Accommodation in Kenya

Kenya is where the safari was invented and it still does it better than almost anywhere. The Masai Mara is the northern end of the Serengeti ecosystem and holds the highest predator density in Africa, with the Mara river crossings drawing the herds from roughly July to October. Around it, the country offers things the Mara does not: Amboseli for elephants under Kilimanjaro, Samburu and the northern rangelands for the dry-country species found nowhere south of it, Laikipia for private conservancies that mix conservation with community land, and the Indian Ocean coast at Diani and Watamu to finish.

The conservancies bordering the Mara reserve are worth understanding before booking. They cap vehicle numbers, allow off-road driving and night drives that the national reserve does not, and they pay Maasai landowners directly for keeping the land open. A conservancy camp costs more and delivers a quieter, closer sighting.

July to October is the peak, dry and busy. January and February are hot, dry and much quieter, and are excellent. The long rains fall from March to May and the short rains in November, both cheap and green, both with some risk to the roads.