cannot do justice to the serenity of Masai Mara. The wait, the anticipation, and the magical moments in the wild summed up to an experience of a lifetime.

Highlights:

• Witnessed all the Big Cats.
• Saw cheetahs hunting twice.
• Spotted all the Big Five.
• Observed not just the majestic big cats but also their adorable cubs.

Sharing some pictures because they capture the essence of our journey far better than words ever could.

[shankar.balan]

Oh wow! Gorgeous photos! Thanks for sharing.
Brings back vivid memories of our trip there 8 years ago.
Seeing your photos it seems like we didnt have enough time there and now I want to go there again!

[NPV]

Wow, stunning photographs, thanks for sharing
Definitely on our to do list!

Can you share some more details on the cost of the trip including the stay, what options you chose, any other recommendations etc that will help someone planning a similar trip.

[mystiikmonk]

Originally Posted by NPV

Can you share some more details on the cost of the trip including the stay, what options you chose, any other recommendations etc that will help someone planning a similar trip.

So, in our case, we opted for a photography safari via nature wanderers (https://www.naturewanderers.com/). Price is very subjective of the time of year and are we there specifically for a photography perspective or casual leisurely safari.

Trip fixed Price: 2800 USD per person (This was during peak migration season). Includes all Food, Stay at Olive Bush Camp (This is inside the park next to mara river), and round trip by road cost from Nairobi to Mara.
Specially modified Land Cruiser for photography.

And we had to shellout extra 1500 USD (This is because of increase in Masai Mara Park charges per day and tips).

Airbnb at Nairobi was booked by us on our own. Approx 10,000 INR for 2 nights.

If photography is not a priority or stay can be compromised a bit, according to my research, the trip can be done in an off season for around 2.5 lakh INR.

[RaviKBobba]

The pictures are really stunning and come out beautifully. Especially the Giraffe against the Sun is simply superb.

[mystiikmonk]

Here's a photo of our Land Cruiser. Every day we had open breakfast and lunch in the wild . It was a very new and exciting experience. Apart from animals, Land Cruisers and their different models really made me drool. That car is a beast .The way it performs in that rugged terrain made me wonder , how in the world is this engineering possible . At times our driver went into rally mode inside the park , once he heard of some spotting at some corner of the park.

[haisaikat]

Wonderful pictures, so many superb shots at Nat Geo level, well done on those golden hour silhouettes. While there have been some more Masai Mara threads on TBHP before this, yet yours is the most recent one, would love to see more picture like the one you shared regarding how lunch happened and some more big 5 sightings. The cost you shared is matching with what we saw on a previous thread on TBHP, just one question, is a 3-day safari enough to cover all areas or 5-days are minimum for photography-oriented trip?

Thank you and keep travelling more.

[mystiikmonk]

Originally Posted by haisaikat

just one question, is a 3-day safari enough to cover all areas or 5-days are minimum for photography-oriented trip?

Thank you for the kind words. I will try to add more as I scan through all the photos.
I would suggest 5 days or, if possible, more. It's all about luck and maximizing the probability of sightings. It can very well happen; all sightings happen within 2 days, but again, the chances of that are very slim. The area is huge, and it needs time to explore various aspects of it.

Stay, like I mentioned, was part of the tour: Olive Bush Camp. It's a beautiful property next to the Mara River. Tents were luxurious. Food was catered for our requirements. Their chefs are acquainted with Indian food. Each day for breakfast we had chilla, paratha, poha, sausages, etc.

[SithDefender]

Originally Posted by mystiikmonk

Here's a photo of our Land Cruiser.

Excellent photography! But I did detect a fair amount of noise (especially in the leopard leaping down the tree, and the lionesses looking into the sunset)- not sure if it's because of camera settings or post-processing?

The wildebeest motion blur pic is very good, captures the frenzy well. My fav shot is undoubtedly the giraffe silhouette, which looks really atmospheric against the clouds. The giraffe looks like a villain from a Wild West movie! Cue "The Good, the Bad & The Ugly" music !!

[mystiikmonk]

Originally Posted by SithDefender

Excellent photography! But I did detect a fair amount of noise (especially in the leopard leaping down the tree, and the lionesses looking into the sunset)-

Yes there is noise in both the pictures for two different reasons. The leopard one because I got excited with sighting and there was very less light during sunrise . So i bumped up the ISO as i wanted the shot no matter what. Usually my camera Sony A7S III works great in low light so I assumed this would come out great. Never the less it was my first time shooting in so less light, and later realized the mistake. I was trying out different modes . So the sillheoute one looks better.

The lion one is because of post processing. I exposed for the highlights and the lion got dark. So had to bump up the exposure in lightroom. Having learnt the lessons this time, will try for better shots again next time I visit.

[gadadhar]

I visited the Mara in the last week of October and stayed at Osero Sopia River Camp, which is located within the park and overlooks the Talek River. We spent five days in the Mara, followed by one day each in Nakuru and Amboseli. We were initially hoping to witness the great migration but were disappointed to find that it had ended as early as June-July. However, the entire trip was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, akin to something straight out of Wilbur Smith novels and NatGeo documentaries.

Your photos are exceptional, by the way. Hoping to write more about the experience as time permits.

[Cloudwalker]

Wonderful Photos with beautiful backgrounds. It looks great. I love the cubs and elephant calves photos. The giraffe with the sun background is like a movie shot.

Thanks for listing out in detail, I am adding this to the bucket list.

[SimpleHPian]

These photographs are simply magical, feels they are just out of Disney movie canvas

[mystiikmonk]

As we had many days and lots of time just observing, i decided to make a short documentary style video .And this was again a childhood dream being inspired by Nat-Geo and Discovery . Embedding the link here :

http://youtu.be/JqyEXjgGFI0?si=xP9EoQkFyhxY-kcA

[ramnath_77]

Fantastic set of pictures. You have portrayed the essence of Mara by the sheer variety of pictures you have taken. Loved those silhouettes and the Leopard running down the tree.