The Big Cats

A 5-Day eco-friendly, private Kenya safari which focuses on the Masai Mara. Enjoy peace of mind that your tour is being handled by Kenya experts who care about the environment. Enjoy quick & thorough communication: avoid surprises in Kenya.

Explore the wild expanse of the Masai Mara…

DAY 1 NAIROBI – MASAI MARA

Depart Nairobi’s Wilson airport at 10am for the one hour flight to the Mara. You’ll be met at the Naboisho Ol Seki airstrip by Porini Mara staff and transferred to camp. Settle into your tent and enjoy lunch prepared by the camp chef. Afternoon game drive in the Ol Kinyei Conservancy, followed by a sundowner at a scenic spot. Return to camp for a shower, dinner and overnight.

Located within the Serengeti-Mara eco-system, Ol Kinyei is renowned for its unspoilt and breathtaking scenery with diverse terrain offering on one hand open savannah plains and rolling hills on the other. The land, with its abundance of water sources in the form of springs, streams and rivers, coupled with spectacular views across the Mara plains, is home to a wide variety of animal species. There is a resident lion pride of over 20 animals and several leopards also have their territories within the conservancy and are often sighted by guests from Porini Mara Camp on evening or early morning drives. Cheetahs are frequently seen and it is not rare to come across large numbers of giraffe as well as Cape buffalo and elephants.

DAY 2 MASAI MARA

Awake to the natural sounds of the Mara’s birdlife. Leave camp soon after dawn to explore the Ol Kinyei Conservancy on the lookout for elephants, buffalo, giraffe, plains game and the big cats. You will have a bush breakfast out in the wilds and then return to camp for lunch. In the afternoon you will have a further game drive in Ol Kinyei and Naboisho Conservancies with a sundowner at a scenic spot followed by a night game drive with spotlights to search for nocturnal animals, including the elusive leopards which are resident in Ol Kinyei, before heading back to camp for dinner.

DAY 3 MASAI MARA

After breakfast leave camp and drive through Ol Kinyei and Naboisho Conservancies, game- viewing as you go, and on to Olare Motorogi Conservancy arriving at Porini Lion Camp for lunch. Afternoon game drive in the exclusive Olare Motorogi Conservancy, away from the minibuses and tourist vehicles seen in the reserve, and with an excellent chance of sighting lions, cheetahs and leopards all of which are found in the conservancy. Sundowner and night game drive. Overnight Porini Lion Camp.

The Olare Motorogi Conservancy (comprised of the former Olare Orok Conservancy and Motorogi Conservancy) is 33000 acres of outstanding natural beauty and ecological importance. The conservancy directly borders the Maasai Mara National Reserve and it contains the lower valleys of the Olare Orok and Ntiakitiak rivers, riverine forest, the Ntiakitiak Gorge and a 12km escarpment below which are large areas of acacia woodland. The conservancy ensures a true wilderness experience with one of the lowest tourist densities in the Mara region. The only safari vehicles on the land are the few 4x4s related to the handful of small camps within this vast area and there is a rich and diverse wildlife population with good numbers of predators and herbivores. The eco-friendly Porini Lion Camp has no permanent construction and is situated along the Ntiakatiak River, a seasonal river with permanent hippo pools near camp. With ten guest tents the camp is small and exclusive, giving you a real “in the bush” safari camping experience. The tents are very spacious and have private verandas along the length of the tent, providing a secluded and quiet place for you to relax and enjoy the beauty of this African wilderness. Each tent has en-suite bathrooms with flush toilets and hot showers. Food is excellent with fresh baked bread and high quality meals prepared by the camp Chef.

DAY 4 MASAI MARA

A full day spent on a game drive in the famous Masai Mara Reserve with a picnic lunch in the park and then return to Porini Lion Camp in the late afternoon. Dinner and overnight at Porini Lion Camp.

Kenya’s Maasai Mara is one of the greatest wildlife destinations on Earth and its profusion of plains game and stealthy predators has made it synonymous with the safari. For decades it has been a favorite location for film-makers producing nature documentaries as well as feature films. This is a diverse landscape harboring varied habitats within its majestic plains, rocky outcrops, ancient woodland and life-giving rivers. It adjoins the northern sweep of neighbouring Tanzania’s Serengeti plains thus forming one huge ecosystem. The Mara lands are famous for the annual Wildebeest Migration (one of the Natural Wonders of the World) which occurs from June to October when the Mara becomes host to an almost unimaginable half a million wildebeest seeking the grasses raised by the Spring rains of April and May. Having exhausted the grazing in the northern Serengeti the wildebeest head north en masse. This is an awesome sight in the true meaning of the word which, when coupled with the sound of thousands upon thousands of hooves pounding the earth, makes it an unforgettable spectacle. The Wildebeest are not the only tenants of the land. The Mara is also the home to among others, zebra, elephants, and to the big cats; cheetahs, lions and leopards. Hyena, jackal, buffalo, eland, topi, impala, gazelle, warthog add to this huge diversity of wildlife.

DAY 5 MASAI MARA – NAIROBI

Final early morning game drive in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy and then drive into the reserve to the Ol Kiombo airstrip to fly back on the 11am flight to Wilson Airport in Nairobi, arriving at around 12.05h. Or take the option of a further night at Porini Lion Camp with game drives in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy or the Masai Mara Reserve.